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BCM Chess Book Reviews : August 2003Return to the BCM Review Index
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John Watson’s Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy was a deserved
best-seller, so this follow-up will be eagerly awaited. John Watson’s
particular talent lies in his ability to sift material to show distinct
patterns and demonstrate trends in the way the modern game is played.
Like the conductor of an orchestra, he brings together the work of virtuoso
players and commentators to illustrate a common theme. Thus many of the
games in the book have already been deeply annotated by others, with Watson
stepping in to examine their overall significance in terms of chess philosophy.
It would be an exaggeration to describe this book as ‘ground-breaking’
as was the case with the first book. The themes examined (good/bad bishops,
pawn majorities, etc) are well-known from many another work on strategy.
It is just that Watson extracts more juice from them than is the norm.
Recommended.
It was rather surprising to find the first chapter about such a young
grandmaster entitled “The Long and Winding Road”; yet somehow
it expresses the feeling that Leko already seems to have been around for
ever. Until the middle of last year, he had such a pacific reputation
that his name was becoming synonymous with ‘draw’. But it is
not unusual for prodigies to suffer the ‘plateau effect’: sharp
ascents in strength followed by periods of lack of progress. Leko seemed
to jump forward in strength and ambition in the summer of 2002, and now
finds himself the heir apparent to Kramnik’s match-play version of
the world title. In addition to the games, annotated by a variety of grandmasters,
Soloviov tells the story of Leko from the time he came under the wing
of professional chess coach Tibor Karolyi when he was nine to his recent
flowering under father-in-law Arshak Petrosian. There are also some good
quality photographs of the young man in action.
Another prodigious tome stuffed with historical material, though it is
obvious from the title that the concept of quarterly publication has long
since become redundant. There are long chapters on Reshevsky’s career
as a prodigy, a history of San Francisco’s well-known Mechanics Institute
Chess Club, Norman Whitaker in Pittsburgh, reprinted writings about Steinitz
vs Zukertort 1882-6, biographies of Hromadka, Teed and Hofmann, and writings
on ‘forgotten tournaments’. There seems little point in reprinting
all the game scores from Carlsbad 1929 over more than 70 pages.
This is a basic introduction to 1 c4 for White and Black players. Neil McDonald is a clear and lively writer and has considerable experience as a coach, an asset that shows in various useful hints and warnings for the unwary. Complete annotated games form the bulk of the book: these have been well-chosen for instructional value, with a balance between new and older, the latter including a few of Karpov's finest. The layout is attractive, and newcomers to the English will gain much from the work.
Unfortunately there are some specific drawbacks.
Appropriately for a 'Starting Out' book (especially on the English) McDonald
tends to avoid heavy analysis, but in a few key variations this minimalist
approach becomes misleading. The pawn sacrifice 1 c4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 g3
g6 4 Bg2 Bg7 5 Nc3 e6 6 d4!? is sharp and "theoretical", as
McDonald says, but he gives for Black only 6…Nxd4 (6…cxd4 is
usual, but unmentioned) 7 Nxd4 cxd4 8 Nb5 Qb6, failing to consider White's
best line 8 Ne4.
Again: after 1 c4 c5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 Nc3 Nc6 4 g3
d5 5 cxd5 Nxd5 6 Bg2 g6 7 0-0 Bg7 8 Nxd5 Qxd5 9 d3 0-0 10 Be3 Bxb2 11
Rb1 Bg7 12 Nd4 McDonald gives 12…Qd6 13 Nxc6 bxc6 14 Qc2 as favourable
to White, claiming that 12…Qxa2 13 Nxc6 bxc6 14 Bxc6 sees White win
the exchange. In fact now 14…Bh3 is pleasant for Black, casting doubt
on McDonald's implication that Black should refrain from 10…Bxb2.
And in "a line that needs some care": 1 c4 c5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 d4
cxd4 4 Nxd4 e6 5 Nc3 Nc6 6 Ndb5 d5 7 Bf4 e5 8 cxd5 exf4 9 dxc6 bxc6 10
Qxd8+ Kxd8 11 Rd1+ Bd7 12 Nd6 the book inexplicably gives 12…Rb8
as unclear (White has 13 Nxf7+).
Finally, there's a generally good discussion
of the Reti, but 1 c4 c6 2 g3 d5 3 Bg2 Nf6 4 Nf3 Bg4 5 Ne5 Bh5 6 cxd5
cxd5 7 Qa4+ is given as good for White without considering Black's improvements
6…Nxd5 and 5…Be6 (NCO).
So readers should keep their wits about them;
but these problems are not representative of a largely instructive and
enjoyable book. Review by James Vigus (note: this is a slightly
longer version of the review that appeared in the printed magazine, which
had to be shortened for reasons of space)
The sub-title is “approaching the psychological battle both on and
off the board”. The bibliography is telling: the author quotes as
many books on psychology as he does on chess. So are the acknowledgements:
the author’s wife Mioto is a paid-up member of the British Psychological
Society. But there need be no worries about encountering tiresome psycho-babble
as the author starts into an anecdotal and humorous account of his career
in chess. The book reads very like a school lesson or university lecture,
but one delivered by a teacher who chips in bits of fun and humour to
keep your attention. He doesn’t sit the reader in front of too many
actual chess positions, but when he does the instructional value is as
high as the ‘fun quotient’.
This is another in the Everyman series of introductory opening primers
for elementary players and beginners. Obviously 144 pages are not sufficient
to convey the depth and breadth of an opening such as the Ruy Lopez in
much detail, so it would suit an experienced Lopez aficionado. Shaw risks
putting the reader off by starting the book with the queenless desert
of the Berlin Defence and only arrives at the main line Closed Ruy Lopez
on page 111. But it’s good stuff and well presented.
A new algebraic edition of a book first published in 1976. In it Reshevsky
annotates 61 games (not just his own) from the late 1960s and early 1970s,
with short introductions giving particular attention to positional themes.
I wonder how many other chess books covering this era manage to omit the
‘f’-word: there’s not one mention of Fischer.
All the usual features of a yearbook: letters forum, Sosonko’s Corner,
and 36 opening surveys. Picking out one example: Judit Polgar’s wonderful
win against Berkes at the ‘Hunguest’ Budapest tournament (see
BCM, June 2003, p.314) has changed the theory of the French Burn
Variation (perhaps we should rename it the ‘Chinese Burn’ variation).
Many readers will already be familiar with Averbakh’s authoritative
five-volume endgame work, published by Pergamon/Cadogan some years ago.
Though now out of print in paper format, Convekta have made it available
on CD-ROM. What you get is a pared-down version of the chess database
software Chess Assistant 7.1 (without game-saving and database-loading
features) delivering all of Averbakh’s master work in digital format.
It is easy to install and use, and comes with the strong Crafty program
to enable you to analyse positions. Games are exportable to PGN notation
enabling you to move material to the database of your choice. System
specification: Windows 98 and upwards, 64MBs memory, 150 MBs hard
disk. You can also purchase separately a Nalimov Tablebase of three, four
and five piece endgames. This is in DVD-ROM format and is compatible with
Chess Assistant, Fritz and Shredder. Note (2007): The Nalimov Endgame
Tablebases product has now been upgraded to Total Nalimov Tablesbases
(including some 6-piece tablebases). Click
here for further details.
| CLICK HERE TO GO TO VIDEO / DVD PAGE TO ORDER |
These two videos cover 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 on Volume One, and 1
e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 Bb5+ (and 2...Nc6 3 Bb5 d6 transpositions) on Volume
Two. 3 Bb5 has grown enormously in popularity and importance in the last
ten years, and it is clear that Grandmaster Chandler has researched his
material very thoroughly. As to content, this is not just ‘club-player’
fare: Chandler’s original suggestions and contradictions of published
theory carry weight and will be of value to players of all levels. It’s
worth watching right through the closing credits to enjoy a few laconic
observations. Each volume contains a leaflet with game scores (with light
notes) of the games discussed. This is a top-quality product which was
a pleasure to review.
Ray Keene was one of Britain’s top players from the late 1960s
to the mid-1980s, and in the early 1970s the absolute numero uno.
This collection of his 100 best games was originally published privately
in 1999 to celebrate his 50th birthday. It overlaps to some extent with
his 1977 Batsford book Becoming a Grandmaster. As he says in the
preface, “I only recall my successes”. So, don’t say you
weren’t warned. In fact, if you can stomach all the ‘Barnum
and Bailey’ bragging, you’ll find an excellent game collection.
| OUT OF PRINT |
The author’s latest anthology of chess notes, published in many
places over the years, but now to be read mainly in the pages of Kingpin
and on the Chess Café website. An interesting historical
sourcebook, laced with acid comments about various personalities and periodicals.
