Small Steps to Giant Improvement

The correct handling of pawns is one of the hardest things to teach in chess, because the guidelines are rarely spelled out. In this book, American grandmaster and former US Champion Sam Shankland sets out to do exactly that — reduce pawn play to a set of clear, memorable principles any player can actually apply.

The structure follows the simple truths that make pawns unique. The four parts are built around the facts that pawns cannot move backwards, can be compelled forwards, seldom move sideways, and can be forced to do so — and each principle is developed through themed chapters with names like “Protecting Your Children,” “Driving on Open Roads,” and “Keeping Your Door Locked.”

Shankland begins with strikingly simple positions and then raises the level steadily, repeatedly showing how even grandmasters could have made better decisions had they applied the book’s guidelines. Each chapter ends with exercises so you can test the idea before moving on.

The approach is practical rather than encyclopaedic: instead of cataloguing every structure, Shankland teaches a way of thinking about pawns that transfers to your own games. Suitable for club players and above who want their positional understanding to rest on principles they can state out loud.

This ebook is a part of Bundle: Pawn Play Bundle