The Italian Game (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4) has a large literature, but few of the Italian books we assessed have independent reviews that support them on the Italian specifically.
This guide to the best Italian Game chess books recommends four titles: Emms’s First Steps: 1 e4 e5 for beginners on either side, Müller and Souleidis’s Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian for club players as White, Jones’s Coffeehouse Repertoire 1.e4 Volume 2 for advanced players as White, and Ntirlis’s Playing 1.e4 e5 for advanced players as Black.
Last updated October 2026.
A general note: opening theory keeps moving, and the books recommended here were published between 2016 and 2021. They remain our recommendations, but check sharp main lines against a current database before relying on them in your games.
Best Italian Game Chess Books for beginners: both sides
For a beginner on either side of the Italian, start with Emms’s First Steps: 1 e4 e5.
First Steps: 1 e4 e5 — John Emms
Everyman Chess, 2018.
It is an introduction to the 1.e4 e5 openings rather than an Italian specialist book, and the Italian is its largest block: an introductory chapter, a chapter on playing the Italian for both sides, and chapters on the Evans Gambit and the Two Knights Defense. In his preface, Emms addresses players “taking your very first steps in chess openings.”
As of October 2026 the book averages 4.8 stars from 59 Amazon ratings, and one reader writes: “The Italian game is the easiest, and chapter 1 and 2 have improved my game tremendously!”
Review record. No published review assesses the Italian chapters on their own, so this pick rests on the book as a whole.
Best Italian Game Chess Books for White
Club players should start with Müller and Souleidis’s Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian, a White repertoire built on the slow c2-c3 and d2-d3 set-up; advanced players should consider Jones’s Coffeehouse Repertoire 1.e4 Volume 2, where the Italian opening is part of a full 1.e4 repertoire.
Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian — Karsten Müller and Georgios Souleidis
An Easy-to-Grasp Chess Opening for White. New In Chess, 2016.
A White repertoire built on the slow c2-c3 and d2-d3 set-up rather than an early d2-d4. Uwe Bekemann, reviewing the English edition on bekemann.de, judged it the repertoire book with “the most convincing concept” of those he had recently received, called its concept and execution “exemplary,” and called it “an excellent foundation” for White players adding this Italian opening (all translated from German). He places it at the already-stronger club player.
The reservation is about layout, not analysis: Bekemann regretted the lack of an index of variations, and on Amazon one reader found the layout of the lines hard to follow while another disliked the notation.
Coffeehouse Repertoire 1.e4 Volume 2 — Gawain Jones
Quality Chess, 2021.
The second half of a complete 1.e4 repertoire, so the Italian is one part among several: 3.Bc4 leads into two chapters, the Scotch Gambit (via 3…Nf6 4.d4) and the Forcing Italian (mainly against 3…Bc5). Jones meets 2…Nc6 with 3.Bc4, but with what he calls “more aggressive intentions than in the usual d2-d3 lines,” aiming for a quick d2-d4.
Reviewing it for Chess Life, IM John Watson wrote of the Italian lines that “the lengthiest lines end in positions with sufficient play for both sides, to the extent that they seem quite as practical as entering into one of the typical Ruy Lopez main lines.” On level, Watson judged it best for “experienced players or truly dedicated students,” though he added that “even developing players could use this book to fill out parts of their repertoires,” and CHESS magazine advised club players to stick to the book’s key ideas and main lines.
Best Italian Game Chess Books for Black
For advanced players, Ntirlis’s Playing 1.e4 e5, which answers 3.Bc4 with the Two Knights Defense, is the one Black book recommended here.
Club-level Black players. No book in this guide is recommended for Black at club level, though beginners can use Emms’s First Steps: 1 e4 e5 above.
Playing 1.e4 e5 — Nikolaos Ntirlis
A Classical Repertoire. Quality Chess, 2016.
A complete 1…e5 repertoire in which the Italian gets two chapters. Against 3.Bc4 it recommends 3…Nf6, the Two Knights Defense, rather than 3…Bc5.
In his review, GM David Smerdon singled out Ntirlis’s answer to what the book calls the Improved Morphy Attack (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.0-0), namely 5…Nxe4 6.Re1 d5 7.Bxd5 Qxd5 8.Nc3 Qd7!?: after analyzing it himself, he found it “simpler and no worse than the main lines.” He called the whole book “thorough, high-quality and surprisingly easy to read” and gave it four stars.
The same review carries a caution. In the open-game chapters, which include the Italian ones, Smerdon felt Ntirlis “is too optimistic about Black’s chances,” though he called this “not a big drawback” and advised reading the notes carefully.
Comparison
| Book | Side | Italian coverage | Level | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emms, First Steps: 1 e4 e5 | Both | Italian, Evans Gambit, Two Knights within 1.e4 e5 | Beginner | 2018 |
| Müller & Souleidis, Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian | White | Slow Italian (c3 and d3) | Club | 2016 |
| Jones, Coffeehouse Repertoire 1.e4 Volume 2 | White | 3.Bc4 with an early d2-d4, within a full 1.e4 repertoire | Advanced | 2021 |
| Ntirlis, Playing 1.e4 e5 | Black | Two Knights (3…Nf6), within a full 1…e5 repertoire | Advanced | 2016 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the Italian Game?
The Italian Game is the opening that begins 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4. This guide recommends one beginner book for both sides, two books for White and one for Black.
What is the best book on the Italian Game for White?
For club players, Müller and Souleidis’s Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian. For advanced players, Jones’s Coffeehouse Repertoire 1.e4 Volume 2, where the Italian is part of a full 1.e4 repertoire.
What should Black read against the Italian?
At advanced level, Ntirlis’s Playing 1.e4 e5, which answers 3.Bc4 with the Two Knights. No book in this guide is recommended for Black at club level; beginners can use Emms’s First Steps: 1 e4 e5, which covers both sides.
Is there a good Italian book for beginners?
Emms’s First Steps: 1 e4 e5. It is a general introduction to 1.e4 e5, but its Italian chapters together are its biggest section.
Why does this guide recommend so few books?
Several other dedicated Italian books exist, but we found too little independent review evidence for them, so we have not recommended them.
More opening guides
For beginners — both sides
- First Steps: 1 e4 e5 by Emms — a general introduction to 1.e4 e5 for either side, whose Italian chapters together are its biggest section. No published review assesses those chapters on their own.
Playing the Italian as White
- Club: Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian by Müller and Souleidis — a White repertoire built on the slow c2-c3 and d2-d3 set-up.
- Advanced: Coffeehouse Repertoire 1.e4 Volume 2 by Jones — 3.Bc4 with an early d2-d4, where the Italian is part of a full 1.e4 repertoire.
Facing the Italian as Black
- Advanced: Playing 1.e4 e5 by Ntirlis — answers 3.Bc4 with the Two Knights Defense, within a full 1…e5 repertoire.
- Club: no book in this guide is recommended for Black at club level.
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