Hi everyone,

 

I've only recently gotten into chess. I have some very basic strategic concepts under my belt, and am now hoping to grow a bit more in my serious playing. At present my wife and I are both graduate students, which means that paying for lessons is a long shot. (I'm getting a master's degree in vocal music, and already have to pay for voice lessons.)

 

Books are the best option I have. The problem is that many chess books I've checked out seem to be written by the experienced for the experienced. "Black clearly should avoid 9 . . . Nc7 in this case, because that would lead to the following disasterous string of five moves for reasons that are too obvious even to discuss." That's how it feels, anyway.

 

I'm looking for suggestions for books that will help me expand my opening options and my understanding of the middle and endgames without talking way over my head. Any thoughts?

 

Thanks! 

Maybe you can try Logical Chess: Move by Move by Irving Chernev. Haven't got or read it, but I've heard plenty of things concerning it, and it would pretty much be exactly what you are looking for.

Etienne wrote: Maybe you can try Logical Chess: Move by Move by Irving Chernev. Haven't got or read it, but I've heard plenty of things concerning it, and it would pretty much be exactly what you are looking for.

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Yes, this is a very good book for beginners and I highly recommend it.

Regarding endgame resources, there are some free lessons on ChessKids which would especially benefit a starving student:

 

The Two Rooks Checkmate

The King and Queen Checkmate

The King and Rook Checkmate

Pawn Endings 1

Pawn Endings 2

Pawn Endings 3

Rook Endings

Minor Piece Endings

 

If you spend 30 minutes per day on these, you'll be done in a week, and have the endgame knowledge of an average chessplayer. You'll also have built a solid foundation for future endgame study.