Chess Book & Timer

Does anyone know of a cheap, but reliable, useful chess timer? Preferably from Amazon.

Does anyone know a great book for chess tactics, visualization, combination, sacrifices, and under $15? Please no beginner books, and again preferably from Amazon.

Sorry for the cheapness, I'm a teen.

Thanks, Zingo

Hi zingo79,

I don't know about chess clocks, but I can certainly recommend a book. I have Better Chess for Average Players by Tim Harding. If you're not looking for an in-depth coverage of all the topics you listed, then it might be what you're after. It covers forks, pins, skewers and zwischenzugs, combinations, pawn sacrifices, heavy sacrifices, exchange sacrifices, and a section on choosing a move, which is good, but it doesn't really touch on visualization. Each section runs between 6-9 pages, so you won't get loads of information on each subject. I find it's mostly "reminder" information-things you know but sometimes forget the specifics of.

http://www.amazon.com/Better-Chess-Average-Players-Dover/dp/0486290298/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358357445&sr=8-1&keywords=better+chess+for+average+players

"Logical Chess Move by Move" and/or "The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played" both by Irving Chernev

"Masters of the Chessboard" by Richard Reti

"Common Sense In Chess" by Dr Lasker

Anything written by J R Capablanca

amazon is a great place to find cheap used books, chess or otherwise; and I've bought many used books there listed as being in "good" condition that I think could've been listed as "very good" instead

As far as clocks go analog clocks are inferior to digital for displaying how many seconds are left to move (they don't) and are way less versatile. Pls consider looking around for a cheap reliable digitial clock instead - or else save up for one instead of buying something you may soon or eventually will decide to replace anyway

GOOD LUCK!

I would recommend Predator at the Chessboard, which is actually available for free at www.chesstactics.org (or you can, as I did, buy both volumes digitally - in my case on iBooks - for about $8 each).

If you have an iPhone, the newest version of the Chess.com software has a built-in chess clock you can use for OTB play. I haven't actually used it to play a game, but I suspect that for the cost (i.e., free), the quality will be pretty ok.

if you have any type of smart phone you can get a few different free clock apps which are fine for casual games.

there are a million and one book threads, just have a look through some. you will see the same few things coming up a lot.