Improvement Books vs Thought Process Books
On my Chess.com TV show "Q&A with Coach Heisman" this week one question briefly sparked a discussion of the controversial new book "Move First, Think Later" by Willy Hendriks, while another question involved thought process. Despite it's title and the initial "thought process" issue(s) addressed, Hendrik's book is more a book about general improvement. There are several books in this category including, but not limited to:
- Studying Chess Made Easy by Soltis
- A Guide to Chess Improvement by Heisman
- The Seven Deadly Chess Sins and Chess for Zebras by Rowson
- Developing Chess Talent by Van Delft and Van Delft
- The Chess Instructor 2009 edited by New in Chess
- Rapid Chess Improvement by de la Maza
Even though the above books may, and often do, touch on thought process, it's not their main subject. However, there are several books where thought process is the main subject, such as:
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* Thought and Choice in Chess by de Groot (more of a PhD Thesis)
* The Improving Chess Thinker by Heisman
* How to Choose a Chess Move by Soltis
* How to Think in Chess by Przewoznik and Sosynski
* Think Like a Grandmaster by Kotov (and Play Like a Grandmaster...[corrected])
* The Grandmaster's Mind by Avni
* Inside the Chess Mind by Aagaard
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Of these, I recommend How to Choose a Chess Move and (surprise!) my book, The Improving Chess Thinker. The three that contain full "think out loud while finding the move you would play in a game" protocols are Thought and Choice in Chess, Inside the Chess Mind, and The Improving Chess Thinker. The first two of these have primarily or exclusively strong players' protocols while mine has players of all levels 800-2300.
Many other books address this subject, but not entirely. One famous book that does this is The Amateur's Mind by Silman. In addition, I have several columns on this subject - go to http://danheisman.home.comcast.net/~danheisman/Articles/Novice_Nook_Links.htm#subjectorder and look under "1.Thought Process"
