CROUCH - Modern Chess: Move by Move

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One of the best chessbook published. 

How to Reassess Your Chess is the popular step-by-step course that will create a marked improvement in anyone's game. In clear, direct language, Silman shows how to dissect a position, recognize its individual parts and ultimately find the move that conforms to the needs of that particular situation. By explaining the thought processes that go into a master's choice of move, the author presents a system of thought that makes advanced strategies seem clear, logical and at times even obvious. How the Reassess Your Chess offers invaluable knowledge and insight that cannot be found in any other book.  650 pages

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“And the Rest Is Just a Matter of Technique...”

How often has this comment been appended to a game move or variation? As many players know, it really may not be all that easy to figure out what is meant by this familiar phrase.

After the untimely passing of legendary instructor Mark Dvoretsky, Artur Yusupov was given access to Dvoretsky’s famous card files. With the core material based upon these files, the former top ten grandmaster – and perhaps the most successful of all of Dvoretsky’s students – put together this book, modifying and refining the content as needed.

The book begins with a “theoretical” explanatory section. This is followed by 102 practice positions, which increase in in difficulty. Good technique for gaining an advantage is useful in all areas of the game, so there are positions from the opening, middlegame, and especially the endgame – not only from practical games but also from various studies.

The comments to the solutions are very detailed, explaining not only the main line but also the supplementary side variations. Yusupov thought it important to demonstrate the logic in the search for a decision and to show how a chessplayer can come to the right conclusions at the board.

Dvoretsky’s master student Artur Yusupov has done a great job in selecting and presenting the material so that this book “feels” like another genuine Dvoretsky work. This book is a real gem and I hope that it gives you as much pleasure as it has given me. And that from now on, when you have an advantage, the rest really will be, well, just a matter of technique... – From the Foreword by Grandmaster Dr. Karsten Müller. 175 pages

Un classique constamment réédité depuis bientôt 40 ans. Le sujet exclusif en est l'attaque sur le roi - avec tout de même, ce qui est bien le moins, un chapitre sur la défense de ce même roi sauvagement agressé. Cibles, outils (i.e. les différentes pièces), moyens (les lignes d'attaque), timing... Tout est passé en revue dans ce gros pavé, qui reste la somme définitive sur le sujet.

The vast majority of chess games witness familiar strategies and well known tactical motifs. These are the games that you will find in the anthologies and opening repertoires. Sometimes however, games appear that seem to have been played on a different planet. 

Conventional strategies go out of the window. Familiar tactical themes are nowhere to be seen. Chaos has broken out. The pieces appear to be in open rebellion and are steadfastly refusing to do the natural jobs that they were designed for. 

Having to navigate a path in such a game can be a nightmare. Do you rely purely on calculation? Is it better to trust your instincts? Can you assess the position using “normal” criteria?

In order to answer these questions, prolific chess author and coach Cyrus Lakdawala has assembled a collection of brilliantly unconventional and irrational games. The positions in these games appear almost random. Kings have gone walkabout, pieces are on bizarre squares, huge pawn rollers are sweeping all before them. 

Irrational chess is like nothing you’ve seen before. As well as being highly instructive this is a hugely entertaining book. 

Do not adjust your set. It’s chess, Jim, but not as we know it.

Are you a parent of a junior chess player who feels that because you don’t know how to play chess, you can’t help your child? Or are you an adult or junior chess player who has taken private chess lessons for years, but feels you haven’t been progressing?

In both cases, there can be a lot of reliance on a chess coach who has been given free rein with lesson content and direction. They probably have some sort of plan but it is likely to be a plan used for all their students. This is not ideal. More important is a well-thought out, individualized plan, that focuses on a specific player’s unique strengths and weaknesses. Formulating such a plan is crucial for making improvements.

Victoria Doknjas and her son John Doknjas are an ideal writing partnership to tackle this topic. John is a FIDE Master who has already established himself as an excellent and highly-respected author who understands the improvement process very well. Victoria has over a decade of experience navigating the competitive chess arena with her three master-level sons, including also running her own chess academy. Together they offer a unique and informative insight to those wanting to get more out of their chess studies, as well as presenting practical advice in areas including:

- Identifying important goals and how to work towards them.
- Understanding how to objectively analyse your games.
- Maximising the efficiency of software and engines for learning.

Reading this book can broaden your horizons in the essential areas of chess study, and ideally let you better evaluate what your chess coach is teaching you. And if you don’t have a chess coach, this book will provide you with an excellent foundation for serious chess study.

384 pages

L'auteur, psychologue et maître international, livre ses réflexions sur les échecs et propose sa méthode d'apprentissage. D'une grande franchise, cet ouvrage stimulant offre un contrepoint bienvenu au célèbre ouvrage de Watson Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy.