Starting Out: Closed Sicilian

Starting Out: Closed Sicilian (Richard Palliser)
208 Pages
ISBN (10 digits):
185-74-44140

The Closed Sicilian is an ideal weapon for players who wish for an aggressive way to attack the Sicilian but have neither the time nor the inclination to learn the seemingly endless mountains of opening theory associated with Open Sicilians. In the Closed Sicilian an awareness of the typical themes is far more important than memorising variations. White's play is logical and the basic strategies are simple to master, while the deliberate and slow burning attack on the black king appeals to many.

In "Starting Out: Closed Sicilian" Richard Palliser takes a fresh look at this famous opening. The early moves and ideas are introduced and care is taken to explain the reasoning behind them - something that is often neglected or taken for granted.

As with previous works in the popular "Everyman Chess Starting Out" series, the reader is helped throughout with a plethora of notes, tips and warnings highlighting the vital characteristics of the Closed Sicilian and of opening play in general. With a user-friendly design to help readers absorb ideas, this book concentrates on the key principles of the Closed Sicilian that is ideal for the improving player.

(click to enlarge)


SAMPLE PAGES

(click to enlarge)

Chess Tactics For Champions

Chess Tactics For Champions (Susan Polgar)
360 Pages
ISBN (10 digits):
0-8129-3671-X

Chess Tactics for Champions reveals the tactics that made Susan Polgar a four-time World Champion. For intermediate to advanced players, this book includes:

-Powerful combinations designed to win material and lead to checkmate
-Simple and effective tactics, including one-move checkmates
-Instruction on trapping pieces and setting up decoys
-Training on how to maneuver a mate in four moves

(click to enlarge)



SAMPLE PAGES

(click to enlarge)

Complete Endgame Course

Complete Endgame Course (Jeremy Silman)
530 Pages
ISBN (10 digits):
189-008-5103

For more than 100 years, the world's leading chess players and teachers have told their students to study the endgame. Now, for the first time, a revolutionary, richly instructive endgame book has been designed for players of all levels. Silman's Complete Endgame Course, by famed writer and player Jeremy Silman, is the one and only endgame book you'll need as you move up the ladder from beginner to strong tournament player and finally to master.

Designed to "speak" to a player in a very personal way, Silman's book teaches the student everything he or she needs to know at his or her current rating level, and builds on that knowledge for each subsequent phase of the player's development. Starting at the beginner's level, all basic mates are clearly and painstakingly explained. After that, the critical building blocks that form the endgame foundation for all tournament hopefuls and experienced tournament competitors are explored in detail. Finally, advanced endgame secrets based on concepts rather than memorization are presented in a way that makes them easy to master.

The basic keys to a well-rounded endgame education--Opposition, the Lucena and Philidor Positions, Cat and Mouse, Trebuchet, Fox in the Chicken Coup, Triangulation, Building a Box, Square of a Pawn, Outflanking, the Principle of Two Weaknesses--are vital. But equally important is creating a love of the endgame, which is addressed at the end of the book with a look at chess tactics, minor piece domination, and a discussion of the five greatest endgame players of all time--all things that every fan of chess at every level can enjoy.

If you have found the endgame to be a mystery, if you have found that your confidence plummets once you reach an endgame, if you have searched for an instructive endgame book that will turn your weakest link--your endgame--into your personal field of power, your search is over. Silman's Complete Endgame Course is the key to a world of essential ideas, startling beauty, and stunning creativity.

(click to enlarge)



SAMPLE PAGES

(click to enlarge)