Puzzle 6000 pièces - Downtown

Marc Quenehen, nous propose un voyage dans le temps en compagnie de Magnus Carlsen, qui démarre en 2000 lorsque Magnus à 9 ans et joue ses premiers tournois et se termine en 2023 et sa victoire en coupe du monde. En 24 chapitres (un par an), L'auteur à succès nous propose les meilleurs parties du champion mais aussi de nombreux  exercices. Un ouvrage à la fois pédagogique et un guide d'entraînement avec comme fil conducteur l'extraordinaire parcours de ce joueur d'exception. 181 pages

Pressure Play by Neil McDonald. Have you ever been tortured at the chessboard? If so, then you have probably been a victim of pressure play.

Elite players are brilliant exponents of pressure play. In situations where they have either a tiny advantage or no advantage at all they are highly adept at constantly setting problems for their unfortunate opponents. The position on the board may appear lifeless but they can probe and find plans and regroupings that will constantly ask their opponents difficult questions. These can be countered only by continual alert and accurate defence and we all know how difficult and wearing that can be.

The arch exponent of pressure play is world champion Magnus Carlsen. Carlsen is superb in this area of the game and consistently defeats world class opposition from simplified positions where he has no advantage whatsoever. How does he do it?

In this book, the highly experienced author and coach Neil McDonald analyses the finest examples of pressure play. In doing so he teases out the fundamental concepts that enable players like Carlsen to torture their opponents mercilessly.

• Paralyse the enemy pieces.

• Target the weakest squares on the board.

• Increase and exploit a space advantage.

Master pressure play and it will be your opponent on the rack, not you.  352 pages

Weighted with felted bottom Supreme Staunton chess pieces, sculpted in ebony: a precious wood of great density and of a profound blackness. Perfectly polished, shiny and smooth, they are finely sequined, which gives them in light this singular glittering aspect.

They will perfectly suits on a chessboard with squares measuring 55mm.

Rook endgames are the most important to study, because they are the type of endgame you will face most often over the board. Working on rook endgames gives the biggest bang for your buck.

World-class grandmaster Sam Shankland explains technical rook endgames in a way that is clearer, better organized, more concise, and easier to understand than any previous work. After learning the vital set positions, the reader is offered lots of rules and guidelines to correctly assess any theoretical rook endgame they have not yet memorized.

Theoretical Rook Endgames is the ideal guide to a vital topic in chess. After reading this book, you will know which positions must be memorized, and which positions are best handled by considering general principles.

The sister volume – Conceptual Rook Endgames by Jacob Aagaard – shows how the theoretical knowledge shown in the present book is used in advanced practical play.

GM Sam Shankland is the 2018 US Champion, 2016 Olympiad gold medal winner for teams and 2014 individual gold medal winner. He has played Board 1 for the US in the World Team Championship and competed with the best players in the world in Wijk aan Zee, St. Louis, Prague and elsewhere.  Hardcover 448 pages