Would very much like to track down this chess book...!

So I would say that you check the pdf format of those books instead of viewing them in Kindle, @Flyhawk5000

I believe Wilson hasn't written any strategy or middlegame book

Is it by Irving Chernev?

It says Max Euwe, M Blaine and J Rumble,

M Blaine and J Rumble were in the Royal Air Force and are good at explaining chess using military strategy.

I've seen just about all the books from back then and Modern Chess Strategy by Pachman immediately came to my mind.

That sounds almost like every chess book ever written.

"Logical Approach to Chess" was written by Max Euwe, et. al. Euwe was the 5th World Chess Champion (1935-37). I own the book (Dover Publications, 1958). It is written in Descriptive Notation. It is a well-written, very instructive primer of chess targeted to post-beginner, amateur players. It does treat the topics (in several places in the book but particularly in the excellent chapter on the endgame) of Rooks on the 7th rank and also the Two Bishops...

https://www.google.com/search?q=the+logical+approach+to+chess&oq=the+logical+approach+to+chess+&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512j0i390i650l4.17447j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Here's another possibility:

Or the original version without the II at the end.

You’re thinking of Logical Chess: Move by Move

@Flyhawk5000 -

My memory was jogged by the post above by @ChessAuthor. Together with the fact that you are apparently from Australia...

That is, the famous (legendary?) Australian chess player, C.J.S. Purdy, who was the First World Correspondence Chess Champion. He was also a prolific author of many interesting, instructive chess books, including the best sellers "The Search for Chess Perfection" and "Guide To Good Chess".

I own the 11th & 12th editions of the latter, an excellent tutorial which discusses, among the myriad topics treated, the proper play of the two Bishops as well as Rooks on the 7th rank (in Part 4, the sections titled 'General rules for End-Games With Pawns And Pieces' and 'The Rook In End-Games').

It would not surprise me if any of C.J.S. Purdy's books are what you seek....

https://www.google.com/search?q=c.j.s.+purdy&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS1063US1063&oq=c.j.s&aqs=chrome.0.69i59l2j46i512j69i57j69i65l2j69i61j69i60.7957j1j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

https://www.amazon.com/stores/C.-J.-S.-Purdy/author/B001KCEA4Y?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS1063US1063&q=c.j.s.+purdy&tbm=bks&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_r9fDtOr_AhUwDEQIHSibAmMQ0pQJegQIbxAB&biw=1440&bih=767&dpr=1

https://www.google.com/books/edition/Guide_to_Good_Chess/3qKhYgEACAAJ?hl=en

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Good-Chess-C-Purdy/dp/1888710047/ref=sr_1_4?crid=1Q37ZO6R96338&keywords=guide+to+good+chess&qid=1688109545&s=books&sprefix=guide+to+good+chess%2Cstripbooks%2C139&sr=1-4

No it doesn't match the requirements

Thanks so much - that was awesome.

I’ve now looked at all the above possibilities, and there’s one that stands out quite a bit from the rest, based, believe it or not, on the chapter order…!

‘Modern Chess Strategy’ by Ludek Pachman

Although the “simplicity of language” thing didn’t totally gel with me initially from the sample I’ve now checked (so perhaps my memory of that aspect is a bit askew after 20 years), what really stands out to me is this:

The two things I remember most, being the ‘two bishops’ thing and the ‘rooks on the seventh rank’ thing, actually appear in that order (chapters 3 and 4 respectively, with chapters 1 and 2 just being basic intro stuff). This is very significant, because I’m the kind of person that reads books from the beginning, and I can definitely remember reading about those two things… getting really excited about how much I was learning so quickly (aimed so well for the level I was at)… but realising that my mind was stimulated and filling up with thoughts of chess… which was the opposite of what I was meant to be doing at a meditation ashram… so I reluctantly put the book back on the shelf and went back to meditating… (and hence I don’t remember anything from any further chapters, as I never got that far!).

So I’d bet my bottom dollar that this is the one! That chapter order, with nothing significant before those two topics, is really standing out to me as a signature give away!

Just to nail it 100% I’ve still contacted that ashram: although they weren’t answering emails, I ended up phoning and managed to speak to someone with good enough English that I think they’re going to check their bookshelves this week and get back to me… And I also vaguely remember doing a travel diary at that time, which may or may not be buried somewhere in about ten unopened ‘last house move’ boxes still in my shed, so I can try there as well…

But until then, I really reckon ‘Modern Chess Strategy’ by Ludek Pachman is it, and while looking through all the above suggestions I’ve now gathered enough good chess books to keep me going for the next couple of years I think!

So thank you so much to everyone above - really! - for something with little chance of success, you’ve all helped me solve a 20 year old puzzle that’s been nagging at me the whole time!! Thank you very much!

@Flyhawk5000 -

Check my earlier post #10.

I had suggested "Modern Chess Strategy" by Ludek Pachman.

Yes, your knowledge of chess books came through early on there, RussBell, thank you! And as I mentioned, even though the “simplicity of language” thing didn’t totally gel with me initially from the sample I read, after checking out all the other book suggestions, I found that I kept coming back to 'Modern Chess Strategy' by Ludek Pachman based on that chapter order fitting in so well with those actual remembered days with the book... (as well as fitting the other criteria).

On a side note, I'm a touch jealous of your 600+ chess books! Even though, with work and family commitments, I find it currently takes me 6-12 months to get through a single chess book, it'd still be great to see 600 (minus digitals) books on the shelves in my study! But for now I'm totally happy that I'll be adding 'Modern Chess Strategy' by Ludek Pachman to my much smaller collection!

Thanks again for your help, and to all the other posts as well (with UnsidesteppableChess nailing it too!)