An "all in one" chess manual?

Try Micheal Steins simple chess, its an awesome book, very, very clear, much better than Silman who can explain simple things in great detail, but fails to explain complex things simply! I think its a bit like searching for the Holy Grail, an all in one manual.[/b]

Michael Stean's book is a superb choice (I thought about posting again to mention it), and GM John Emms book by the same title is also very good, although Stean's is the original and best IMHO.

Paul

The game of chess by tarrasch is good(although the opening theory is obviously far outdated)

This time I went to "Borders" book store and they didn't have much of a selection.
They did have "Mastering chess: A course in 21 lessons"

In the introduction they state that it is a book for people 1400-1700 which is EXACTLY what I was looking for.

🙂

Mastering chess: A course in 21 lessons

Yes a truly excellent book. The bloke that wrote the bit about 'Tactics & Combinations'
is, I hear, the handsomest Chess Player of all time.

(it's gone through 19 editions and 4 publishing houses - not bad for a chess book.)

Someone mentioned chess magazines, he's right. CHESS and BCM are
excellent. It should take you a couple of weeks to devour each one.

Lots of other good books have been mentioed but if it's one book that covers
everything then it has to be Mammoth. You can pick up copies on ebay
for a reasonable price.

Small world eh?

Did you write 'The mammoth book of chess" also?

Nope...I see Burgess did.
Props to you being published though.

It's easier these days to write a chess book.

I used something called a typewriter and the diagrams were done by hand
with letraset - blank diagrams and peel off pieces.

I have a spare copy of Mammoth - what do you have to swap?
(I'll chuck in some old chess mags as well).

I see you fly an American flag.
An Apache arrow, I don't have an Apache arrow.

I can trade my wife and a bicycle that is missing a wheel for your Mammoth book of chess...deal?

I went back to the bookstore to look for it, I couldn't find it so I got Lasker's manual of chess.

That should hold me over for a few months...maybe longer.

Originally posted by Automaton
I can trade my wife and a bicycle that is missing a wheel for your Mammoth book of chess...deal?

I went back to the bookstore to look for it, I couldn't find it so I got Lasker's manual of chess.

That should hold me over for a few months...maybe longer.

if you study any single book thoroughly, you'll already be further than 99.9% of the rest of us. -the problem is always the same, we don't study the stuff the books tell us. any chesshead can tell they have a huge amount of books, but they've read maybe 5 of them to the end, and really studied hardly any of it.

what someone said about lasker's opening theory being dated, is not much of an issue (except maybe in CC). if I understood a tenth of what lasker did on any opening, I'd be leagues better set than I'm now.

Originally posted by wormwood
if you study any single book thoroughly, you'll already be further than 99.9% of the rest of us. -the problem is always the same, we don't study the stuff the books tell us. any chesshead can tell they have a huge amount of books, but they've read maybe 5 of them to the end, and really studied hardly any of it.

what someone said about lasker's ope ...[text shortened]... erstood a tenth of what lasker did on any opening, I'd be leagues better set than I'm now.

I will do my best to study Lasker's manual thoroughly and repeatedly if need be.

Originally posted by wormwood
if you study any single book thoroughly, you'll already be further than 99.9% of the rest of us. -the problem is always the same, we don't study the stuff the books tell us. any chesshead can tell they have a huge amount of books, but they've read maybe 5 of them to the end, and really studied hardly any of it.

what someone said about lasker's ope ...[text shortened]... erstood a tenth of what lasker did on any opening, I'd be leagues better set than I'm now.

it should be pointed that the author is NOT the great emanuel lasker, but an homonym : edward lasker (much weaker but master strength anyway)

A bit like murray chandler is NOT the great geoff chandler ;o)

Anyway edward lasker's book is pretty good, full of exercises and questions, which is the best way to learn IMHO

and simple chess is at the same time a little jewel, and very short! which makes it one of the rare books i read to the end (wormwood is right, unfortunately...most of us are lazy!)

Originally posted by shorbock
it should be pointed that the author is NOT the great emanuel lasker, but an homonym : edward lasker (much weaker but master strength anyway)

A bit like murray chandler is NOT the great geoff chandler ;o)

Anyway edward lasker's book is pretty good, full of exercises and questions, which is the best way to learn IMHO

and simple chess is at the same ...[text shortened]... e of the rare books i read to the end (wormwood is right, unfortunately...most of us are lazy!)

Are you saying "Lasker's manual of chess" was written by Edward Lasker?
You kiss your mother with that mouth?

The chess gods are angry. 😠

oooop's sorry !
I didn't know this one had been republished, and edward lasker's book is a very common manual (at least in france)...while emanuel lasker's book was impossible to find...that is until this new edition!

😉 Yes the new edition is nice.

I should have guessed, since edward lasker's book is aimed at beginners, although it can be useful up to 1600 maybe...i should have given your 1400 uscf more credit too ! ;o)