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The *other* Laszlo Polgar books

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iotengo

I've been working my way through Polgar's well-known 5334 book, and I'm actually really loving the format.

Although I'm nowhere near finished with it, I'm looking at buying some more books while I still have a reliable shipping address (moving overseas in a year or two), and I've come across a few recommendations for two books by the same author: Chess Middlegames and Chess Endgames, which are apparently similar. If anyone has experience with these books, I'd be grateful for a few answers to the following:

  1. Is the format the same as the 5334 book? I haven't been able to find an example of what the book looks like on the inside.
  2. Are the solutions complete? In 5334, the solutions for some of the #2 puzzles are just given by the first move of the answer (e.g. Bg4), which is fine because I like figuring things out for myself. If there is some 10-move long combination in the middlegame book, though, then I'd want a more detailed answer.
  3. Is the fact that these books seem to have only been released in a Hungarian language version likely to be an issue? I don't mind not being able to read the intoduction, etc. but if there is an explanation of how to solve a certain endgame puzzle then that could be an issue.

Thanks in advance.

iotengo

Thanks for the reply. Have you found those books useful in your own study?

iotengo

Just thought I'd say that other opinions on the books are welcome - I probably won't be buying them for another month or so.

Kingpatzer

I have Middlegame. It's a great book for opening up and doing a few puzzles during commercials or some such. But honestly, it's a bit too much for "study," rather it's a great collection of positions organized by theme. 

I see it being very useful for a trainer or coach who wants to give a lesson on a particular theme and needs a position to highlight that theme.  But for the average person trying to teach themselves, there are better investments out there. 

Given that it is hard to find (i had to order mine from overseas), expensive and massive, I really feel that for someone at my level (1500 USCF) Yusupov's "Build, Boost, Master" series is a much better value. Sure it's not as many positions, but the organization and instruction add significant value that tops the pure count of positions. 

fburton

"If you seek them, good luck!"

Yes, they might as well not exist. Yell 

iotengo
fburton wrote:

"If you seek them, good luck!"

Yes, they might as well not exist.  

I know someone who's looking to sell them for around 60 USD, so finding them isn't the problem. Tongue Out

OnHerMajestySecretService
Kingpatzer wrote:

I have Middlegame. It's a great book for opening up and doing a few puzzles during commercials or some such. But honestly, it's a bit too much for "study," rather it's a great collection of positions organized by theme.

I see it being very useful for a trainer or coach who wants to give a lesson on a particular theme and needs a position to highlight that theme. But for the average person trying to teach themselves, there are better investments out there. 
Given that it is hard to find (i had to order mine from overseas), expensive and massive, I really feel that for someone at my level (1500 USCF) Yusupov's "Build, Boost, Master" series is a much better value. Sure it's not as many positions, but the organization and instruction add significant value that tops the pure count of positions.

funny that you think the middlegame book its not ideal for someone trying to teach themselves, cos that is exactly what the book its meant for