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Samuel Reshevsky is the ideal person to write a book on positional play because that was exactly the way he played: positionally. Reshevsky preferred to crush his opponents slowly, like a python, rather than to win with a blaze of tactics.

The legendary Anatoly Karpov has won over 250 Grandmaster tournaments, many more than any other player in chess history. His games are characterized by the gradual and patient pushing of an opponent back to the wall, before finally finishing him off with a deadly blow.

Superb defensive technique is a hallmark of all great chess-players. With a few deft counterstrokes, they not only deflect what looked like an overwhelming offensive, but also expose the darker side of their opponent's build-up. Is this sheer black magic, or are these skills that ordinary players can develop?

The implication from the author is that the task of converting a typically winning position into a full point or converting a drawing position into half-a-point is relatively straightforward. However, as all of us practical players realise, it's not always a simple as this, and many hard-earned points are wasted through 'a lack of technique'. In this valuable book, Jacob Aagaard aims to solve this perennial problem. He arms the reader with several endgame weapons that every strong technical player has in his toolbox.

This wonderfully entertaining book also happens to be quite effective. Everything any child will need to know about chess strategy and more is here in this book, which is well laid out and easy to follow. Part of the fun factor for kids is that the book is replete with cartoon images of chess characters to help make the learning experience more exciting.

Chess is a game where profound strategic thinking must be allied with clever short-term tactics. Most previous works on strategy focus on specific aspects of chess strategy, but Lars Bo Hansen's aims here are different. He creates a framework in which the various elements can be systematically included and organized - a framework that will help chess-players to think about chess strategy during practical play.

Publisher: ISHI Press
Author: Ludek Pachman
Year of Publication: 2012 (Reprint) Pages: 185
Notation Type: Descriptive (DN)


Book Description Continuing his major work on strategy and tactics in modern chess, the internationalyl renowned Grandmaster, Ludek Pachman, now turns his attention to the play of the pawns and the achievement of control of the center squares. Though the pawns are the weakest pieces in chess, their importance in determining the character of the attack (and defense) and the development of strategic play cannot be underestimated. Pawns are essential to the protection of important squares and pieces. They are the best means of blockading enemy pawns and when correctly deployed, their advance can open vital files and diagonals, thereby creating weaknesses in the opposite position. Despite its limited power, the pawn has one special advantage over other pieces in that it can be promoted when it reaches the eighth rank; a successful pawn advance can completely change the balance of power and the outcome of a game. Pawns have aptly been described as "the soul of chess." Vital of chess mastery is a basic understanding of the importance of control of the center squares. The effectiveness of the pieces depend upon the strength of their position and center control creates a vital sapatial superiority. The effective play of the pawns and center control have been touched upon on other works, but seldom with the insight and lucidity revealed in this second volume of Pachman's masterwork.

Positional chess remains a mystery to many and yet an understanding of the finer points of the game so often makes the difference between two equally matched players. Improve your positional play and you will see chess in a totally new dimension! In this unique book, International Master Jacob Aagaard selects many original examples of positional chess, the creme de la creme of those that he uses for training and study.