White players who enjoy playing the Ruy Lopez (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5) often expect to have an easy time in the opening. Numerous Black systems allow White to complete development with natural moves which often results in a small but clear advantage. Not so The Schliemann. The Schliemann (3...f5) is a ferocious beast that immediately takes the fight to White. The swift counter with ...f7-f5 is undoubtedly risky but has the advantage of disturbing White’s equanimity and setting difficult problems to solve as early as move three. Any White player who is not highly attuned to the nuances of this system can quickly find themselves in very hot water. This makes the Schliemann an ideal practical weapon for the aggressively-minded tactical player.
Not all chess players are ready to face a dangerous opening like the Grivas Sicilian, or any other open form of the Sicilian Defense of course, so an alternative set-up is on the quest. White has plenty of choices after 1.e4 c5; these choices sometimes are quite sound, and some others are simply crap!
Well, shorter time-controls (blitz & rapid) ‘favors’ safer, not forced and not very deep and long theoretical continuations, so White has a fair point for avoiding the open versions of the Sicilian Defense. Especially in the ‘cholera years’ as I call the 2020–2021 years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, chess players had to stay home, avoiding travelling and exercise instead via the internet form of our royal game.
This general fear demanded as ‘compensation’ a lighter approach to the game and some weird and unsound opening choices were on the daily menu. That’s fine of course, for the well-trained and ambitious chess player sitting behind the black pieces!
It is also quite true that this book is quite ‘heavy’ and contains many, many lines which are almost impossible to remember in totality. But chess is learned sub-consciously, so repeated motifs and ideas guide our choices and help us to recall important lines.
We must be trained not only in concrete opening moves, but on the middlegame, the endgame and the tactical part of the opening in question. And this is exactly what this book offers: a complete structural think-tank on the non-open form of the Sicilian Defense.
There are no good or bad openings – there are openings you understand and openings that you do not understand. And understanding comes by studying and applying the absorbed Knowledge!
The French Defence is a highly reliable response to 1.e4 which is popular at all levels. With the first two moves, Black creates a solid foundation in the centre and seeks to put pressure on White’s position in the early middlegame. In this book, International Master Cyrus Lakdawala explains the basic ideas in the French and examines the important variations. The key ideas are emphasized with notes, tips and warnings and the reader’s understanding is tested with frequent exercises. This book tells you everything you need to know in order to take your first steps with the French Defence.
First Steps books are based around carefully selected instructive games which demonstrate exactly what both sides are trying to achieve. There is enough theory to enable the improving player to get to grips with the opening without feeling overwhelmed. If you want to take up a new opening, First Steps is the ideal place to start.
The book presents a Black repertoire based on the Nimzo-Indian Defence.
From the "Preface": "I wrote this book for the adventurer who wants to start playing the Nimzo but is afraid of drowning in its lines. My creative task is to provide the reader with useful practical advice while sparing him unnecessary learning overhead." Igor Lysyj
Igor Lysyj is a strong grandmaster with a peak rating of 2700. He is also a FIDE Senior Trainer. Lysyj was Russian champion in 2014, European blitz champion in 2019, won the World Student’s championship in 2008 with the Russian team. Together with 43 other Russian chess players (including Chess Stars authors Khalifman, Kryakvin, Barski), Lysyj signed an open letter to Russian president Vladimir Putin, protesting against the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and expressing solidarity with the Ukrainian people.
The King’s Indian Defense has a reputation as a sharp combative opening where Black aims to attack on the kingside, usually through a pawn storm supported by heavier artillery.
Meet the Makogonov Variation!
In this line of the King’s Indian, it is frequently Black who will be the target of White’s aggression. Black’s standard plans usually result in either a passive position with little hope of counterplay or facing down a kingside attack by White. In this work, you will find forty-six thoroughly analyzed main games with lots of explanations and additional analysis as well as a 'Quick Repertoire' that will allow you to play the opening in your games after a minimal amount of study time. It is time to take your opponents out of their comfort zone and right into yours!
The Colle and London are opening systems for White starting with 1.d4. They are very popular choices at club level and for two very good reasons:
In this book, International Master Cyrus Lakdawala examines both openings in detail and provides a highly practical repertoire for White based on a mix of the Colle and the London. All the way through the reader is helped along by numerous notes, tips and exercises. This book tells you everything you need to know before taking your first steps with the Colle and London systems.
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The third volume of Sergey Voronkov’s epic tale takes the reader on a historical journey through the late Stalinist period in the USSR. It covers in depth the five Soviet championships from 1948 to 1952 and the playoff match between Botvinnik and Taimanov in 1953, which concludes one month before Stalin’s death. Against a background of rampant anti-Semitism, a new wave of repressions and descent into the First Cold War, in which chess was an important front, the USSR captures the world chess crown and Botvinnik and the generation that followed him, including Smyslov, Keres, Bronstein, and Boleslavsky, assert their places at the top-tables of Soviet and indeed global chess. Yet a new group of legends begins to emerge, including Petrosian, Geller, Korchnoi, Taimanov, Averbakh, Simagin, Kholmov, and Furman making their championship debuts, as well as a semi-final appearance by Nikitin and Spassky’s first quarter-final. At the same time, the reader learns about lesser-known masters Yuri Sakharov and Johannes Weltmander, victims of Stalinism who found solace in chess from their otherwise tragic lives.
The present volume contains 77 games and fragments, once again mostly annotated by the participants and other contemporary masters, augmented with modern computer analysis. It is illustrated with over 220 photos and cartoons from the period. Many of these photos come from unique archives, including that of David Bronstein, and are published for the first time.
Twenty years ago, New In Chess magazine started its own Proust Questionnaire, entitled Just Checking. In this back page column, chess players and personalities named their favourites, preferences, moods, life mottos and whatnot. One of the questions has always been: What was the most exciting chess game you ever saw?
Chess greats such as Anand, Shirov and Ivanchuk (and probably any other top player you can think of), authors and commentators such as Jeremy Silman, Jennifer Shahade, and Tania Sachdev nominated memorable games. This anthology presents the 45 most exciting of these most exciting games.
Besides inevitable ‘usual suspects’ like Kasparov-Topalov (Wijk aan Zee 1999) or the ‘Immortal’ Anderssen-Kieseritzky (London 1851), you’ll be treated to a wide variety of lesser-known gems. You’ll see Ding Liren revelling in an all-out attack, Ivan Saric juggling a knight and five pawns versus two rooks, and Sergei Radchenko chasing the white king all over the board.
Every game is a showcase of the richness and resourcefulness of chess.
Steve Giddins edited this selection, a job he immensely enjoyed: ‘I hope that every reader will find games here which bring a smile to their face and a lift to their heart’.
The King's Indian is a hugely popular opening at all levels of chess. Rather than attempting to secure early equality, Black is fighting for the initiative from the very first moves. White is allowed to build up an early central advantage but Black relies on the middlegame, hoping that the central installations that White has constructed will become unwieldy and vulnerable to a devastating counterattack. In many variations, White pursues material or strategic gains but in return Black has tactical and attacking opportunities. The King's Indian Defence appeals to players who arrive at the board prepared for a fight.
The Move by Move series provides an ideal format for the keen chessplayer to improve their game. While reading you are continually challenged to answer probing questions – a method that greatly encourages the learning and practising of vital skills just as much as the traditional assimilation of chess knowledge. Carefully selected questions and answers are designed to keep you actively involved and allow you to monitor your progress as you learn. This is an excellent way to study chess while providing the best possible chance to retain what has been learnt.
Welcome to an aggressive but sound gambit system against the Dutch Defense! Who would not want to play a system against an opening that is theoretically sound, promises good attacking chances and avoids learning reams of theory about the Leningrad Dutch, the Stonewall or the Classical Dutch, opening set-ups our opponent knows everything about? This book explores such a system for White with a complete repertoire based on the Staunton Gambit. A repertoire for White, with attention for various alternatives White may choose from along the way, and an in-depth analysis of all of Black's responses.
The Staunton Gambit is a very rewarding opening. White’s piece development follows the classical principles of gambit play. White is ahead in development and obtains a fine initiative. Even without the theoretical knowledge of certain variations, White should be able to find his way. Best of all, White determines the direction of the game already on move two, without the risk of having to play the maneuvering games we know from the Leningrad Dutch, the Stonewall Dutch or the Classical Dutch.
Good luck with this opening. With the rigorous and engine-assisted analysis of old and new theory and over 160 years of practice, this book presents an aggressive, interesting and robust repertoire for White against the Dutch. Despite its long history there are still many opportunities for White to improve on well-known theory and grandmaster games. Recent developments and insights have considerably strengthened White’s theoretical case.
This all has once again made the Staunton Gambit a challenging variation for Black to meet when playing the Dutch. In games with a shorter time limit, the gambit has already made its comeback and has become a regular guest. I trust that this book will provide you with the basis for many victories against the Dutch!