23 Nov 06
The other day I picked up Lasker's "Chess Strategy," written in 1915. It's good, but because it was written back in a previous era, it suffers from a number of defects, including descriptive notation, archaic prose, and unclear diagrams. There must be more up to date book that does a good job of laying out the basic principles of chess strategy. Any recommendations? Thanks.
23 Nov 06
Originally posted by bassoDon't knock descriptive notation! One of the all time greats is 'Chess for Tigers', I think.
The other day I picked up Lasker's "Chess Strategy," written in 1915. It's good, but because it was written back in a previous era, it suffers from a number of defects, including descriptive notation, archaic prose, and unclear diagrams. There must be more up to date book that does a good job of laying out the basic principles of chess strategy. Any recommendations? Thanks.
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23 Nov 06
Originally posted by bassoI think you can get the Lasker books from here for free. Although im too tired to check it out for sure.
The other day I picked up Lasker's "Chess Strategy," written in 1915. It's good, but because it was written back in a previous era, it suffers from a number of defects, including descriptive notation, archaic prose, and unclear diagrams. There must be more up to date book that does a good job of laying out the basic principles of chess strategy. Any recommendations? Thanks.
http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page
24 Nov 06
1 edit
Originally posted by bassoI think it's worth pointing out that Chess Strategy was written by Edward Lasker, not Emanuel Lasker, who was still World Champion in 1915.
The other day I picked up Lasker's "Chess Strategy," written in 1915. It's good, but because it was written back in a previous era, it suffers from a number of defects, including descriptive notation, archaic prose, and unclear diagrams. There must be more up to date book that does a good job of laying out the basic principles of chess strategy. Any recommendations? Thanks.
Also, Chess Strategy can be found online in many places, for example:
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/5614
Imagine being one of the top ten chess players in the world, but still not the best "E. Lasker"!
24 Nov 06
pandolfinis weapons of chess is pretty good and has many concepts. as i have learned more i would have bought more books on certain openings to specialize in them but a very good book for understanding the middle game is pawn structure by andrew soltis probably one of the best chess books i have read.
24 Nov 06
Originally posted by bassoThis would seem a strength, as many school teachers in our era are functional illiterates.
archaic prose,
Learning descriptive notation is worthwhile if you want to read old books.
Edward Lasker's books are good. Emanuel's are even better.
For a basic book on strategy, Capablanca's Chess Fundamentals is a gem. Nick de Firmian has revised and updated it (including translating the notation to algebraic) without entirely ruining it.
25 Nov 06
Originally posted by WulebgrIf you want an algebraic version of Capa's Chess Fundamentals that's faithful to the original text, try getting a copy of Cadogan's 1994 algebraic version. I would prefer reading the original text and games, rather than de Firmian's chopped up interpretation.
For a basic book on strategy, Capablanca's Chess Fundamentals is a gem. Nick de Firmian has revised and updated it (including translating the notation to algebraic) without entirely ruining it.
For more details, read Edward Winter's Chess Notes Archive 22 in the link below. (Once there, scroll down to entries 4368 and 4379.)
http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/winter22.html
25 Nov 06
Originally posted by Mad RookThanks for the link.
If you want an algebraic version of Capa's Chess Fundamentals that's faithful to the original text, try getting a copy of Cadogan's 1994 algebraic version. I would prefer reading the original text and games, rather than de Firmian's chopped up interpretation.
For more details, read Edward Winter's Chess Notes Archive 22 in the link below. (Once there, scroll down to entries 4368 and 4379.)
http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/winter22.html
I have and use an old copy of the original Capablanca in descriptive notation, and have only examined de Firmian's version in the aisles of the bookstore. Edward Winter's outrage is well supported by close scrutiny of the text. Getting one of Capablanca's endgames wrong appears the most egregious error among those Winter lists, IMHO.
The Cadogan edition appears to be widely available: http://www.wholesalechess.com/chess/chess_books/Chess+Fundamentals+(Algebraic)