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Magazine Chess Book Reviews : April 2007

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Revolution in the 70s
by Garry Kasparov, Everyman, 432 pages hardcover, £30.00.
                              Postage £3.50 (UK), £5.00 (Europe), £7.50 (RoW)

    This is the first in a new series of a projected four books by Kasparov on ‘Modern Chess’. This volume concentrates on the big step forward in opening theory that came about in the 1970s in the wake of Bobby Fischer’s conquest of the world title. The book consists of 23 chapters on some of the most significant lines which made big leaps forward during the 1970s (and, in some cases, the 1980s), with a final chapter consisting of 28 essays by grandmasters who were active at the time. Kasparov casts his net widely, not just relying on fellow Russians and East Europeans for opinions and games, but seeking the views of the leading lights of Western Europe and America in his appraisal. It was, after all, a period in which chess broke out of its Eastern European monopoly and became truly universal. US views are expressed by Soltis, Alburt, Browne and Gulko, with Nunn, Speelman, Keene and Hartston contributing pieces on the (then) new British involvement in (and contribution to) opening theory.
    There is of course a broad range of opinion expressed in this final chapter. Not all of the contributors agree with Kasparov that there was an openings revolution in the 1970s, while others use the platform provided by Kasparov’s book to concentrate their fire against what has happened subsequent to the 1970s. For the reviewer, the most poignant contribution was by Lajos Portisch who questions why Kasparov had to play matches against “these hellish computers”, criticises modern time limits which have “murdered” the endgame, and says of modern tournaments, with the ever-present suspicion of electronic chicanery: “Thank God, at least I won’t have to take part in this!”. It is sad that such a great player should have been so put off modern chess and we ignore his warnings at our peril.
    At the centre of all this is Kasparov himself and his stellar annotations. As always, he is candid and records his setbacks as often as his triumphs. For example, both of his losses to former Magazine editor Murray Chandler are charted and discussed in these pages, with Kasparov ruing his youthful reluctance to take the sage advice of his elders. All the books tell us to study our losses and Kasparov exemplifies the good sense of this approach better than anyone.
    The reviewer has not had the book in his hands long enough to write a more considered review, but the initial impression is of a book which is even more impressive than the best of the Predecessor series. It does not get bogged down in the history of the people and the events, but concentrates on the evolution of ideas which have gone to produce the opening theory of today. There cannot be much doubt that Kasparov is the absolute master of the subject in this era, and his approach in seeking out contributors who know something about the circumstances in which various ideas were born means that most opening complexes are represented. Of course, you will not necessarily find your own favourite opening line covered in the book, but all the major ones (and a number of the more obscure ones) are there.
    On the negative side, a few strange typos came to light: the chapters on the Caro Kann featured three games where the notation starts “1 e4 e6” (when they should of course have been 1 e4 c6). One diagram purporting to show a position after 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 f3 e5!? has three black knights – on b8, f6 and g8 – but no f8 bishop. Amusingly, this appears in Andras Adorjan’s short essay – a grandmaster renowned for his insistence that “Black is OK”. Maybe so, but the typesetting is most certainly not “OK”. Joking apart: it is a magisterial work which will provide hours of enjoyment to serious students of the game. JS.






 

Endgame Virtuoso Anatoly Karpov
by Tibor Karolyi and Nick Aplin, New in Chess, 358 pages, £18.99.

It is interesting to have a book on Karpov’s endgame skills published in the same week that Kasparov’s opening theory book comes out. If Kasparov was the ultimate virtuoso of opening theory, then Karpov has a strong claim to being the best endgame player of all time. This substantial book contains 105 annotated games in which Karpov demonstrated his immaculate endgame abilities. The opening moves of the games are wisely included, as it is not simply a question of demonstrating endgame technique; of course, it is important to know how the endgame tabiya was reached. Not all the games have significant annotations of the first phase of the game, but the final phase is invariably assessed with full textual detail. This is a most enjoyable and instructive work, with an index of endgame themes which allows the student to concentrate on Karpov’s abilities in specific types of endgame. JS.

Silman’s Complete Endgame Course
by Jeremy Silman, Siles Press, 530 pages, £16.99.

                  Postage £3.50 UK, £5.00 Europe, £7.50 Rest of the World

    What an amazing month for quality chess books – as if a two new Kasparov books and a fascinating work on Karpov’s endgame play were not enough, here’s a landmark manual on the endgame by one of the most popular authors in the game. It is subtitled From Beginner to Master and that is the principle by which the chapters are divided up. It starts with chapters for elementary players (the first 30 pages are for rank beginners, the next 25 for players rated 1000-1199, and so on). But given the massive size of this big-format book and the reasonableness of the price, nobody can complain they are being short-changed.
    As well as maintaining the reader’s interest and attention, Silman believes in keeping things practical and sticking to endgames that are likely to turn up in games. One of the first things the reviewer looked for was Silman’s way of imparting how to mate with bishop and knight. To my initial horror, I found it wasn’t there. But this was quite deliberate. Silman explains: “[it] might never occur in your whole chess lifetime and is far too difficult to waste your precious study time on (in other words, this book won’t examine bishop and knight vs. king at all).” On reflection, perhaps he is right. I have played competitive chess for 40 years and never been called upon to demonstrate this arcane trick. A check of Mega Database 2007 shows that it occurs once in every 5,000 games or so. That is more games than are ascribed to Korchnoi on the same database (and he’s never had to play it). So statistics seem to bear Silman out. He takes the same line with such endgames as queen and pawn versus queen (which he regards as too tough and obscure for players under 2400 to learn).
    On the other hand, there is plenty of material here covering endgames that do show up a lot, like rook and pawn against rook. You can never get enough practice at this one and Silman gives you lots of valuable advice and practice on this and other frequently-occurring scenarios.
    The book is beautifully laid out and easy on the eye. There are plenty of test questions to monitor progress, and sufficient diagrams so that it can be read without a board in many cases. It is richly imbued with Silman’s evident relish for the game of chess. It might seem a strange thing to say but this is actually a book to read. A lot of chess books, particularly endgame books, are packed with useful reference material to dip into but are not really structured to be read through. This one is exactly what it says it is on the cover – a course. Highly recommended – and, if you can afford it, buy two copies, and send the spare one to the ‘endgame murderers’ at FIDE who would consign endgame play to the dustbin with their silly rapidplay time limits. Who knows, if some of the magic of the endgame rubs off on them, they might see the error of their ways. JS.

Secrets of Opening Surprises Volume 6
Ed. Jeroen Bosch, New in Chess, 143 pages, £13.50.

In 17 chapters, several grandmaster authors offer methods of startling opponents from the very outset. Once Bosch has rounded up developments in lines covered in previous volumes in the series, Magazine contributor Ian Rogers kicks off with three bizarre Australian specialities against the Grünfeld: 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 Nc3 d5 4 Bg5 Ne4 5 h4!?, 5 cxd5!? and 5 Qc1. Aggressive 1 d4-players might also enjoy Arthur Kogan’s aptly-named ‘Tarzan Attack’, 1 d4 Nf6 2 Nf3 g6 3 Nc3 d5 4 Bf4 Bg7 5 Qd2 intending a lightening kingside attack; while the Slav expert Dorian Rogozenko recommends a new positional try in the main line, 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 dxc4 5 a4 Bf5 6 Ne5 Nbd7 7 Nxc4 Qc7 8 Qd2!?, preventing Black’s usual ...e5 break. There are three weapons for White against the Sicilian, including 6 a3!? in the Najdorf: perhaps New in Chess are conscious of the competition from Everyman’s new Dangerous Weapons series. Ideas for Black range from the eccentric (Mikhalchishin on 1 d4 Nf6 2 Nf3 Ne4!?) to the cutting-edge (Tiviakov’s detailed account of his recent success with 1 e4 d5 2 exd5 Qxd5 3 Nc3 Qd6!?). As a Slav player who is uncomfortable against 1 c4 c6 2 e4 and has even experimented with 2...e5 3 Nf3 f5!?, I was attracted by Erwin L’Ami’s chapter on 3...Qa5!? However, his analysis of the critical line is rather light, and I’m not convinced that relinquishing the bishop pair leaves ‘Black OK’ after 4 Be2 Nf6 5 Nc3 Bb4 6 0–0 0–0 7 Qc2! Na6!? 8 a3 Bxc3 9 dxc3 Nc5 10 Nxe5 (10 Be3!?) Ncxe4, e.g. 11 Nf3 d5 12 exd5 Qxd5 13 Be3. But here as throughout this pleasantly eclectic book is much food for thought. Review by James Vigus.

The Philidor Files
by Christian Bauer, Everyman, 304 pages, £14.99.

This is an opening manual on Philidor’s Defence (1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 d6) which goes some way towards rehabilitating a system which has long been considered the poor relation amongst openings. Perhaps potential users are put off initially by that famous game at the opera, and then later by the positional problem of the imprisoned dark-squared bishop; but, despite this, quite a number of titled players have shown that Philidor’s Defence is a serious way of starting the game for Black. It should be noted that the book covers lines which come from the more modern move order 1 e4 d6 2 d4 Nf6 where White does not have to play 3 Nf3. Many of these lines differ quite markedly from what would traditionally have been thought of as Philidor’s Defence, and the book reaches page 233 before getting down to the Philidor Hanham, which might be considered the main line (1 e4 d6 2 d4 Nf6 3 Nc3 Nbd7 4 Nf3 e5 5 Bc4 Be7 6 0–0). The overall impression is of a solid but flexible defence which probably brings White a spatial advantage but nevertheless leaves Black with a playable game. This book is set out as an opening manual, with move divergences clearly marked, rather than as a collection of annotated games as is Everyman’s more typical presentational style. It is a thorough work which represents very good value for money. JS.

Beating Unusual Chess Openings
by Richard Palliser, Everyman, 223 pages, £14.99.

This is a repertoire book for Black for dealing with everything other than 1 e4 and 1 d4. Against 1 c4, Palliser advocates 1...c5. This turns the game into a ‘real’ English where neither player can easily force a transposition into a conventional d-pawn opening, but is nevertheless rich in possibilities. Nearly half the book is devoted to this system. The author goes on to consider 1 g3/g4, 1 f4, 1 b3, 1 Nc3 and 1 b4, before moving on to what he calls the ‘1 Nf3 problem’ which is covered over some 60 pages. The problem consists mainly of the extremely transpositional nature of 1 Nf3. Black will often try to steer it towards the d4 defence of his or her choice (or even the e4 defence in the case of 1...c5 which risks 2 e4). The book provides three alternatives: 1...c5, 1...d5 and 1...Nf6, depending to some extent on Black’s main preference against 1 d4/1 e4. However, Palliser provides nothing of substance against 1 Nf3 for King’s Indian Defenders. He argues that, after 1 Nf3 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 Nc3 Bg7 4 e4 d6 5 d4, a transposition to the KID has been achieved, adding only that Black “should also be prepared for 4 g3 and an English approach”, but without providing guidance. That aside, this is a thorough and thoughtful work which helps plug a typical gap in the amateur player’s opening repertoire. JS.







 

Secrets of Practical Chess (New Enlarged Edition)
by John Nunn, Gambit, 256 pages, £14.99.

    Nine years have elapsed since this, one of the first Gambit titles, appeared in its first edition (which was reviewed by Tim Wall on p140 of the March 1998 Magazine). It is worth considering what has changed in the world of chess since that time, and the first thing that springs to mind is the all-pervasive computer. Chessplaying software has improved out of all recognition, most of us now obtain much of our chess-related information from the internet and large numbers of us also use databases to prepare and check out our opponents. In 2007 this is as true of sub-2000 rated players as it is of professionals, with thousands of games from amateur tournaments finding their way into the public domain. Therefore, much of the upgrading of this book has concentrated on how to exploit chess software. Much of the practical advice about what happens at the board (including Nunn’s no-nonsense approach to time trouble) is unchanged. Perhaps because the author has retired from the competitive fray and has little contemporary experience on which to draw, there is no additional advice on such 21st century phenomena as incremental time controls, which have almost supplanted fixed time controls in some parts of the world.
    The 1998 edition had just eight pages on ‘using a computer’ but the new edition has 57 pages, going into considerable detail on the efficient use of specific products such as Fritz and ChessBase. Interesting though the chosen games are, the level of detail in this chapter seems rather excessive. It might have been more useful to supplement the bare page and a half devoted to online chess-playing sites with advice on other equally useful web-based chess resources (e.g. news reporting, discussions forums, shopping, learning, provision of opening theory). It would also have been valuable to hear a grandmaster’s opinion on the relative merits of online chess, as opposed to club and congress chess, when it comes to improving an amateur’s game.
    There is useful new advice on the matter of choosing suitable chess books. However, there is no discussion or recommendations regarding chess magazines, or advice regarding further steps a player might take in finding clubs or congresses to play in. But this reasonably-priced book achieves much of what it sets out to do, and in its most perceptive section goes to the heart of the most fundamental question in chess: how to go about choosing the right move at the board. JS.









 

The Sharpest Sicilian
by Kiril Georgiev and Atanas Kolev, Chess Stars, 272 pages, £15.99.

The book is sub-titled “A Black Repertoire with 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6”, the book concentrates on the Najdorf Sicilian but also provides coverage of what happens after 3 Bb5+, 3 Nc3, etc. It is well up to the high standards set by this reliable Russian publishing house, with plenty of textual content to go with the suggested variations. JS.









 

1000 Rook Endings
by Jozsef Pinter, Magyar Sakkvilag, 429 pages hardcover, £17.99.

The Hungarian grandmaster has collected 1,000 rook endings and presented them six to a page, with fully-worked solutions, annotated Informator style, at the back of the book. Mostly from the last 20 years: this is excellent study material for honing your endgame play. JS.







 

How Life Imitates Chess
by Garry Kasparov, Heinemann, 262 pages hardcover, £20.00.

    As the title suggests, this book is not only about chess. It covers a wide range, though there is a considerable amount of chess history designed for the general reader. The epic matches with Karpov are repeatedly discussed and Kasparov not unnaturally considers his wins over “the eternal opponent” at critical points in the matches amongst his finest achievements.
    First of all this is a book which describes how Kasparov became the dominating champion in his chosen field. Of course he had a natural talent for chess, but he also had driving ambition, the ability to work incredibly hard for long periods and considerable awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of himself and his opponents. One imagines that dominating sport champions such as Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong would write something similar.
    The aim of the book is ambitious: to draw lessons from chess playing in order to help make decisions in the wider world. Kasparov has clearly read extensively. He has also developed a reputation as a speaker on the conference circuit and has clearly been influenced by the consultants and business people he has met. Unfortunately he has also picked up a considerable amount of management jargon which shows in the layout of the book and the continual use of examples from other fields. These are not always successful. For example, Kasparov believes aggression and the initiative are key strategies and they certainly worked for him at the chess board. He then writes: “Static defence is dead. Today’s warfare is about hitting first and hitting hard”. Looking at Iraq and Afghanistan, is this really so?
    Fundamentally, the title of the book is wrong – it should be “How Chess Imitates Life”. Rich and wonderful as chess is, it is only a game between two players with the simple objective of beating the opponent (or, at least, not losing). Life is infinitely more complicated than that. Drawing conclusions from chess applicable to life does not always work. In a sense Kasparov recognises this as he is refreshingly open about some of the problems he has experienced in his business and chess life to date and the need for a different approach in his new political career.
    None of these comments should deter anyone, chess player or not, from reading this book and forming their own views. Only Emanuel Lasker among the world chess champions had previously written books on subjects other than chess. Kasparov, like his great predecessor, has the courage and the ability to do so. This is a remarkable book by (and about) a remarkable man. Review by Ray Edwards.







 

British Chess Magazine Bound Volume 2006
Magazine, 672 pages hardcover, £32.95.

The latest bound volume has coverage of an eventful year in chess, with the world championship being reunited after 13 years of schism. As well as major events, there are articles, letters, problems, studies, quotes and queries, book reviews, colour photos and historical articles on Tal, Winter and Kholmov. Contributors and annotators include Ian Rogers, Lubosh Kavalek, John Watson, Mikhail Golubev, Sam Collins and Gary Lane. Your bookshelf would be incomplete without it! Image shown left is not a depiction of the cover, which is plain maroon.







 

My Best Games in the King’s Indian by Alexei Shirov, ChessBase DVD-ROM, £23.50.
My Best Games in the Nimzo-Indian by Alexei Shirov, ChessBase DVD-ROM, £23.50.

Two more video disks from ChessBase feature Shirov on the King’s Indian and Nimzo-Indian Defences. Shirov concentrates more on the history of the opening than current theory, but of course his views and opinions remain fascinating. He gets off to a great start on the KID disk with a fascinating talk on his 1992 Bundesliga game (in the Sämisch variation) gainst Kramnik – with whom Shirov tells us he used to swap notes on KID theory, incidentally. Shirov is a relaxed and articulate presenter, and the sound and vision are excellent. Video running time of 5+ hours. System requirements: Pentium-Processor at 300 Mhz or higher, 64 MB RAM, at least Windows 98 SE, Windows Media Player 9.0, DVD drive. JS.







 

King’s Indian Sämisch System
by Boris Schipkov, ChessBase CD-ROM, £18.99.

The CD comes with 30,000 games, plus an introductory text and chapter on the basic ideas of the system. These are followed by 18 texts on individual variations. The author brings his own practical experience to bear, annotating some 400 games exclusively for the CD. There is also a training database with 30 games and 300 training questions. The CD is rounded off with an opening tree of all 30,000 games. JS.







 

Chess Informants 95-97
Informator CD-ROM, £43.99.

Three issues of Informator on disk: the data comes in four different database formats (ChessBase, PGN, Chess Assistant and Informator Reader). There are 1,265 fully annotated, theoretically-important games plus 1,478 game fragments played between October 2005 and August 2006 and all the other usual Informator features. JS.







 

ChessBase Magazine 116
ChessBase DVD-ROM, £17.50.

The latest issue has coverage of the Kramnik-Deep Fritz match, annotated by Arik Braun, Lubomir Ftacnik and Karsten Müller. Fritz’s chief programmer Matthias Wüllenweber gives a video interview with some interesting insights into the inner life of Fritz. There is coverage of the Tal Memorial in Moscow with Leko, Gelfand and Shirov annotating games. The DVD contains more than five hours of video-based training, plus 14 opening surveys. One nice video snippet features an opening trap which is not a trap (according to Rainer Knaak). It is in the Hungarian Defence: 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Be7 4 d4 exd4 5 c3 (Setting a trap – or is it?) dxc3 6 Qd5 and here’s where lots of players have resigned, thinking they have lost a piece for nothing much. But after 6...Nh6 7 Bxh6 0–0, things are not so clear. Look at it with your computer – or buy the disk and let Knaak show you what’s happening. JS.







 

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