The Sicilian Defence is Black s most ambitious and popular defence to 1 e4. Finding a suitable weapon against it has taxed many a grandmaster s brain. Should White dive into the labyrinth of mountainous theory and complications, in which the player who knows the latest theoretical wrinkle is likely to prevail, or should White abstain and instead head for the more tranquil waters of the various Anti-Sicilians on offer? Perhaps the answer lies somewhere in-between In this book, Grandmaster Nigel Davies tackles the Open Sicilian head on, but still develops an easy-to-use system for White based...

The Sicilian Kan is one of the most flexible and easy-to-play variations of the entire Sicilian complex. In contrast to opening monsters such as the infamous Dragon and Najdorf Variations, Black players are not forced to memorize massive chunks of opening theory. Success in the Sicilian Kan is more dependent on understanding certain principles and a system of development. Another point in its favor is that even more experienced White players are often flummoxed by Black s elastic approach. Recently the Kan has received a seal of approval from the highest places, with both Kasparov and Kramnik...

The Classical Dutch is an ambitious and underrated defence to queen s pawn openings. With his first few moves Black creates an asymmetrical pawn structure which unbalances the position from a very early stage, allowing both white and black players to fight for the initiative. Now, for the first time in recent history, International Master Jan Pinski delves into the secrets of the Classical Dutch, studying both the positional motives and tactical nuances for both sides. He deals with the theoretical main lines as well as the crafty side variations, updating the reader on all the new important...

The Four Knights has the distinction of being one of the oldest openings in the history of chess. In a king's pawn opening, both players bring out their knights before contemplating further development. Despite its deceptively peaceful appearance, the Four Knights can lead to wild gambit play as well as calmer positional waters. Adherents include the renowned tactician from Latvia, Alexei Shirov. International Master Jan Pinski delves into the secrets of the Four Knights for the first time, studying the tactical and strategic ideas for both White and Black players. Pinski covers both the...

Ideal for those wanting to understand the basics of the Ruy Lopez. The Ruy Lopez is one of the most famous of all chess openings. It has a long and distinguished history and has been played by virtually all of the strongest Grandmasters: Fischer, Karpov, Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand the list goes on From very early on White activates pieces, takes the initiative and sets about building a dominant centre. In this user-friendly book, author John Shaw goes back to basics, studying the fundamental principles of the Ruy Lopez and its many variations. Throughout the book there are an abundance of...

Play Winning Chess is an introduction to the moves, strategies and philosophy of chess, with clear explanations of the games, fundamental and instructive examples, question-and-answer sections, sample games and psychological hints.

The Veresov is a surprisingly tricky system that, in the right hands, can be a powerful attacking weapon. White forgoes the normal queen's pawn opening ideas in favor of speedy development of the queenside pieces. One advantage of this underrated line is that players with the black pieces are less likely to be familiar with all the subtleties here than in a more mainstream opening. In this book, Grandmaster Nigel Davies arms the reader with an all-in-one repertoire with the white pieces, with the Veresov being the central line. Davies delves into the secrets of the opening, explaining both...

The 1...e5 variation of the English Opening, sometimes referred to as the reversed Sicilian, leads to a diversity of stimulating positions. From wild tactical melees to slow positional battles, there are variations here to suit all styles. These opening lines provide the battle scene for many top Grandmaster clashes, including those of Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand and others belonging to the world's elite. In this book, Alexander Raetsky and Maxim Chetverik explain in detail the positional and tactical possibilities for both White and Black. Using illustrative games, Raetsky and Chetverik outline...

In Survival Guide for Chess Parents, Tanya Jones concentrates on the numerous aspects of being a "chess parent" and answers the many questions facing those with chess-playing children. There's certainly more to this than meets the eye. Problems are as diverse as 'How can I help in the very early stages?', 'How do I find suitable clubs and tournaments?', 'Should I watch when he or she is playing?' and 'How do I find a good chess coach?' Jones also tackles aspects such as chess and education, plus the ever-increasing role of computers and the Internet. Whether a child is just starting out in...

Experienced chess writer Jacob Aagaard explains how tactical intuition and ability develops and uses pattern recognition to improve the reader's tactical ammunition.