My Great Predecessors (Part II)

From Mark Weeks,
Your Guide to Chess.
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Guide Rating -

The Bottom Line

(May 2004) My Great Predecessors Part II by Garry Kasparov with the participation of Dmitry Plisetsky [translated by Ken Neat]; Everyman Chess; October 2003; 480 pages. • The 13th World Chess Champion writes about the 5th through 8th Champions. • Contains 149 games, thoroughly annotated.

Pros	Kasparov is one of few people who can understand the Soviet champions and their circumstances. The break from classic opening theory and early hypermodernism is particularly well documented. The selection of games is superb.
Cons	Matches are generally discussed in the chapter on the winner, chronologically out of sequence. Kasparov is occasionally unable to disassociate himself from personal bias.

Description

Introduction : Dramas of the Chess Kings
Ch.1 : Max Euwe (1935-1937)
Ch.2 : Mikhail Botvinnik (1946-1957, 1958-1960, 1961-1963)
Ch.3 : Vassily Smyslov (1957-1958)
Ch.4 : Mikhail Tal (1960-1961)
Appendices : Index of players, index of openings by name and ECO code.

Guide Review - My Great Predecessors (Part II)

Our pros, cons, and Guide Review comments for Part I (linked under 'Suggested Reading') apply equally to Part II. We can only hope that the last volume in the Predecessor series (the third?) will offer a bibliography and/or footnotes covering all volumes. • Kasparov was the last champion who passed all of his formative years within the unique political and economic system developed to govern the Soviet Union. After an extensive account of Euwe's career, Part II of Kasparov's work covers the rise and domination of the Soviet School of chess. He has personal recollections of all major, post-WWII Soviet players, except Keres and Stein. The section on the Botvinnik school ('I am the only genuine pupil of Botvinnik'!) and Kasparov's later relationship with Botvinnik is historically important. • Kasparov writes, 'In chess the champions changed for various reasons, but the primary one was usually historic: the continuous and rapid development of the game itself.' The chess world eagerly awaits the next volume! We are particularly interested to see how he will treat Karpov.

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