I will try to at least get through nearly all of them eventually at least on a surface level. You may also become faster/better at going through them over time.
If you buy a book and never read through it all it doesn't mean it was a mistake. It may have been a good decision at the time, it just didn't turn out the way you believed it would. Another time it might.
If it weren't for PGN versions of chess books, I wouldn'y read ANY of them. Too freaking time consuming to set up positions every time.
Alex Fishbein, who used to be a Colorado resident before becoming a grandmaster, wrote in a local chess bulletin that he read My System without a board. He may well have approached Botvinnik's One Hundred Selected Games, a book he thought highly of, the same way, but I can't remember.
The idea is to train your visualization, seeing the analyzed position in the mind's eye, as distinct from board vision, seeing what is in front of you. Both are vital to becoming a good player, and reading a chess book without a board can help cultivate those skills.
That said, today's analytical tomes are difficult if not impossible for the average player to approach this way, requiring the player to physically set up the position or play the moves and variations over with a PGN or ChessBase reader.
To SilentKnighte5's point about three dimensional pieces versus two dimensional diagrams, it should not matter but I think it does. If you're going to compete in face to face, over-the-board tournaments, by all means set up the pieces and practice with a clock to become familiar with just what you will face. I often play through games on my travel set, but I'm not sure that is as good as a regulation-sized set. Practice with what you will be using the most.
Just my two cents worth.
While I do believe GMs and certain individuals can study books without the aid of a board/computer, I find that the overwhelming number of chess books I have are impossible to read without a book, and I suspect would be for the vast number of individuals.
Tactics and puzzle type books are the exception - I always do those without a board/cpu.
But annotated games? All of my annotated game books go into lengthy sidelines, including full games embedded into the text. There's almost no way you can possibly go through something like that, let alone alone a 12 move sequence with heavy tactics, without a board.
T0 impr0ve your chess it´s not a good idea read books, i recommend y0u spend your time in date with girls and then if you have time , you also play blitz and bullet here in chess.com .
Reading chess books is like banging your head against the wall . When the game begins y0u ´re going t0 depress.
T0 impr0ve your chess it´s not a good idea read books, i recommend y0u spend your time in date with girls and then if you have time , you also play blitz and bullet here in chess.com .
Reading chess books is like banging your head against the wall . When the game begins y0u ´re going t0 depress.
I agree. Your social skills, which help you to "read" your opponent, and the ability to see tactics and patterns quickly are both extremely important in chess.
If it weren't for PGN versions of chess books, I wouldn'y read ANY of them. Too freaking time consuming to set up positions every time.
That said, today's analytical tomes are difficult if not impossible for the average player to approach this way, requiring the player to physically set up the position or play the moves and variations over with a PGN or ChessBase reader.
But annotated games? All of my annotated game books go into lengthy sidelines, including full games embedded into the text. There's almost no way you can possibly go through something like that, let alone alone a 12 move sequence with heavy tactics, without a board.
Yes, that's what I meant by my paragraph about "today's analytical tomes."
T0 impr0ve your chess it´s not a good idea read books, i recommend y0u spend your time in date with girls and then if you have time , you also play blitz and bullet here in chess.com .
Reading chess books is like banging your head against the wall . When the game begins y0u ´re going t0 depress.
Do you have any Swedish girls you can send my way so I can test your hypothesis? 
StultusIrrumabo wrote:
Chess for Dummies
That is the only book that I never recommend.
When you get a specific book don't just read it, PLAY IT THROUGH.
You will learn more.
If that was directed to my post i was refering to nonchess books when i mentioned specific books.
I write as a long-time novice who wants to improve, and who happens to have a number of chess books. Thinking of chess books, I always remember the old quote to the effect that--excluding the truly serious, that is, the Masters and Grandmasters--the size of your chess library is inversely proportional to your playing strength. This was true for me a for a time--I began well, with some openings books by I.A. Howowitz when I was a teen. I was never exposed to chess books on anything else until decades later. As a young adult, I got a real steal on cheap new chess books from a DVD store (of all things!) many years ago. I probably had about thirty books. I read none of them, though I browsed a few.
Some years ago, I needed money, so I sold many of them for bargain prices at my local chess club (where I was--you guessed it--the weakest member). Now, I regret selling some of them. I haven't been to the club in years, but I'd like to go back. My schedule makes it a bit hard, though.
Anyway, I kept some books, and over the last few months, I've been actually working my way through them. This is the first time in my life since my early days with Horowitz that I've actually been reading my chess books. I just finished Patrick Wolff's "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chess." It's got breadth and depth, and hundreds of exercises! My son and I just finished "Chess Tactics for Students," by John Bain. I can't say enough good about this book! It's perfect for someone in the lower intermediate range, where I am. The exercises are laid out very well, and the overall pedagogical usefulness of this book is extremely high. I wish Bain had written more books. Right now, my son and I are working our way through the easiest parts of Bruce Pandolfini's "Endgame Course." I don't recommend this book, but I'm continuing to use it and to learn from it.
As of today, I'm also beginning Jeremy Silman's work "Complete Book of Chess Strategy." This is more of a broad overview of many ideas, and I know it will teach me a lot. Later, I plan to read Vladimir Vukovic's "The Art of Attack in Chess" and also "How to Reassess your Chess," also by Silman. Silman is a really good chess writer and teacher, and I can see that it will be a joy to work through his books. Later, I'll try for something more endgame-focused.
I also have some game collections by Chernev that I hope to get to in the near future.
Finally, I'm looking to buy and read more in-depth books on my favourite opening: the French defense.
I write as a long-time novice who wants to improve, and who happens to have a number of chess books. Thinking of chess books, I always remember the old quote to the effect that--excluding the truly serious, that is, the Masters and Grandmasters--the size of your chess library is inversely proportional to your playing strength. This was true for me a for a time--I began well, with some openings books by I.A. Howowitz when I was a teen. I was never exposed to chess books on anything else until decades later. As a young adult, I got a real steal on cheap new chess books from a DVD store (of all things!) many years ago. I probably had about thirty books. I read none of them, though I browsed a few.
Some years ago, I needed money, so I sold many of them for bargain prices at my local chess club (where I was--you guessed it--the weakest member). Now, I regret selling some of them. I haven't been to the club in years, but I'd like to go back. My schedule makes it a bit hard, though.
Anyway, I kept some books, and over the last few months, I've been actually working my way through them. This is the first time in my life since my early days with Horowitz that I've actually been reading my chess books. I just finished Patrick Wolff's "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chess." It's got breadth and depth, and hundreds of exercises!
My son and I just finished "Chess Tactics for Students," by John Bain. I can't say enough good about this book! It's perfect for someone in the lower intermediate range, where I am. The exercises are laid out very well, and the overall pedagogical usefulness of this book is extremely high. I wish Bain had written more books. Right now, my son and I are working our way through the easiest parts of Bruce Pandolfini's "Endgame Course." I don't recommend this book, but I'm continuing to use it and to learn from it.
As of today, I'm also beginning Jeremy Silman's work "Complete Book of Chess Strategy." This is more of a broad overview of many ideas, and I know it will teach me a lot. Later, I plan to read Vladimir Vukovic's "The Art of Attack in Chess" and also "How to Reassess your Chess," also by Silman. Silman is a really good chess writer and teacher, and I can see that it will be a joy to work through his books. Later, I'll try for something more endgame-focused.
I also have some game collections by Chernev that I hope to get to in the near future.
Finally, I'm looking to buy and read more in-depth books on my favourite opening: the French defense.
Good luck in your quest, Nathan. As you move along in your development, I don't think you can do better than John Watson's book on The French Defense, but it will be a little advanced for you right now.
Best,
Bob
I've read every single book I have on chess, which is to say none. However I am working through every single tutorial on chessmaster grandmaster edition (9k) and constantly working on drills (find the fork, find the check, find the mate in 1, 2, 3, etc) seeing how my rating is blitz rating is slowly going back up to a less... laughable number I'd say it's working. Though I haven't tried incremental yet.
but you must read (develop) from the basics upwards. Can you jump from Form/Grade 1-4 to Form/Grade 9-12 in normal school? No? Chess should be no different.
That's the trouble with chess books - the book you study needs to be at the right level - not too difficult nor too easy - to be useful. And there's no way to know if a book is right until you start reading it.
Maybe this is one area where a coach's advice would be really helpful
'Our common-sense view is that minds are spaces ready to be filled with new chess positions, and the chess improvement industry relies on this notion to sell their products.' Rowson, J. Chess for Zebras
Suman3 is absolutely right, people have become too lazy to read; they are taught to rely on a short summary of facts, visual (presentation) of facts in diagrams, keywords, abstracts, audiobooks, DVD encyclopaedias, video tutorials etc. etc. I've seen households without any books in the living room. Unbelievable.
This is the side-effect of mobile technology. I already see questions like 'how to read' coming up once in a while. Reading is a must; but you must read (develop) from the basics upwards. Can you jump from Form/Grade 1-4 to Form/Grade 9-12 in normal school? No? Chess should be no different. Perhaps, the question itself - whether to read , how to force oneself to read, and how to do it properly - reveals that the person behind is either still very young or has no solid formal education.
Hello, UseWithCare. An astute post from Latvia, the country that gave birth to Tal. Kudos for defending chess books and reading for comprehension.
I currently have two books, 'My 60 Memorable games' by Fischer and 'Encyclopedia of Chess Combinations Vol 1' I read and study both of them on a daily basis. I am at game no. 17 on the first book. And at puzzle no.150 of the 1500 puzzles in the second book. I think my game improves greatly each time I read these two books.
Yeah. It is revealing that with the advent of e-books, Kindles etc many bookstores have gone out of business (not unlike Blockbuster's) where I'm at. Before, I could always go to Border's, drink some coffee, look at the latest additions, virtually spend some hours perusing, even playing some skittle games (when I brought my board) with perfect strangers. Go to Walbooks at the Mall pick up the latest New in Chess. Barnes & Nobles still exits but only one store whereas there used to be three. Dunno. I don't get the same vibe I used to get 10-20 yrs back. Heh.
Like one poster, I regret selling some of my books because since I've been on chess.com, I miss them! Maybe I'll get the nerve to buy some from Amazon online, some new ones some day. But I'm just playing as a hobby, not a tourney player (OTB) anymore. Soo, indeed, I go through most books I still do have.
...
Finally, I'm looking to buy and read more in-depth books on my favourite opening: the French defense.
Good luck in your quest, Nathan. As you move along in your development, I don't think you can do better than John Watson's book on The French Defense, but it will be a little advanced for you right now.
Best,
Bob
Hey, thanks, Bob! I'll be sure to consider that one when it comes time.
Actually, I do have two books on the French defense: the Starting Out one another poster mentioned, which seems ok, but I never really got into it, and Uhlmann's book, which seems to be more a collection of games than a teaching book. Neither one really meets enough of my needs at present, but I think I should probably work on other aspects of my play before concentrating too much on openings, even on the French defense.
hahahaha....the real answer is : nobody. Nobody actually reads chess books because unless you are locked in solitary for 10 years no person could actually stoop to the level of boredom chessbooks represent. It is just not physically possible. People claim to read them so they can sound cool that's about as far as it goes.
Finally, I'm looking to buy and read more in-depth books on my favourite opening: the French defense.
Good luck in your quest, Nathan. As you move along in your development, I don't think you can do better than John Watson's book on The French Defense, but it will be a little advanced for you right now.
Best,
Bob
Hey, thanks, Bob! I'll be sure to consider that one when it comes time.
Actually, I do have two books on the French defense: the Starting Out one another poster mentioned, which seems ok, but I never really got into it, and Uhlmann's book, which seems to be more a collection of games than a teaching book. Neither one really meets enough of my needs at present, but I think I should probably work on other aspects of my play before concentrating too much on openings, even on the French defense.
No problem, Nathan.
Checking your profile, I see your rating isn't that low, but I've repeated a list of books that I posted at another forum for a player having trouble improving. If you're willing to put in the time with standard books or e-books, particularly those dedicated to tactics -- lots and lots of tactics -- you will inevitably improve.
Understanding endgames and how the various pieces coordinate together to limit the mobility and options of the opponent is also very important. Tarrasch, the Praeceptor Germaniae or Teacher of Germany, began his instruction manual, The Game of Chess, with the endgame.
Anyway, here are a few book recommendations with links (Note: some of the old classics are in Descriptive Notation, but it's not hard to learn)
Tactics
The Art of Checkmate
Learn Chess Tactics
Improve Your Chess Tactics: 700 Practical Lessons & Exercises
Endgame
Chess Endings: Essential Knowledge
Silman's Complete Endgame Course: From Beginner To Master
Strategy (basic to more complex)
Logical Chess: Move by Move
The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played
50 Essential Chess Lessons
Modern Chess Strategy (the one by Luděk Pachman, though I like Edward Lasker's book too, but it's older and not as advanced)
Opening
Discovering Chess Openings
Understanding the Chess Openings
I hope this gives you a boost to becoming the player you want to be.
Best,
Bob
fightingbob wrote:
"... some of the old classics are in Descriptive Notation, ..."
I think that all but one (Modern Chess Strategy) of the books in your list are available in algebraic editions.
Thanks, Bob, and also ylblai2 for the notes. You know, I learned with the descriptive notation, and believe it or not, I actually found the Algebraic notation daunting in the beginning! Then, once I got used to it, I found it inelegant, and I was even a little upset when I saw that only one of my two Chernev books was in the older system. Now, though, I prefer the algebraic--it really is a better notation.
If it weren't for PGN versions of chess books, I wouldn'y read ANY of them. Too freaking time consuming to set up positions every time.
Alex Fishbein, who used to be a Colorado resident before becoming a grandmaster, wrote in a local chess bulletin that he read My System without a board. He may well have approached Botvinnik's One Hundred Selected Games, a book he thought highly of, the same way, but I can't remember.
The idea is to train your visualization, seeing the analyzed position in the mind's eye, as distinct from board vision, seeing what is in front of you. Both are vital to becoming a good player, and reading a chess book without a board can help cultivate those skills.
That said, today's analytical tomes are difficult if not impossible for the average player to approach this way, requiring the player to physically set up the position or play the moves and variations over with a PGN or ChessBase reader.
To SilentKnighte5's point about three dimensional pieces versus two dimensional diagrams, it should not matter but I think it does. If you're going to compete in face to face, over-the-board tournaments, by all means set up the pieces and practice with a clock to become familiar with just what you will face. I often play through games on my travel set, but I'm not sure that is as good as a regulation-sized set. Practice with what you will be using the most.
Just my two cents worth.