Are reading books with outdated ideas still good to read for beginners?

I want to read "The game of chess" by Tarrasch but I heard the openings are outdated. Are these kind of books still valuable to learn from?

The Game of Chess by Tarrasch is a classic, and still an excellent, instructive introductory book on all aspects of chess.  Especially as it relates to chess fundamental chess principles, techniques and the like.  The sections on the King Pawn openings (beginning 1.e4) are still mostly valid, particularly in terms of the general ideas.  However, the theory of the Queen Pawn openings (1.d4, etc.) has evolved so much since the book was written that it would be prudent to check more recent books on those openings for current theory.

Note that there is an algebraic edition of the book....

The Game of Chess (Algebraic Edition) by Siegbert Tarrasch, (Lou Hays and David Sewell, editors)

The following is a review of the book by the esteemed John Watson...

https://theweekinchess.com/john-watson-reviews/looking-back-part-1

Here, an excerpt from that book review....

'The Game of Chess' is primarily an introduction to chess for near-beginners, with material of increasing complexity later on in the book which would serve intermediate players as well. Tarrasch starts with a description of algebraic chess notation and basic mates, assuming only a knowledge of the rules on the reader's part. I would describe his teaching method as a 'standard positions' approach, in that he believes that exposing the student to a great number of fundamental and essentially-recurring positions will develop his or her intuition, a process, in his words, 'analogous to that a mother uses to teach her child to talk'. For me, this immediately raised the question of why so few of the novice's books we see in our super-bookstores takes this approach. Remarkably, Tarrasch gives a clearer and better description of how chess is typically played than I see in our modern books, which tend to be full of broad advice and invalid generalities. One can easily see why he was considered the preeminent teacher of his time: he was not trying to fool anyone."

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell

Thanks for the detailed reply. I’ll read the book 

I have been thinking the same thing lately. I think that at a beginner level, it doesn't make any difference. The likelihood of a beginner studying an opening to a degree and depth of understanding so they can refute an opening (and know what they are doing) is next to zero. It wouldn't stop me.

     Tarrasch's book has been considered the best chess book for beginners since it's publication in the early 1930s. Like Capablanca (A Primer of Chess) he starts with the simplest endings so the student can easily understand exactly what is happening on the board. Rather than starting with opening principles or more involved puzzles or tactical studies this approach lets the student fully master the simplest ideas first and then build on that. And a lucid explanation by one of history's top players teaches you a lot more than playing and then trying to analyze your losses and learn from your mistakes when you don't yet understand what is going.

     The best part of this book is Tarrasch's explanation of positional play, as he was a key figure in the development of the principles of positional play. A lot of simple bits of advice (such as "rooks belong behind passed pawns, both yours and your opponents'") have become become so universally accepted and repeated that few people realize Tarrasch is the one who first elucidated them.

     Of course a century-old text will not have up-to-date opening theory, but books that came out last year, after years of preparation, are also already out of date. The basic ideas behind openings common in his day are still valid. And extensive study of the latest nuances of opening theory are beyond the competence of a beginner.

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ok thank you. Ill read it and hopefully enjoy it

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didnt know that

I am read a book in portuguese (from Brazil). We calling it (Xadrez Básico), it's very important for all students in Brazil and chess lovers.

Tal once said that he read Capablanca's "Chess Fundamentals" every year, and that he got a new insight from it every time. So, old books will have outdated opening theory (which doesn't matter to players at our level), but there are sound lessons to be learned from them.

The game of chess has one of the best explanations I have ever seen for learning the Bishop, Knight, and King mate. Not to mention his section on stock sacrifices.