What would be a good book/s to start out with?
Wanting to take chess seriously, recommendations on books..?
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May 26, 2011
0
#3
I recommend doing tactical exercises. You can do them online with the tacticstrainer here or chesstempo.com. I personally simply can´t make tactics well on a computer so I use books with tactical exercises. If you can make tactics on your computer without clicking on "hint" in less then 10 seconds you may not even need to spend money because you can just make them online.
Tactics is most important to learn first because:
1. At lower levels most games are decided by tactical blunders. Losing full pieces for instance
2. At higher levels to play positional you need to use tactics to force those positions. So you will need the experience.
A couple of good books to start with are A World Champion's Guide to Chess and Chess Tactics for Champions. Both books are by Susan Polgar.
May 26, 2011
0
#5
If you need a book to read, because you're taking chess seriously, I recommend:
Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying
A very good book
I haven't read any of Yasser Seirawan's books myself, but there are lots of different books and it will be very much a matter of taste. My first ever book is still my personal favourite, Play better chess by Leonard Barden. Granted it is not the most useful book to me now but I found it wonderful to start with.
Of the books I am currently reading the one which might fit your needs is Complete Book of Chess Strategy: Grandmaster Techniques from A to Z by Jeremy Silman. Good overview book and covers all areas from openings through strategies and onto endgames.
Now this is a personal opinion, but I believe the best way to learn is to play over the board against other people. I think you'll learn a lot more that way than just reading books or playing on-line. When you are playing I would suggest that you ALWAYS record your games and go back through the games afterwards, either with the person you played or with someone else or even by yourself. You'll learn a lot that way. Another technique is to rate how you did in the opening, middle and end of each game. Just a general rating of better, equal or worse than your opponent. This will help you to spot the areas that you need to focus on most...
I hope this helps
Hello all, this is my first post. I decided that I'd like to learn more about chess and actually be a competitive player.
I know how the basic moves of the bishop, castle, knight etc. And that's pretty much all I know. I do not know any tactics+strategies or notation.
After browsing through the forums on this site, the Yasser Seirawan Series of Winning Chess has been recommended several times. Should I start my chess journey with these series and are books like these recommended to a player like me? If not, please leave some recommendations :)