Books on Chess
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What are some books that are must reads on chess. I am a teacher and want to really build my fundamental understanding of the game to share it with the chess club I sponsor, I would like to know which books are not only extremely helpful, but also would be an easier read for a high school kid if I were to lend it out.
Reassess Your Chess by Jeremy Silman
Jeremy calls it a book on "imbalances", but it's really a master class on how to read a chess board like a map.
Ultimately, it's a book on understanding chess strategy. Understanding chess strategy is key to understanding "how" to look for chess tactics.
Dinder wrote (emphasis added):
What are some books that are
must reads
on chess. I am a teacher and want to really build my fundamental understanding of the game to share it with the chess club I sponsor, I would like to know which books are
not only extremely helpful, but also would be an easier read for a high school kid
if I were to lend it out.
The first thing to know is that those two qualities do not necessarily match up:
"... If it’s instruction, you look for an author that addresses players at your level (buying something that’s too advanced won’t help you at all). This means that a classic book that is revered by many people might not be useful for you. ..." - IM Jeremy Silman (2015)
There are discussions of important books, such as those mentioned at
https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-best-chess-books-ever ,
but, usually, when chess players consider important books, they are thinking about those intended for somewhat advanced players - books that are often not so helpful for those closer to the beginner stage.
Perhaps the most important sort of book is a collection of illustrative games. Here are some reading possibilities that I often mention:
Simple Attacking Plans by Fred Wilson (2012)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708090402/https://www.chesscafe.com/text/review874.pdf
https://dev.jeremysilman.com/shop/pc/Simple-Attacking-Plans-77p3731.htm
Logical Chess: Move by Move by Irving Chernev (1957)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708104437/https://www.chesscafe.com/text/logichess.pdf
The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played by Irving Chernev (1965)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/most-instructive-games-of-chess-ever-played/
Any beginning player should want to develop something called tactical ability. I often suggest Winning Chess by Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld (1948),
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708093415/https://www.chesscafe.com/text/review919.pdf
and/or Back to Basics: Tactics by Dan Heisman (2007).
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708233537/https://www.chesscafe.com/text/review585.pdf
https://www.chess.com/article/view/book-review-back-to-basics-tactics
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5856bd64ff7c50433c3803db/t/5895fc0ca5790af7895297e4/1486224396755/btbtactics2excerpt.pdf
There are many alternatives, but beware that, in this category, some possibilities are very hard for a near-beginner.
When it comes to openings, I would suggest Discovering Chess Openings by GM John Emms (2006).
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627114655/https://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen91.pdf
If you have the budget for it, I would suggest perhaps three others.
My First Chess Opening Repertoire for White
https://www.newinchess.com/media/wysiwyg/product_pdf/9033.pdf
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/vincent-moret/
First Steps: 1 e4 e5
https://www.newinchess.com/media/wysiwyg/product_pdf/7790.pdf
https://chesscafe.com/book-reviews/first-steps-1-e4-e5-by-john-emms/
First Steps: Queen's Gambit
https://www.newinchess.com/media/wysiwyg/product_pdf/7652.pdf
Y’all have already given me so much to look over! I can’t thank you enough!
The one category that I inappropriately neglected is the endgame book. There is one choice that is pretty widely respected: Silman’s Complete Endgame Course
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708103149/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review594.pdf
https://www.silmanjamespress.com/shop/chess/silmans-complete-endgame-course/
http://theweekinchess.com/john-watson-reviews/theres-an-end-to-it-all
Caesar49bc wrote:
Reassess Your Chess by Jeremy Silman ...
How to Reassess Your Chess (4th ed.) by Jeremy Silman is, in some respects, a very plausible choice, but I would be afraid that it would be too hard for the near-beginner.
https://web.archive.org/web/20140626180930/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman06.pdf
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708095832/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review769.pdf
https://www.silmanjamespress.com/shop/chess/how-to-reassess-your-chess-4th-edition/
It might be better to go with Amateur's Mind by Jeremy Silman.
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708094419/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/ammind.pdf
https://www.silmanjamespress.com/shop/chess/amateurs-mind-the-2nd-edition/
All of the above suggestions assume that the reader already knows the rules. If you want a book for someone who still needs to learn them, you might consider A COMPLETE CHESS COURSE by Antonio Gude.
http://www.gambitbooks.com/pdfs/A_Complete_Chess_Course.pdf
Good Chess Books for Beginners and Beyond...
https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/good-chess-books-for-beginners-and-beyond
https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell
@Dinder - Jeremy Silman's "How To Reassess Your Chess" (suggested in an earlier post) while a good chess book, is too advanced for you at this point in your development. (Basically it is very likely to overwhelm you with material and concepts that you have probably not yet been exposed to on a more fundamental level). Therefore, I suggest it would be best to wait until you are playing at a skill level/rating of 1600 or higher before attempting this relatively advanced book (even though the marketing hype says 1400-2100). In several of my blog articles you will see that I recommend Silman's "The Amateur's Mind" as suitable for post beginner-intermediate level players. That is, of the two, I suggest it would be more instructive for you to read it first. In fact, in my "Good Chess Books..." article, I make other book recommendations as prerequisites to "The Amateur's Mind", for beginner-novice players.
@Dinder -
From your profile you play almost exclusively speed chess (bullet, blitz, rapid)...
Also you've been a chess.com subscriber for 7 years and based on your rating have not progressed significantly...
Therefore, I recommend....
Play Longer Time Controls...
Speed/Rapid chess tends to be primarily an exercise in moving pieces around faster than your opponent while avoiding checkmate, in hopes that his/her clock runs out sooner than yours. There is little time to think about what you should be doing.
It makes sense that taking more time to think about what you should be doing would promote improvement in your chess skills.
An effective way to improve your chess is therefore to play mostly longer time controls, including "daily" chess, so you have time to think about what you should be doing.
This is not to suggest that you should necessarily play exclusively slow time controls or daily games, but they should be a significant percentage of your games, at least as much, if not more so than speed games which do almost nothing to promote an understanding of how to play the game well.
Here's what IM Jeremy Silman (well-known chess book author) has to say on the topic...
https://www.chess.com/article/view/longer-time-controls-are-more-instructive
And Dan Heisman, famous chess teacher and chess book author…
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627052239/http:/www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman16.pdf
https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/dan-heisman-resources
and the experience of a FIDE Master...
https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/how-blitz-and-bullet-rotted-my-brain-don-t-let-it-rot-yours
Food for thought....!
"... Most internet players think that 30 5 is slow, but that is unlikely slow enough to play 'real' chess. You need a game slow enough so that for most of the game you have time to consider all your candidate moves as well as your opponent’s possible replies that at least include his checks, captures, and serious threats, to make sure you can meet all of them. For the average OTB player G/90 is about the fastest, which might be roughly 60 10 online, where there is some delay. But there is no absolute; some people think faster than others and others can play real chess faster because of experience. Many internet players are reluctant to play slower than 30 5 so you might have to settle for that as a 'slow' game." - NM Dan Heisman (2002)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627010008/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman12.pdf
"... I have strong anecdotal evidence that balancing slow and fast chess practice provides optimum benefits … . In my experience, students who play fast chess almost exclusively have problems visualizing (moving pieces around in their head), they often play the occasional slow game too quickly, and have difficulty in planning and endgames. Players who play only slow chess have difficulty learning their openings, recognizing critical positions and basic tactical patterns, and often panic in time trouble. The best solution, as in many things, is a healthy balance. I would guess up to ninety percent of your playing time should be slow games (thirty minutes for each player or preferably more) and the other ten percent speed games. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2009)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627020325/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman100.pdf
"... WGM Jennifer Shahade ... : … '... I think blitz can be very good for you... ... but if you don't look up your openings after the game you are missing most of the point.' ...
... I recommend that if you are a beginner, you should avoid speed chess for a variety of reasons. Among them:
- it can get you into a variety of bad habits,
- cause inexperienced players to rush in slow games, and
- can be very frustrating when you are not very good and can't see the chessboard very accurately in a short glance.
However, once you get good enough to have sufficient board vision and tactical vision to play speed games, I do recommend you add them to your practice repertoire. This usually occurs in the 1200-1400 range, but of course can vary widely. ...
… if done reasonably, speed chess is good for you." - NM Dan Heisman (2017)
https://www.chess.com/article/view/is-speed-chess-good-for-you
I would recommend as I have it too..Jeremy silman book called endgames it's for upto 2200..Very gud book understand Endgame technique...this book has helped a lot and in my chess stream too..over all its a great book.. :blush
