Editorial Reviews:
It's a fact of chess life that if you want to win, you have to put a bit of study in. Every chess player, from near-beginner to experienced tournament player, needs to learn the openings and keep on top of current theory. But studying doesn't have to be dull. This indispensable book contains foolproof ways to help the information go in...and stay in. Acclaimed chess author Andrew Soltis reveals the key techniques: Why you can't study chess the same way you study school subjects; how to acquire the most important knowledge: intuition; the role of memorizing (it's not a bad thing, despite what people say); how to get the most out of playing over a master's game; adopting a chess hero as a means of learning; how great players study; computers as a study tool; and, how to train someone else.

Editorial Reviews:
As a professional journalist and popular chess author, International Master Andrew Soltis is perhaps the best qualified to collect and edit this treasury of chess wisdom through the ages. With quotations running the gamut from timeless irony ("The winner of the game is the player who makes the next-to-last mistake."—Anonymous) to pithy advice ("To get squares, ya gotta give squares."—Bobby Fischer), each nugget of wisdom is accompanied by a chess position illustrating the idea behind it. Divided into chapters on Calculation, Intuition, Strategy, Position Evaluation, Openings, Sacrifices, Attitude, Endgames, Mistakes, Studying, Time Management, and Tournament Tactics, this is a book that chess fans will appreciate as much for its memorable wit as for its practical lessons.

Editorial Reviews:
In the chess world, there are the few—the dedicated, competitive experts—and the many, the millions of social players who are totally unaware of chess theory. Now there’s a quick and easy way to bridge the gap. In just one week, the unschooled player will gain access to the principles that guide the masters: On the first day, the basic concepts of strategy and tactics are introduced. On the second, the reader learns some of the more popular openings and the ideas behind them. And so on, until, by the seventh day, the rapidly advancing student will be able to pull off sophisticated swindles! Illustrated with sidesplitting cartoons, it’s a quick, entertaining, and extraordinarily direct road to chess mastery.

Editorial Reviews:
The book aims to fill a gap in chess literature by listing the record holders in numerous aspects of the game. It is divided into four sections: Games; People; Tournaments, Matches and Events; and Around the Black and White Board, giving the chess play of some amazing chess record moves.

Editorial Reviews:
There is much published on chess tactics, strategy, openings and endings, but little on training the brain to think and evaluate. This book is dedicated to that task and provides numerous positions that encourage independent and original problem solving. The examples emphasise the power of logical thinking, quick wit and imagination. The author presents some new concepts, such as progressive and reciprocal thinking, to help readers to make fewer mistakes and avoid unnecessary foolish errors.

Editorial Reviews:
By popular demand, a third Chess Choice Challenge and another bumper bundle of tricky and varied chess positions on which to test your analytical ability. Multiple-choice questions direct your attention to different facets of each position, while you are also invited to 'take your pick' from a range of suggested continuations.

Editorial Reviews:
Though some of the earliest forms of chess are to be found in Ancient China, its entry into world tournament play came only in the latter part of the 19th century. In 1978, author Liu Wenzhe became the first Chinese player to defeat a western grandmaster and subsequently gained a reputation as China¦s top chess trainer. He is thus ideally equipped to chart the dramatic progress of Chinese players over the past twenty five years, during which time we have seen Xie Jun and Zhu Chen become world women¦s champions, Bu Xianghzi the youngest grandmaster of all time at 14 years of age and China¦s leading men players performing at a consistently high standard and defeating even world champions in tournament play.

Editorial Reviews:
Understanding the Human FactorMost chess books give you a chapter and verse on how to understand chess better, but pay little attention to how your behaviour and psychological outlook - before, during and after a game - can affect your standard of play. Author Amatzia Avni addresses the latter issue head on, covering: The setting of goals Handling spectators Dealing with losses Motivational aspects Cause-effect analysis The search for behavioural clues.Drawing on research findings, strong players' descriptions, as well as the views of the psychologist author, Practical Chess Psychology covers this much-neglected human aspect of chess.

Editorial Reviews:
Popular Chess Variants introduces established chess variants in a "how to play" context. Written in a light, informal style the book contains simple explanations of the games features. The majority of games discussed involve standard chess sets, but, in addition, there are a few examples using Chinese (Xiangqi), Japanese (Shogi) and four-handed chess sets. David Pritchard deals in depth with up to a dozen of the most played games. Among these are Avalanche, Baseline (Fischerandom), Extinction, Knight Relay, Kriegspial, Marseillais and Racing Kings.