This exceptional book continues the unique project where one of the greatest players of our time transforms her personal journey to the top into a roadmap for everyone who ever wanted to better themselves in the game of chess.
This ebook is a part of Bundle: Polgar Bundle
GM Dreev offers a new look at the old system 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 Bb5 Nge7 which is one of the most challenging ways to combat the Spanish.
It is well established that nothing improves a developing player faster than studying basic tactics — and that is exactly what this book sets out to teach, comprehensively and from the ground up. Award-winning instructor Dan Heisman covers the full vocabulary of tactical ideas with around 500 examples and problems, ranging from very easy to genuinely difficult.
The organisation is methodical. After an opening look at safety and counting — the bedrock skill of making sure a capture actually wins material — Heisman works through the complete catalogue of motifs: trapped pieces, pins, skewers, double threats and double attacks, knight and pawn forks, removal of the guard, discovered attacks and checks, promotion, and more. Further chapters cover checkmating patterns, tactics in the opening, and the often-overlooked area of defensive tactics.
Two ideas give the book its identity: “the seeds of tactical destruction,” Heisman’s framework for recognising when a position is ripe for a combination, and a closing scheme of five levels of tactical ability that lets you gauge where you stand.
Clear, encouraging, and genuinely thorough, this is a foundational tactics course for beginners and improving players — and a reminder that tactics are also simply the most fun part of the game.
This ebook is a part of Bundle: Dan Heisman's Books
In this book Ivan Sokolov presents a set of practical tools that will help you to master the art of sacrifice.
This is the second half of Lars Schandorff’s acclaimed White repertoire with 1.d4, and it completes the picture. Where Volume 1 dealt with 1...d5 and the Queen’s Gambit, this book answers everything else — the whole family of Indian Defences and related systems Black uses to avoid an early ...d5.
The coverage is broad and ambitious. Schandorff gives clear recommendations against the Nimzo-Indian, the King’s Indian, the Grünfeld, the Modern Benoni, the Benko Gambit, the Old Indian, and the Dutch, plus a chapter mopping up the various minor lines, the Budapest Gambit, and Modern Defence set-ups.
As in Volume 1, the approach reflects Schandorff’s style throughout the series: choose principled, fighting lines that pose Black real problems rather than steering for a quiet technical edge, and explain the resulting middlegames clearly enough that the reader can play them with understanding.
Together the two volumes give White a complete, coherent, grandmaster-tested repertoire after 1.d4 — written by an author who plays these positions himself. This is a demanding book aimed at ambitious club players and above who want one dependable answer to everything Black can throw at 1.d4.
Who says that you can’t learn from the games of amateurs? With approximately 99.5% of U.S. Chess Federation (USCF) members being amateurs (rated under 2200), there is much wisdom to be gained from studying their games. In fact, learning from amateurs' typical mistakes can often be more informative and relevant than learning from the subtle errors of grandmasters.
In this book, a renowned chess instructor, Dan Heisman, presents 30 games played by intermediate-level players, offering a rich variety of lessons in competitive play for all amateur chess enthusiasts.
A key focus of this book is time management, with many games time-stamped to showcase how long it took the players to make their moves. By analyzing the players' decision-making processes, Heisman provides valuable insights into the pitfalls of playing too fast or too slowly, helping readers avoid similar mistakes in their own games.
Additionally, the book emphasizes the importance of recognizing critical positions and making informed decisions, further enhancing players' strategic vision.
For amateur players seeking to enhance their chess skills, The World's Most Instructive Amateur Game Book is a valuable resource to gain insights from fellow enthusiasts and take their gameplay to new heights.
Chess master, author, and renowned teacher Dan Heisman shows you the whys and the hows of annotating your games. Using entertaining clashes from four decades of tournament play, Heisman traces his own development as a player and analyst, illustrating how his method works in practice.
The Leningrad Dutch
Of all the ways to meet 1.d4, the Leningrad Dutch is among the most combative: Black plays ...f5 and fianchettoes the king’s bishop, aiming for a King’s-Indian-style kingside attack but on his own original terms. And no one has done more for the variation than Vladimir Malaniuk, who has championed it at the highest level for decades.
This is Malaniuk’s own repertoire, the distilled product of a lifetime with the opening. He presents the Leningrad as an active, genuinely dangerous weapon rather than a dubious sideline, full of the original plans and counterattacking resources he has pioneered over thousands of games.
The coverage is complete from move one: the main Leningrad lines after 1.d4 f5 2.g3, the full range of Anti-Dutch tries (2.e3, 2.Bg5, 2.Nc3, 2.g4, 2.e4 and the rest), and the move orders via the Réti (1.Nf3 f5) and the Anglo-Dutch (1.c4 f5). The Chess Stars format pairs explanatory sections with complete annotated games.
A fighting, ambitious repertoire for club players and above who want to play for the win with Black against 1.d4 — straight from the opening’s leading authority.
Looking for Trouble
Almost every tactics book trains the same thing: here is a position, find the win. But half of practical chess is the opposite skill — spotting what your opponent is threatening before it lands. This book, now in a revised and enlarged third edition, is built around that neglected half.
Award-winning instructor Dan Heisman presents more than 300 problems in which your task is not to attack but to identify and meet a threat — in the opening, the middlegame, and the endgame. Recognising the danger is the first and most commonly skipped step, and training it directly does more to stop you losing than any number of "white to play and win" puzzles.
The problems are organised by phase and graded for difficulty, with Heisman’s trademark clear, patient explanations that suit players of a wide range of strengths. A bonus section on famous threats from master play adds some enjoyment to the workout.
For the many players who keep getting hit by things they "didn’t see coming," this is a direct and unusually practical remedy — a defensive-awareness course rather than another tactics anthology.
Cookie settings
We use cookies to deliver and improve our services, analyze site usage, and if you agree, to customize or personalize your experience and market our services to you. You can read our Cookie Policy hier.
