John Nunn is a grandmaster from England. He has won four individual gold medals and three team silver medals at Chess Olympiads. In the Chess World Cup of 1988/9, he finished sixth overall, ahead of several former World Champions. He is arguably the most highly acclaimed chess writer in the world - his first two volumes covering his best games both won the prestigious British Chess Federation Book of the Year Award. In 2004 he won the World Chess Solving Championship, ahead of many former champions.
What is the best way to improve your chess results? Memorizing an opening encyclopedia, learning endgame theory, solving puzzle positions ... there must be an easier way. How about making the most of your existing talent?
In a new and enlarged edition of a highly popular work, John Nunn helps you to do precisely that. Drawing upon more than three decades of experience, he provides advice that will help players of all standards, playing styles and temperaments to achieve improved results. His methods take into account psychological factors and are firmly based on good common sense and the objectivity that has made John Nunn one of the world's favorite writers on chess.
This new enlarged edition (published 2007) contains 45% more material than the first edition, published nine years ago. It includes a greatly expanded section on chess computers, and how their use can assist over-the-board players in opening preparation.
This is one of the books that cover almost every aspect of the game. The book is divided as follows...
1. At the Board
Decision-making
The Tree of Analysis revisited
Evaluation functions
When to analyze
DAUT
Safety-nets
When the tactics have to work
Implicit commitments
Positional thinking
The method of comparison
Making your opponent think
Oversights and blunders
Warning signals
'Hard-to-see' moves
Time-trouble
Laziness
Determination
2. The Opening
Building a repertoire
Using opening books
Books on offbeat openings
3. The Middlegame
Good positions
Bad positions
Attack
'Inviting everyone to the party'
Over-sacrificing
Defence
4. The Endgame
King and Pawn endings
Opposition
The Reti manoeuvre
Triangulation
Expect the unexpected
Chess is more than counting
Rook endings
Rook and Pawn vs Rook
The extra Pawn
Positional advantage
Minor-piece andings
Knight endings
Bishop vs Knight endings
Bishop endings
Queen endings
Queen and Pawn vs Queen
The extra Pawn
Common endings without Pawns
Rook vs minor piece
Rook and minor piece vs Rook
Quick-play finishes
5. Using a Computer
Game databases
Playing engines
Limitations of computer analysis
Case study 1: Poisoned Pawn
Case study 2: Rossolimo with 3...g6
Online chess
6. Chess Literature
Choosing a book
Mistakes
Book review 1: Rapid Chess Improvement by Michael de la Maza
Book review 2: Basic Chess Endings by Reuben Fine
Recommended reading
Each topic listed is explained and gone over wonderfully. Since this book contains 256 pages and has so many topics to cover, nothing can be super in depth. For example, the section on 'attack' is not as complete as Vukovic's Art of Attack in Chess, and the endgame section is not as complete as Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual. However Nunn uses the space he has to clearly illustrate the ideas and most important points of each topic.
Every once in a while a book comes out that every aspiring chess player should have and this happens to be one of them. It is a little out of reach of players who are just starting, but is an excellent tool for intermediate and advanced players.
This book has proven itself extremely useful to me and I have learned many things from it. None of the topics included are done lazily or without great effort, making it one of the most instructive general all-around chess books out today. Just more proof of why Nunn is considered one of the top chess writers in the world!