At the U.S. Championship in 1989, Stuart Rachels seemed bound for the cellar. Ranked last and holding no IM norms, the 20-year-old amateur from Alabama was expected to get waxed by the American top GMs of the day that included Seirawan, Gulko, Dzindzichashvili, deFirmian, Benjamin and Browne. Instead, Rachels pulled off a gigantic upset and became the youngest U.S. Champion since Bobby Fischer. Three years later he retired from competitive chess, but he never stopped following the game. In this wide-ranging, elegantly written, and highly personal memoir, Stuart Rachels passes on his knowledge of chess. Included are his duels against legends such as Kasparov, Anand, Spassky, Ivanchuk, Gelfand and Miles, but the heart of the book is the explanation of chess ideas interwoven with his captivating stories. There are chapters on tactics, endings, blunders, middlegames, cheating incidents, and even on how to combat that rotten opening, the Réti. Rachels offers a complete and entertaining course in chess strategy. At the back are listed 110 principles of play—bits of wisdom that arise naturally in the book’s 24 chapters. Every chess player will find it difficult to put this sparkling book down. As a bonus, it will make you a better player.

Mastering Positional Chess is a serious, but entertaining chess instruction book. Daniel started writing it when he realized that his lack of positional understanding was causing him to lose many games.

The best games of one of the best players in chess history. 220 games with Alekhine's own accounts. Spans 30 years of tournament play.

Ilya Maizelis's masterpiece is the definitive introduction to the game of chess. It has inspired generations of Russians to take up the game, including arguably the two greatest players of all time, the 12th and 13th World Champions. In the original Russian, this landmark work is simply called "Chess"--no other explanation was considered necessary. The Soviet Chess Primer is a modern English translation of Maizelis's witty introduction to the royal game. This new edition of a timeless classic includes an original foreword from the 2nd World Champion, Emanuel Lasker, as well as an introduction from the most celebrated chess trainer of modern times, Mark Dvoretsky.

Bobby Fischer is a legendary chess figure, and many consider him to be the greatest chess player of all time. Fischer was a child prodigy who later developed into a phenomenal force. During his peak years he dominated his nearest rivals in a manner that had previously never been seen. Fischer achieved his goal of becoming World Champion after beating Boris Spassky in their ‘Match of the Century’ in 1972, an epic contest which did more than anything else to popularize the game throughout the world. In this book, former American Open Champion Cyrus Lakdawala studies his favourite Fischer games. Lakdawala examines Fischer’s renowned skills in attack, defence, counterattack, exploiting imbalances, dynamic elements, accumulating advantages and endgame play. Move by Move provides an ideal platform to study chess. By continually challenging the reader to answer probing questions throughout the book, the Move by Move format greatly encourages the learning and practising of vital skills just as much as the traditional assimilation of knowledge. Carefully selected questions and answers are designed to keep you actively involved and allow you to monitor your progress as you learn. This is an excellent way to improve your chess skills and knowledge.

Checkmating the enemy king is the ultimate goal in chess. In this book Simon Williams helps readers to practice and improve their skills in this vital area of practical chess. A mating attack typically involves a build-up of forces, followed by an opening of lines, often involving a sacrifice. Once the enemy king is exposed, it is either checkmated, or only saved at a great cost in material. The puzzles in this book are pertinent to all these phases, and involve questions of where to attack and what pieces to use. Topics include: Attacking the king caught in the centre; Central breakthrough; Standard sacrifices against the castled king; Chasing the king; Endgame mates; Combinative themes.