Searching for a beginner's book

Hello, I am new to chess.  I played a few games here recently but I'm not good at all.

I'm searching for a beginner's book.  I would also like to learn a little bit about strategy and I like books in which everything is explained step-by-step.

Do you have a good book to recommend me?

Thanks for your help!

"Teach yourself Chess" by Gerald Abrahams, might be out of print but charity shops or ebay. The Mammoth Book of Chess by Graham Burgess. Two good books!

I am in the middle of Silman's Complete Endgames Course and its been pretty good so far. It is divided into sections based on ratings and encourages you to fully understand the section you have just finished before moving onto the next. The first section was very simple but read it today anyway. It focused on mating with a pair of rooks, queen and rook etc. I have just started section 2 for rating ranges between 1000-1199 and so far is looking at minor pieces vs queens, using your king and so on. The book has sections ranging all the way from unrated to master level and so far looks as though it will be extremely helpful.

Lots and lots of recommendations here for "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chess" by Patrick Wolff. I've read it, and it truly is a fine book for beginners.

"Logical Chess Move by Move" by Irving Chernev. My first book and I really enjoyed it.

I agree!  I taught myself to play chess, and Logical Chess Move by Move helped me understand why attacking with pawns was not only not wise but very foolish.  It taught me far more than that.  But following the game's progress move by move was just wonderful for me. 

I second (or third) the motion. You could also check out "Common Sense In Chess" by Dr Lasker and anything written by Capablanca. Look for cheap used copies of whatever you buy at amazon.

I suppose it is foolish, but chess books are superior to me above all books, except the Bible, so I like new books. That is not to say I never buy used chess books, but only because I cannot find a new one.  We chess players all have our idisyncrasies.

That's up to you, if you like wasting money (IMHO) Try buying ONE used chess book from amazon listed as being in "very good" cond and then see if it's still worthwhile to ALWAYS buy brand new chess books. I only do so when I can't find a used copy at all or if the used copies available aren't much cheaper than a brand new one (and some brand new ones at amazon are available with free shipping)

BUT I notice you have bought used chess books previously, so was there a problem with them? I can see not liking used books in "fair" or "poor" condition esp. those with dog eared pages, "graffiti" on some pages, etc. Usually I've been very pleased with used books in "good" cond from amazon.

It is an idosyncracy plain and smiple. If I must buy a used book I would rather see it first hand.  I do not like others' notes in my books, although, sometimes their notes are worth the price. 

Ok thanks everybody, I will buy Logical chess, move by move by Irving Chernev.

Thanks for your help :)

You will not be sorry.  Don't forget to use your set to play out the moves.  I am sure you would, but I was surprised to learn how many people attempt to learn from such books and not use a set to make the moves.

Thanks Crosspinner for the tip.  I will do that :)

You are welcome.

Yes, I did this for quite a number of years with a multitude of books. It is a useless way to use your study time when starting out (unless you're a child prodigy). Then I would get frustrated at my lack of progress and buy ANOTHER book in hopes I would get more out of it. Repeat until a respectable chess library was built and I still couldn't beat a 800 rated player.

I would have done just as well playing against myself everyday for all that I learned from doing that. I now have a board with me everywhere I bring a chess book. Still trying to improve but I make much better time with my books now.

Try the cheap, easy to follow primer "Chess Made Easy" by Purdy & Koshnitsky, pub. By Penguin books. It contains excellent advice for beginners. I still refer to it even though I am no longer a beginner. Purdy was the first World Champion at Correspondence Chess. The book is small, cheap and easy to digest.

I would second the Burgess book, it is excellent.

Hi everybody.  I finally received the book "Logical Chess Move by Move" by Irving Chernev.  

I will begin to read it little by little in a few days or weeks because I have a lot of books to read right now :)

Thanks for your help :) 

My favorite when I was starting out (and this is even the edition I had too!):

Winning Chess Strategy for Kids by Jeff Coakley.   One of the most comprehensive and effective beginner-to-intermediate books out there.