Perhaps the greatest beauty in chess can be found in endgame studies. Delightful twists and turns on the board are combined into true works of art. In studies, chess is distilled into its purest form, with all pieces making only the most essential moves. Endgame studies are also useful exercises for practical chess players, as they show patterns, improve calculation, and inspire out-of-the-box thinking.
Grandmaster Jan Timman has been fascinated by endgame studies since his youth. The artistry and perfection have always appealed to him. In recent years his focus has shifted from practical chess to composing endgame studies, and many of his compositions have won awards. Timman wrote about composing in The Art of the Endgame (New In Chess, Revised Edition 2023).
In this new book Timman presents the one hundred greatest endgame studies. In five chapters he guides you through masterpieces of increasing difficulty, beginning with elementary endings such as the Réti and Lasker manoeuvres. The studies include themes such as minor) promotion, Zugzwang and domination, all beautifully illustrated and clearly explained. By the time you reach the final chapter with the most complicated examples, you will be amazed at the myriad possibilities of chess and inspired to add more finesse to your own endgame play.
Jan Timman, World Chess Champion finalist, is the author of many bestselling chess books. Timman's Titans won the 2017 ECF Book of the Year Award, and his recent books, The Longest Game, The Unstoppable American, Timman's Triumphs and Max Euwe's Best Games have all met with wide acclaim. He was awarded the title of FIDE Master of Chess Composition in 2022.
The repertoire is based around two main themes: 1. The suggested variations for White are ones that rely far more on a generic understanding of strategic ideas rather than the memorisation of reams of opening theory. This explains the choice of the Bishop’s Opening (handled “Lopez-style”) against 1...e5 and the Bb5 variations against the Sicilian Defence. Both these lines are designed to create dynamic and interesting middlegame positions rather than attempting to score a quick knockout victory – a generally overambitious aim that often backfires 2. The variations are chosen so that White can gain space whenever possible. Therefore the Advance Variation is recommended against the French Defence (1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5) and also the Caro-Kann Defence (1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5). The fact that these lines often create similar middlegame structures is helpful for general comprehension of White’s plans.
Kotronias KID
CHESS INFORMANT’S 157th ADVENTURE
OMNIPRESENT
CONTENTS:
• In Memoriam – Remembering Aleksandar Matanovic
• Leitao – World Cup 2023 (Tournament Review)
• Shyam Sundar – This or that? – World Cup Edition
• Perunovic – Instructive positions from the World Cup
• Foisor – Women FIDE World Championship Match (Tournament Review)
• Gormally – British Chess Championship (Tournament Review)
• Moradiabadi – Biel Chess Festival (Tournament Review)
• Yochanan Afek – Prague Chess Festival (Tournament Review)
• Kotronias – The Classical Scotch 4...Bc5 (Theoretical Survey)
• Davies – The Sandipan Dutch (Theoretical Survey)
• Prusikin – The Exchange Slav Ideas (Instructive Lesson)
• Szabo – The King’s Indian Defence E91 (Theoretical Survey)
• Perelshteyn – The Hyper-Accelerated Dragon (Theoretical Survey)
• Petrov – World Championship Game Changers – part 7
• Rogers – The Japan 1978 Zonal Tournament (Roger’s Reminiscences)
• Griffin – Spassky-Portisch, Toluca Interzonal 1982 (From Informant Archives)
• Barak Gonen – Correspondence Chess
Traditional sections: games, combinations, endings, Tournament reviews, the best game from the preceding volume and the most important theoretical novelty from the preceding volume.
The periodical that pros use with pleasure is at the same time a must have publication for all serious chess students!
A number of systems in the labyrinth of the Sicilian Defense involve the idea of increasing central pressure by playing ...Qb6. The main object of this early queen move is to decentralise the strongly placed white knight on the d4 square. The most direct way to apply this idea is the ‘Grivas Sicilian’, which arises after the moves: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Qb6
The new volume in internationally bestselling series. Are you ready to seriously improve your game?It has been said that chess is 99% tactics but whether that is an accurate reflection is hard to tell. Nevertheless, it is important. But if you are like most players, you only discover the tactics after you come home and run through your game with a chess engine. So what to do? In the present book, you will be challenged 404 times but unlike most tactics puzzle books you don't know what your objective is: do I need to find a mate, find an opportunity skewer or pin a piece, use a tactical turn to gain a positional advantage and how far do I need to calculate?These questions are you are faced with when you play your own games and therefore this book tries to replicate this position. Your one advantage over the players in the respective positions is that you know that there is supposed to be something in there for you to find.The puzzles vary a lot in difficulty, some are relatively easy, some are incredibly difficult, but most are somewhere in between. However, most of the puzzles are layered so that even when you think the answer is obvious, it is worth looking further because your idea may be the decoy left there for you to get distracted from the actual solution.Working through the puzzles and then carefully play through the thoroughly annotated solutions will help you to up your tactical radar as well as your calculation skills. So if you are up for the challenge, here is the opportunity to take the leap forward. Good luck!
The book contains 50 of the most stunning games of 2016. These games from high-level tournaments have been selected and analyzed by Grandmasters Naiditsch, Balogh, and Maze.