Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

[David Cohen]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Anything by Irving Chernev!

[Greg Beal]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Just recently finished "Wonderboy" by Simon Agdestien (sp), It was a real page turner as you follow the path that lead Magnus Carlson up to grandmaster, and most recently the highest rated player. You find out about Magnus's father renting out their home so they can travel for a year in order for Magnus to find good tournaments to play in and achieve his IM and GM norms.

[Ken Craft]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Chess Secrets I Learned from the Masters by Edward Lasker.

[John Upper]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

This is not a recc, but just a reference to a book of short stories related to chess called "Masters of Technique". The Forword, which discusses lots of chess fiction (shameing the paltry list we've managed to come up with on this D-board), is reproduced today at Chess Cafe

http://www.chesscafe.com/skittles/skittles.htm

[David McTavish]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

This is not a recc, but just a reference to a book of short stories related to chess called "Masters of Technique". The Forword, which discusses lots of chess fiction (shameing the paltry list we've managed to come up with on this D-board), is reproduced today at Chess Cafe

http://www.chesscafe.com/skittles/skittles.htm

By the way, the A-Board, where ideas might emanate is :

www.ecforum.org.uk

And congrats on your tourney endgame pos and Dvort's tablebase ref. to recent Mueller's Endgame Corner.Briefer than you may have originally thought.

[Howard Streit]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Tigran Petrosian by Vik Vasiliev, biography of Petrosian up to the early 1970s. Written by an insider who was a friend of Petrosian, includes a number of games.

The King's Gambit came out about three years ago, very relevant to many of our formative years...with a Canadian twist as well.

[Yakov Zusmanovich]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

The most interesting book related to chess is "My Way to Vlasov and Manifesto of Prague" by Dr. F. Bohatirchuk (Globus, San Francisco, 1978, 335 pages, no games, in Russian).
This is most fascinating reading related to chess, science and politics. Imagine, that you read "Doctor Zhivago", but instead of weak and indecisive Yuri Zhivago, medical Doctor and poet, your protagonist is medical Doctor and chess player Fedor Bohatirchuk, strong and courageous. He avoids arrest during Stalin’s purge of 1937-38, he saves Jews during Nazi occupation of Kiev in 1941, risking his life every second, he awaits execution in Gestapo prison in 1942, he joins general Vlasov in his fight against Nazis and Reds in 1945, he fools Soviet secret service (СМЕРШ – death to spies) , hunting for him in Germany in 1945-49. Then he arrives in Canada, plays in 3 national championships (runner-up) and for Canadian national chess team in Amsterdam in 1954, becomes a professor of Ottawa University, receives Barclay medal as the best radiologist of the world in 1955, ….
Unlike Doctor Yuri Zhivago, Doctor Fedor Bohatirchuk does not die of heart attack at comparatively young age and lives long life (he died at age of 92), fights for the Democracy and Freedom...
There is only one problem: book is written in Russian and never been translated in English. This book will be published in English; very soon, the work is in progress. You have to read it. It's a must reading for every chess lover.
I have more than 1500 biographical chess books, and this one is the best.

[Yakov Zusmanovich]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Tigran Petrosian by Vik Vasiliev has a continuation - "KGB Plays Chess" by GM Boris Gulko, GM Victor Korchnoi (by the way, great reading about Gulko's family fight against KGB). Since 1973 Petrosian worked for KGB, sending reports on Tal, Korchnoi, Spassky and other Soviet chess players. Unfortunately, he was a devoted informer.

[John Henry]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

The Chess Artist by Hallman.Very intriging about chess in a former Soviet Republic.

[Dan Scoones]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Chess Duels, by Yasser Seirawan. Full of great games and interesting stories!

[Ken MacDonald]

Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Chess Duels, by Yasser Seirawan. Full of great games and interesting stories!

Have you actually seen this book yet? Amazon.ca still shows it as a pre-publishing order? I have been waiting for it. Maybe you have proof-read it?

Thanks.

[Neil Sullivan]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Have you actually seen this book yet? Amazon.ca still shows it as a pre-publishing order? I have been waiting for it. Maybe you have proof-read it?

Thanks.

I have a copy that one of my nephews got me in London. It pays to have world travellers in the family. :)

I agree with Dan's comments, So far, it's a very enjoyable read!

[Yakov Zusmanovich]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

Have you actually seen this book yet? Amazon.ca still shows it as a pre-publishing order? I have been waiting for it. Maybe you have proof-read it?

Thanks.

Ken,

Amazon sells it. I bought it from Amazon 10 days ago and it was delivered 4 days ago.
Nice book.

[Dan Scoones]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

I got it yesterday (June 11), also from Amazon.ca. Despite the subtitle (My Games with the World Champions), the book is dedicated to Bent Larsen!

[Neil Sullivan]

Re: Best/Most Enjoyable Chess Book To Read?

I got it yesterday (June 11), also from Amazon.ca. Despite the subtitle (My Games with the World Champions), the book is dedicated to Bent Larsen!

I have serious misgivings about ordering chess books from amazon. Since I am lucky enough to live in a town with a CMA store, they are my first choice. It's true no one can beat amazon's prices, but they also have a different situation with regards to overhead.

They strongarm distributors into taking all the risks while their profit is assured. I figure if I value a store where I can go in and see the product and which offers a wider product line, it has to be supported. Besides, publishers like Quality and Russell are already holding their product back a couple of months, so CMA will have them sooner.

Ironically though, my last purchase was the 2 volume Smyslov collection from Moravian Chess. I got them through NIC because they had a special and CMA only had volume 2. Amazon doesn't even know they exist. :)