Help!!! I keep acquiring chess books but I never completed one.

Hello everyone,

So after learning chess after a surgery I had from 2008, I would learn the game of chess. However, I always played the game on and off.  I never actually completed a chess book or finished one. Overtime I had acquire quite a library of books thinking I would read them. The picture you see below is only half of the chess books I own. I have five questions.

How do you find motivation to actually finish a chess book?

How should I go through and study the books below? I need a plan, since I don't know the ratings required to read the below.

I don't own an actual chess board, but should I set up each position on an online analysis board or should I buy one?

Do you think that chess books can gain value over time, like they get more expensive to purchase as it becomes out of print?

After reading all these books and if I ever complete them, can I become a national master?

Thank you for your advice and feed back, please see the picture below:

How do I rotate the image to make it easier to see for people? 

I brought only one book but still i became 1600 hundred in rapid and daily. Maybe reading opening book might be helpful 

What was the book you were reading? How did you finish it?

I read Game Changer on alpha zero by Sadler. It was an interactive chess book which means you don't need to setup physical board. You can just play through the moves on computer screen with text. 

If you're having issues keeping focused/being motivated to do these books, remind yourself about your chess goals and tell yourself that reading these books will help your chess in the long run. A good course website is https://www.chessable.com/. Chessable is an interactive online chess course website that I use a lot, it's very helpful. They have a lot of free and paid courses. I find it works better for me than physical books.

How many books do you have? Maybe we can share or trade? Would love to see a picture.

Wow that sounds fun, maybe I should try that too? Did you use a website or application? 

The answer is simple, next time steal a chess book so you don't waste money.

Oh wow. Thank you for the recommendation. I never heard about that website, but it looks like the reviews are good and there are so many classes/books/courses to choose from. 

This is good to know, that I'm not the only just collecting books and not going through them all. I just thought it was a quirky behavior of mine. Glad to know I'm not alone. Yes, I acquire most of these books before I knew about online books. I just thought they were fun to collect. What kind of chess board do you use? Do you have a picture of yours? 

Just Google interactive chess book and you are done. Apps or websites, it is available for both. 

I think I spent less than $20 for most of these books. Most of these were gifts, I won from tournaments, friends were just leaving the hobby so they gave them to me, or just some how ended up in my hands. I spent way more money on trading cards and stocks, compared to chess.

Anyways, who steals books now a days? I think the last time I heard someone steal a book, was a bible from a church back in 2019.
https://www.wbtv.com/2019/12/19/pastor-hopes-person-who-stole-bibles-reads-them-finds-jesus/

Honestly I've gotten to around 1500 OTB without really slogging through any books. I've watched plenty of videos and read articles to broaden my chess knowledge, however.

Chess is the most subject written about except for the bible . . .

Make a goal, buy a cheap club board and pieces . . .

Don't READ a book PLAY it . . .

The best book i see you have is Silmans Complete End Game . . .

Play games for one of your 35 Clubs . . . 3 day moves . . . Move on the second day not on the first, not on the third day . . .

No one can help you to play the book but yourself . . .

Bye

Rich

Rare bookdealer here-- the value of the books depends on the condition, scarcity, and (of course) just overall desirability of the title. If they're first printings by Casablanca, for instance, and in very nice condition, they will increase in value over time no matter what. 

@tannguyen1991 Glad I can help, I've got no problem with you re-directing me here

1. You've got a couple great books in there. I would recommend reading Silman's Endgame Cours if you haven't already.

2. In terms of finishing a book, set up a goal for yourself. It should be manageable but not excessively challenging. Split the book up into chunks and deal with it that way. Maybe have a general end date for the entire book, and end dates for each individual chapter. Also, don't refrain from taking a break for a few days or a week if you're feeling a bit tired. Quality and quantity are both important.

3. I'll admit I don't know many of the books there, but I know that Silman's Endgame Course is good. Dvoretsky's is the endgame book after that (in terms of levels), so start with Silman's. However, you can always try any book you have, and just determine if you are going too fast or too slow. If you can't quite figure out if the book is right for you, maybe search online?

4. A real board is always good but not necessary. No matter what, you gotta set up important positions and look for them. Another good thing is to try to imagine the positions in your head (like variations) and then make them on the board afterward. That can help with your imagination and calculation.

5. Reading books in general is essential to becoming a NM or any higher-rated level player. I'm sure you can make it, but you'd have to study and learn from different mediums as well. Playing and analyzing games is important, as well as working on tactics, openings, etc.

Hope that helped

Not the place for this... you need to beat people that are 3000 to get to 3000

Oh never mind their account was closed today.

I have found it impossible to read a chess book without setting up a board.  Also, since they can be complex, I have found that i only do one chapter at a time or just one section in  a chapter.  Good luck.

What videos have you been watching? Any good recommendations? Were they free or did they come from other websites?