Logical Chess: Move By Move: Every Move Explained New Algebraic Edition (Irving Chernev)

Product Information

The author does a great job of connecting with the reader - one feels that they really are inside the head of the players and that Chernev is explaining what they were thinking while deciding upon their moves. I'm sure it's more complicated in practice, but I didn't realize before reading this what a powerful defender the knight is on f6, and how quickly things can get scary without it. You see how a lead in development leads to an attack, how the battle for space affects the entire course of the game, and numerous endgames by World Champion Jose Raul Capablanca where simple and elegant play rule the day.

Both these methods help me to actually visualise the game as I read through, and play, the games themselves. One of the first books I owned, Chernev's THE FIRESIDE BOOK OF CHESS guided me through the many facets of chess during my formative years.Chernev's writing style is something I enjoy also and overall I would recommend this book to anyone who still commonly uses and reads Descriptive(English) Notation.

It would be nice to have this as an e-book with annotated pgns, but apparently his widow has not been very receptive to publishing deals. The author has a delightful writing style, and the book really built my ability and appreciation for chess. Please remember it can take some time for your bank or credit card company to process and post the refund too. Look at squares to protect rather than pieces, then whenever you need to move a piece into strategic squares there’s already defense laid long ago. As a fan of the book, I recommend it to every beginner, I'd like to point out that the book isn't really about memorising moves.

Modern chess is a little bit different and to understand why GMs break the rules could be interesting.

Experiencing openings and positions in the heat of battle is far more illustrative in play than theory. Chernev thoughtfully explains the decision-making process and contextual meaning behind each move as it’s made. I've noticed that I can go through some variations on my head without moving the pieces and without feeling overwhelmed. It is notable, for example, that by far the most popular opening represented is the Queen's Gambit Declined; by contrast, today's favorite Sicilian Defense is found in just one game.

Even though he wrote many other good books (for example, every aspiring player should also own THE MOST INSTRUCTIVE GAMES OF CHESS EVER PLAYED), this is widely recognized as his best. I still like Logical Chess and 'The Most Instructive Games Of Chess Ever Played' is really worth visiting as well. Chernev had a good point, but personally this 'fixation' with not moving pawns in front of castled king held me back for a while. fantastic scene of torch bearing sacrifice orc-pawn marching up the field as the heroes are lock-horned.