Review: 50 Mistakes You Should Know
“The mistakes are there, waiting to be made.” – Savielly Tartakower.
Spanish GM Jesus de la Villa is perhaps best known for his series of books on endgame patterns. In this book, he now turns his attention to the typical patterns of mistakes that players commit. Although all players make mistakes, characterising them is not as straightforward as endgame patterns, and this makes the book a welcome addition to chess literature.
As the Table of Contents above shows, the book covers mistakes in all areas of the game, and it also includes discussion on the important areas of calculating variations and basic tactics. The author uses a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt to set the scene for the book:
“Learn from the errors of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.”
He goes on to explain the aims of the book:
“This is a book for all chess players, and it is about how they can learn from their errors. It is divided into sections showing games played by amateurs and it aims to shed light on their worst moves… No matter how many times an error has to be made, the lesson can be learnt, and it will be learnt much sooner if we stop protecting our ego by making excuses and blaming our defeats on bad luck.”
The use of mostly amateur games is an unusual aspect of the book. However, many of the players are known to the author through his extensive background as a chess coach, and they have provided insights into their thinking during the games when the mistakes were made.
50 Mistakes You Should Know
Jesus De la Villa
New in Chess
The key recommendation from the book is the careful analysis of a player’s own games and finding the causes for the mistakes. The author recommends a three-stage procedure for this:
“The first step is to analyse our games and find an average number of errors – let’s say five. In other words, five positions where the evaluation has worsened after your move…
The second step, which is also very important, is to classify the errors. And this is where the origin and objective of this book lie… In the last twelve years, while the Spanish age-group championships have been taking place throughout the month of July in Salobreña (Granada), I have been following them live, developing training tasks and analyses. It is there that I have become most aware of how players repeat the same errors, both generally and individually, and I realized that it could be very useful to classify them…
The third step, once individual errors have been detected and classified, is the work of correcting them. And in error-based learning, that step towards a solution starts to be made as soon as the problem is identified.”
Many of the games in the book are from the championships mentioned in the above quote, with most of the players rated in the Elo range 1400 – 2200. The book includes 255 games.
Each chapter starts with a series of exercises for the reader to solve. There are 72 such exercises in the book. The exercises are taken from games that are discussed later in the chapter where the solutions are given. Each chapter then discusses the errors committed in the games, and more importantly, what steps can be taken to avoid the errors in future games, and some recommended books to read. Sometimes, an example includes several errors that are discussed in the book, and in this case the text links to the other errors for easy cross-reference and to improve the learning outcomes.
As expected in a modern book, there is extensive analysis using chess engines. However, the author urges the reader not to use engines blindly. He writes:
“The most obvious use [of an engine], and the one I recommend above all, is in reviewing your games. When doing this, there is only one indispensable rule: you must understand every time the difference between the engine’s preference and your own moves.
It is possible (indeed, it occurs frequently) that the engine will suggest an incomprehensible move. This situation can be a source of confusion, but also an opportunity to learn something. When it happens, an extra effort is advisable, trying out moves back and forth and looking carefully to discover the reason. You will often find that the engine’s move was not so strange after all.”
Another interesting piece of advice is to use chess engines to study slightly different positions, for example, moving a pawn in a position to another file, and seeing how the engine’s evaluation changes. The author writes:
“Another useful application is the art of comparison as a learning strategy. This involves looking at the engine’s evaluation of slight variations in the position: removing some pieces or changing the position of a few pawns or pieces. In some examples, you will see what I call the Stockfish evaluation table.”
The book contains several examples of these tables, and it’s fascinating to note how a small change in a position can make a significant difference.
Finally, the author cautions about the uncritical use of engines when following tournaments online:
“But I will allow myself to give an important piece of advice: never use the engine to follow live games in an ongoing tournament. It will restrict your search and cause you to think that some moves, which you would have found if you had looked deeper on your own, are inhuman decisions. You cannot imagine how much more you will learn if you search for the moves on your own!”
Two examples from the book are given below, with annotations from the book.
The second example is the author’s favourite from the book Recognizing Your Opponent’s Resources by Mark Dvoretsky.
In conclusion, this is an excellent and original book. It combines excellent examples and clear and lucid commentary. Hence, players of all levels will benefit from a careful study of the book.
50 Mistakes You Should Know
Jesus De la Villa
New in Chess
- Best Pirc and Modern Defense Books: Complete Guide - October 25, 2026
- Best Italian Game Chess Books: Complete Opening Guide - October 20, 2026
- Best Books on the English Opening: A Complete Guide - October 15, 2026