Review: Learn from the Legends 2: Chess Heroes at their Best
“I have put all my energy, knowledge and emotions into every single book I have written since then, but the traces left by Learn from the Legends were deep in my soul and not easy to replenish.” – The author in the Preface.
GM Mihail Marin’s book Learn from the Legends: Chess Champions at their Best was first published in 2004, and the third edition appeared in 2015. The book has been well-received, as the three editions show, so it is perhaps inevitable that a second volume would appear.
Marin writes about the motivation and style of the new book as follows.
“The same as with Learn from the Legends, this book is a collection of the best efforts of players from the past, whose style and achievements have impressed me deeply. There are a few important differences between the two books though. Each of the heroes in this current book has his own individual style, hard to confuse with that of the others. However, I wanted the respective chapters to have a tighter connection with each other than in the original Legends book.
I started my work free of preconceptions but, as the book progressed, it became clear that tactical abilities and attacking skills were common elements in the styles of my heroes. This discovery gave me the general direction for the book, turning it into a slightly unusual form of tactical and attacking manual, within a biographical framework. At the same time, all the players had their own trademark way of preparing and carrying out their attacks.”
Learn from the Legends 2: Chess Heroes at their Best
Author: Mihail Marin
Publisher: Quality Chess
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As the Table of Contents below shows, the new volume discusses the games of five relatively modern players, each of whom was a world-class player, although only David Bronstein played in a world championship match.
Regarding the inclusion of fellow Hungarian champion Lajos Portisch, the author writes:
“Many may be surprised that I dedicated the last chapter to Lajos Portisch, but I had both objective and subjective reasons for doing so. Even though he never came close to challenging for the highest title in chess, Portisch qualified for the Candidates eight times, a record beaten only by Korchnoi. In my opinion, Portisch’s style is the hardest to understand. Almost unanimously regarded as a theoretician and positional maestro, he gives me the impression of a very concrete player. His moves and general decisions were hard to anticipate; but after his games were finished, they looked logical overall. Like Polugaevsky and Keres, the classical strategist Portisch rarely missed an opportunity to initiate incalculable complications or attacks. He was also one of the players I was rooting for during my teenage years, a period in which I had the opportunity to play three games against him – all ending in my defeat.”
Each chapter starts with an introduction to the players before discussing some of their games, together with games with other players, that fit the theme of the book. The introductions also include some insights into how the players compared to some of their contemporaries. For example, Marin writes of Leonid Stein:
“There is an important difference between Stein and Tal. For the latter, attacking was a state of mind and a creative necessity, and he often disregarded the objective requirements of the position when unleashing his tactical powers. In his best years, Stein used to attack only when feeling that he had all the favourable requirements in place for it. I believe that a key component of his strength was precisely the skill of patiently preparing his attacks. As a rule, when everything was ready, his attacks were both unexpected and unstoppable.”
Each chapter concludes with a test section with eight positions. As the author warns, these tests are not simple. However, the solutions are very detailed and help readers to absorb the lessons from the tests. As a bonus, the book also includes a caricature of each player and a fine selection of historical photos.
Each game is extensively annotated, and of course the author has made use of the results of engine analysis, particularly for complicated tactical positions. However, the author has provided copious comments to ensure that readers are not left bewildered by the computer-generated variations.
Of course, it’s inevitable that current super-strong engines will find some flaws in the games. However, this does not detract from the games or the players, who didn’t have access to strong chess engines during their primes. Marin writes:
“The book pays homage to leading players from the times when players could only use their minds for analysing and playing, without silicon assistance, giving them outstanding intellectual strength.”
However, the author is realistic about the limitations of computer-assisted analysis. He writes at the end of a long analysis:
“One can never be sure of the ultimate conclusion of such a long line of analysis, but White is surely closer to a win than Black is to a draw.”
The author even finds time for a bit of humour. Commenting on Stein’s 30th move in the game Stein – Tarve, Parnu 1971, he writes:
“There was nothing wrong with 30.Bxc6 (or 30.Rxh6†), but Stein finds the quickest mate, without the need to consult a smartphone in the restroom.”
Two examples from the book are given below, with annotations from the book.
In conclusion, this is an excellent book that can read for its educational value and for pure pleasure. Marin writes of the book:
“[T]he rigorous process of selecting the games should make this book a useful tool for improving the reader’s calculation, tactical skills and attacking abilities.”
He is being far too modest in his assessment of his own book. The new book is a worthy successor of the first Legends volume. Let’s just hope we don’t have to wait another 20 years for the next volume!
Learn from the Legends 2: Chess Heroes at their Best
Author: Mihail Marin
Publisher: Quality Chess
View Sample | BUY
