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This book was decent for a beginner.  The sections on pawn structure are probably the most informative.  No games were explained just many diagrams.  I enjoyed it and would recomend it, not vital for a chess player's collection.

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this was my very first chess book ever! when jay beat me really badly at chess in our first few games (he was a tournament player, i was a novice) i went to my university bookstore looking for a chess book. at the time i was, admittedly, embarrassed to be buying a chess book! i bought the book and read it privately and i was amazed by it! this started my love of chess!

looking back this book isn't that good really and probably deserves 3 stars. but my nostalgic side wants to give it a 5! i guess i'll settle in at a 4 :) 

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All right. So, this is a book by the same guy that taught Josh Waitzkin, the subject of "Searching for Bobby Fischer." This was also one of the first books I got. There isn't really anything bad about this book. It has a lot of content. The problem is, there isn't anything exceptional about it either. It's kind of on the short side. I finished it in two study halls during school last year. It's an average book for beginner-intermediate players. 3 stars.

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Excellent teaching tool.  Students learn the basics, and then, in their own games, ideas will come to them, to 'finish' off their opponents.

used it for many years now with superb results with students.   They all like it, once they get started.

I also agree, this book really isnt that good. Its simple to follow and the ideas are sound but their are much better books out there.

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My first real book on chess.  A decent read, but even a skilled novice will outgrow it quickly.  Has proven to be good for the chess club library at our school because of all the diagrams.

Weapons of Chess, I am looking for a basic easy to read manual.

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Beginner Level

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Agree with most comments here – its great if; you haven’t been there or done that.

 

Not a bad write up on the isolated d-pawn.

 

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I love this book, I used it when I felt I needed to get back to basics.

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I got this book about five months ago, haven't had much time to read it.  Picked it back up about a week ago and began to read it.  It's my first chess book I've ever gotten, and I'd reccomend it to anyone else.  Do not buy if you're not accustomed to chess algebraic notation, it's not required but helpful because in almost every sentence coordinates are references.  The book focuses on pawn structures and tactics.  Do not buy if looking for a "read from cover to cover" book, it's purely referenced by different situations.

This was my first chess book ever.  I bought it and understood it when I was 7 years old.  It is an excellent book for those players who are still trying to understand what a good move is and why it is good.  This may well be one of the best "first chess books" in press.  I would highly recommend this book for any beginner, and would advise that the next book to study be GM Yasser Seirawan's Winning Chess Tactics.

Unfortunately, a intermediate chess player would be less well served by this book, as they would already be familiar with the majority of topics presented therewithin.  I would advise such a player to invest instead in Jeremy Silman's How to Reassess Your Chess.

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I really liked this book. It's good to have at least one chess book without the tedious annotations. For a beginner, it's a perfect book because it talks about good introductory concepts as well (mainly pawn structure.) 

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This is a great book for beginners. It was one of my first, It was a great stepping stone to understand other chess books, mainly game collections.