Elements of chess strategy by Alexei Kosikov
2010
Gambit
Publications Ltd
http://www.gambitbooks.com
E-mail info@gambitbooks.com
159 pages
Price $ 22,95
ISBN 978-1-906454-24-1
The well known chess trainer from the Ukraine,master Alexei
Kosikov teaches you in this book how to reach your goal in chess.
This all is explained at the hand of a collection instructive exercises
all well explained with a large amount of instructive text,but the
power of his exercise lay in the use of minor piece play.
Some positions as Donner – Velimirovic,Capablanca Memorial,Havanna 1971
is unique; Donner,Jan Hein (2500) - Velimirovic,Dragoljub (2490) [A77]
Capablanca Memorial Havana (3), 1971,and found under:The Bishop-Pair in
de endgame-How much is it worth?
Everything in life has its value.So it is in chess-the two bishops in
an ending are a boon,a plus.But how much is this endgame advantage
worth? A pawn?More,less? It all depends on the specific position.
{1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.e4 0-0 6.Be2 d6 7.Nf3 e6 8.0-0
exd5 9.cxd5 Re8 10.Nd2 a6 11.a4 Nbd7 12.Re1 Rb8 13.Bf1 Ne5 14.f4 Neg4
15.Nf3 c4 16.a5 Qc7 17.e5 Qc5+ 18.Qd4 Qxd4+ 19.Nxd4 dxe5 20.fxe5 Nh5
21.Nf3 Nxe5 22.Nxe5 Bxe5 23.Be3 Bd7 24.Bxc4 Rbc8 25.Ba2 Rxc3 26.bxc3
Bxc3 27.Bf2 Rxe1+ 28.Rxe1 Bxe1 29.Bxe1 Nf6 30.Kf2 Bf5?}
31.Ke3 Be4 32.Kd4 Bxg2 33.Ke5 Kg7 34.Kd6
Kf8 35.Bb3 g5 36.Bg3 Ke8 37.Be5 Nd7 38.Ba4 Bh3 39.Bf6 h6 40.Kc7 Bf5
41.Kxb7 Kf8 42.Bxd7 Bxd7 43.Kxa6 1-0.
Donner wrote later in his book, the King,the following poem: Dear pawn
on a5,Sweet little thing, a rook’s pawn you are, just one square is all
you control. You’re so small, almost nothing and throughout the game
you have been standing there on your little place, but all that time my
hope was built on you, and all my fearful hankering was for you.
I did see you standing there, you little rascal. People thought,
of course, it was the d5 pawn that it was all about, he drew their
attention, they all looked at him, but you and I knew better, it was
all about you, about you and you alone.You’ve been waiting, you naughty
boy, not wanting to come on, because you knew that all the time I was
only thinking of you and that you didn’t have to do anything at all,
because I would be coming to you of my own little rook’s pawn, you’re
free now. Go ahead, unspeakable bliss is waiting for you and me
on a8. Thank you, sweet little thing I love you, your King.
Kosikov does not overload you with Prophylactic thinking,but explains
at the hand of practical examples sometimes taken from classic and
other times from modern play.
Important is the problem of exchanging as Kosikov explains: As already
noted,the question of exchanging pieces is one of the keys to a
chess-players level of strategic understanding.
And Indeed,when we ask about the bishop-pair and whether is constitutes
an advantage,the problem of exchanging is highly relevant.When we
envisage an exchange, its appropriateness can by no means always be
confirmed by variations and calculation.
Knowledge and logic have to come to our aid here.
Conclusion: This book will certainly help you to improve your playing
skills!
New in Chess
Yearbook
issue 96
2010
New in Chess
http://www.newinchess.com/
247 pages
Price € 26,95
Edition: Paperback
ISBN: 978-90-5691-303-8
Again new in Chess comes with some smashing theory surveys as for
example the move 3…Nge7,in the good old Ruy Lopez:{ 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6
3.Bb5},successfully played by Levon Aronian in the last World
Blitz Championship.
Please also see The Ruy Lopez Revised from Ivan Sokolov who wrote:The
Cozio Variation is objectively not good enough to equalize but as we
can learn from Alexey Kuzmin, it is more than playable!
It are not always the Grandmaster in chess where we can learn from, the
German chess student
Christian Hafner,who digs in the good old Two Knights Defence,that runs
with the moves:
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.0-0 Nxe4 6.Re1 d5 7.Bxd5 Qxd5
8.Nc3 Qa5 9.Nxe4 Be6 10.Neg5 0-0-0 11.Nxe6 fxe6 12.Rxe6 Bd6 13.Bg5 Rde8
14.Qe1 Qxe1+ 15.Raxe1 Rxe6 16.Rxe6 Kd7 17.Re4 Re8 18.Rxe8 Kxe8 19.Kf1
Kf7 20.Bd2 h6 21.Ke2 Ke6 22.Kd3 Kd5 23.Nxd4 Nxd4 24.c4+ Ke5 25.f4+ Kf5
26.Kxd4 Bxf4 27.Bxf4 Kxf4 and now 28.Kd5! and it looks that white is
winning,but as Rene Olthof points out,that Hafner’s bright novelty has
been played before in postal and over the board chess but Hafner’s
material is more than fascinating,but dear reader I would
simple stick to 15…Kd7!
Very interesting is also the survey from Peter Lukacs and Laszlo Hazai
on the Arkhangelsk-Part II which holds a special contribution from
wonder boy Magnus Carlsen:
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 b5 6.Bb3 Bc5 7.c3 d6 8.a4
Rb8 9.d4 Bb6 10.Na3 0-0 11.axb5 axb5 12.Nxb5 Bg4
and the authors write:It’s unbelievable how this line has taken command
over all other lines of the {Neo-}Arkhangelsk Variation in such a short
period of time.
Please don’t forget to read the forum and the letter from Anish Giri
who disagrees with the poor annotations of Jacob Aagaard!
Conclusion: There is no better way to
keep abreast of latest opening developments!
Planning
in the middlegame by Nikolay Yakovlev
2010
Mongoose Press
277 pages
Price $24.95
ISBN 978-1-936277-01-8
The Russian chess trainer master Nikolay Yakovlev from St.Petersburg
Russia,learns you in this book how to recognize the so important
key strategies, all explained at the hand of 188 positions and a
impressive 559 diagrams so this is one of those books you can take up
with you.
Yakovlev’s material is not brought as a exercise book,no the author
learns us at the hand of patterns the secrets of attack.
Throw the book I found interesting sections as is a rolling centre
worth a piece?
Where Tal’s position is based on the idea of the avalanche of white
pawns.
Under the obstructive sacrifice I found the following position where I
prefer to give all moves: Stein – Langeweg,EU-chT (Men) 08th Plovdiv
(1.8), 1983
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.0-0 Nxe4 7.cxd4 Be7
8.d5 Nb8 9.Re1 Nd6 10.Bd3 0-0 11.Nc3 Ne8 12.d6 cxd6 13.Bxh7+ Kxh7
14.Rxe7 Qxe7 15.Nd5 1-0,The experienced Dutch international master
spend two hours and five minutes,while white used only fifteen
minutes.Stein quipped after the game that apparently his opponent did
not know his theory.
Included is a chapter on endings where Yakovlev included the fantastic
endgame between Znosko - Borovsky and Alekhine,played at Paris in the
year 1933.This game can also be found in Alekhine his book,My best
games 1924-1937.
Conclusion: A pleasant and easy
learning book on chess strategies!
Capablanca a primer of
checkmate by Frisco del Rosario
2010
Mongoose Press
176 pages
Price $19.95
ISBN 978-1-936277-02-5
Frisco Del Rosario looks and explains the attacking games
of the great chess genius Jose Raul Capablanca.
The analyses of Del Rosario are often build on checkmating patterns,
where you can feel between the pages the teaching touch of del Rosario
admirer Cecil Purdy. The newcomer in this book is invited to
learn all kind of different checkmates as the Pillsbury and
Morphy’s mate, which is a mate that is created by cracking the
enemy king position by opening the g-file with the offer of a piece.
Al these kind of mates are clearly explained by the author, and often
with a model game of he great Capablanca,as we can see in the following
game: Corzo y Prinzipe,Juan - Capablanca,Jose Raul,Havana casual
Havana, 02.03.1902,
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bd7 5.Nf3 Bc6 6.Bd3 Nd7 7.0-0 Ngf6
8.Bg5 Be7 9.Nxf6+ Bxf6 10.Be3 0-0 11.c3 b6 12.Qc2 Kh8 13.Nd2 Re8
14.Bxh7 g6 15.Bxg6 fxg6 16.Qxg6 Qe7 17.f4 Qh7 18.Qxh7+ Kxh7 19.Nf3 Rg8
20.Rae1 Rg6 21.Bd2 Bd5 22.b3 Rf8 23.Kh1 c5 24.dxc5 Nxc5 25.c4 Ba8
26.Bb4 Rfg8 27.Bxc5 Rxg2 28.Be3 Bh4 29.Rd1 Bf2 30.Rd7+ Kh6 31.Rd5 Bxe3
32.Ng5 R2xg5 33.fxg5+ Rxg5 34.Rf6+ Kh5 35.Rxe6 Bxd5+ 36.cxd5 Rg1#.
As we can learn in this book how more checkmating methods the player
recognizes,the more games he or she is able to win!
Conclusion: A very instructive learning book! Recommended for all
starters in chess!
How to play
against 1.d4 by Richard Palliser
Everyman
Chess
http://www.everymanchess.com
256
pages
Price $26.95
ISBN 978-1-85744-616-6
Richard Palliser offers the reader in this book a
complete repertoire for black based on the Czech Benoni.
In the latest British Championship we saw Andrew Greet playing it
against Jack Rudd and Greet was outplayed in no time!
The problem for Greet was that he went for a fianchetto of the black
bishop en Richard Palliser goes in this book for a set-ups with the
move…Be7.
It was Bill Hartston who understood to play it and in his book The
Benoni was a interesting chapter include on the Czech Benoni.
The problem with the Czech Benoi is that it leads to a slower strategic
game and white usually ends with a theoretical edge,but Hartson
was successful with it and this can not be said from Tony Miles
who tried to revive the Czech Benoni ,but he had some terrible results
with it.
Palliiser has divided this book in two separate parts,with part one:The
Czech Benoni,with The Classical Variation 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e5
4.Nc3 d6 5.e4 Be7,The Modern System,Fianchetto Variation and les common
approaches,where I found some rare set-ups from white as: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4
c5 3.d5 e5 4.Nc3 d6 5.e4 Be7 6.Nge2 a6!
Part two holds the Classical Development from white with moves as :
1.d4 c5 2.d5 e5 3.c4 d6 4.e4 Be7,1.d4 c5 2.d5 e5 3.e4 d6 4.Nc3 and
alternatives to 2.d5.
On club level white usually plays 1.d4 c5 2.dxc5 and now black plays
2..e6 3.Nc3! Bxc5 4.Ne4 Nf6! 5.Nxc5 Qa5+ 6.Qd2 Qxc5 7.Qg5 Qxg5 8.Bxg5
Nc6 9.0-0-0 b6 10.f3 h6 !
Interesting to mention is the move 5.Nd6+ which was first played in the
following game:
Suechting,Hugo - Blackburne,Joseph Henry [A43]
Ostend Ostend, 1906
1.d4 c5 2.dxc5 e6 3.Nc3 Bxc5 4.Ne4 Nf6 5.Nd6+ Ke7 6.Nxc8+ Qxc8 7.Nh3 d5
8.g3 Nc6 9.Bg2 Ne5 10.0-0 h6 11.Nf4 h5 12.Nd3 Bd6 13.Bg5 h4 14.e4 hxg3
15.fxg3 dxe4 16.Bxe4 Nxd3 17.Bxf6+ gxf6 18.Qxd3 Qc5+ 19.Kh1 Rag8 20.Rf3
Qh5 21.Qd2 Rxg3 22.Rxg3 Bxg3 23.Qb4+ Kd8 24.Qd4+ Kc8 25.Qc3+ Bc7 26.h3
Qxh3+ 27.Qxh3 Rxh3+ 28.Kg2 Rh4 29.Bd3 Be5 30.Rb1 Kc7 31.b3 f5 32.Rf1
Rg4+ 33.Kh3 Kd6 34.Rd1 Ke7 35.Bb5 Rg3+ 36.Kh4 Kf6 37.Bf1 Rg4+ 38.Kh3
Rg3+ 39.Kh4 Rg1 40.Kh3 Kg5 0-1.
Conclusion: A fascinating repertoire
book!
Kasparov vs Karpov 1988-2009
Everyman
Chess
http://www.everymanchess.com
432
pages
Price $45.00
ISBN 978-1-85744-652-4
This 4rd volume of the "Garry Kasparov on Modern Chess"
series concentrates on all the games played between Garry Kasparov and
Anatloy Karpov from 1988 till the Valencia Blitz match played on
September 2009.
Included between there games is there fifth World championship match
played in New York and Lyon 1990.
Both players have dominated the chess world for two decades and even
today the last nostalgic Valencia match brought more interest in
chess than any other world championship match of the last ten
years!
All together you will find 66 games in this book,where the most of them
are analysed into a painstaking depth!
Garry Kasparov presents his analyses and findings to chess enthusiasts
who will learn from the instructive and honest explanations.
The greatest player of all time is retired from chess and does not fear
to give his chess secrets away.
For example the game Kasparov,Garry (2800) - Karpov,Anatoly (2730) [C92]
World Championship 35th-KK5 Lyon/New York (4), 17.10.1990
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3
0-0 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4 Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.a4 h6 13.Bc2 exd4 14.cxd4 Nb4
15.Bb1 c5 16.d5 Nd7 17.Ra3 f5 18.exf5 Nf6 19.Ne4 Bxd5 20.Nxf6+ Qxf6
21.Bd2 Qxb2 22.Bxb4 Bf7 23.Re6 Qxb4 24.Rb3 Qxa4 25.Bc2 Rad8 26.Rbe3 Qb4
27.g3 a5 28.Nh4 d5 29.Qe2 Qc4 30.Bd3 Qc1+ 31.Kg2 c4 32.Bc2 Bxe6 33.Rxe6
Rxe6 34.Qxe6+ Kh8 35.Ng6+ Kh7 36.Qe2 Qg5 37.f6 Qxf6 38.Nxf8+ Kg8 39.Ng6
Qf7 40.Ne7+ Kf8 ½-½,is good for eleven pages of text!
Interesting are the words from Kasparov after 19…Bxd5: A novelty,but it
is surprising that Karpov thought for a so long over a position which
he must have analysed at home.
I cannot image what caused this hesitation. Perhaps my opponent had
been more expecting 18.Rae3,and now he had to readjust and choose
between the move in the game and 19…Nbxd5,with easy equality
after20.Nh2? Nxe4 21.Bxe4 Rxe4! 22.Rxe4 Nc3 23.bxc3 Bxe4
De Firmian A Ivanov,Las Vegas 1989.Later,in Informator Karpov suggested
20.axb5 axb5
21.Qb3! and indeed after 21…Bc6 22.Rxa8 Qxa8 23.Nxf6 gxf6 24.Be4 Kh7
25.Kh2!
Black’s position is unenviable: his king is a constant headache.
The 19…Bxd5 capture looks risky,but it contains a previously prepared
trap,into which I successfully fell.
Conclusion: This is a unique chess book!
British
Chess Magazine No.8
Volume
130
September
2010
Price: £4,05
This eye catching issue starts with the British Championship, where GM
Michael Adams dominated the event with five straight wins ,Robert Eames
had the courage to open with the King’s Gambit but the opening was in
no time a fiasco, included in this issue is a interview with
Michael Adams.
Grandmaster Matthew Sadler digs in the Albin Counter Gambit ,with the
day I played the Albin part 1.Ponomariov wins the Sparkassen tournament
in Dortmund,in games department I found a fine game from Luke McShane
with the King’s Indian Defence, against Alexander Shabalov: 1.d4 Nf6
2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f4 0-0 6.Nf3 Na6 7.Bd3 e5 8.fxe5 dxe5 9.d5
Ne8 10.0-0 c5 and 0-1 on move 51.
Mihail Marin analysis in his contribution, understanding development
part one the game Robert Fischer – Robert Byrne,USA Championship 1965.
Other readable columns are:News in Brief,Quotes and Queries,Endgame
studies,Fortcoming events,Book reviews etc.
Conclusion: A well made issue!
