must-read chess books

Looking to extend my chess library.
If you know a chess book you consider a must-read,please mention it here.
It doesn't matter if it's out of print.
No opening books,zero interest in those.

Thanks.

Well, you don't say what you already have, so it's a bit hit and miss. Here's a list off the top of my head, focusing on enjoyment rather than study.

Dr. Tarrasch, 300 Games of Chess
Dr. Tarrasch, die moderne Schachpartie (has it been translated? don't know)
ANY/ALL of Dr. Tarrasch's tournament books: Nürnberg 1896, Ostende 1907, St. Peterburg 1914
...
[right! Thats' enough Tarrasch! --ed.]

A. J. Roycroft, Test Tube Chess
guaranteed to make you like endgame studies!

Yermolinksy, The Road to Chess Improvement
don't know if it'll help anyone under "candidate master" to get better, but a marvellous read

Averbakh, Chess Tactics for Advanced Players
very illuminating; by far the best book I've read about tactics (as opposed to books of positions to solve)

Hoffman, King's Gambit
No, not an opening book! A book about chess rather than a chess book. Uneven, but very good in places.

Marshall, My Fifty Years of Chess
A fellow who really loved chess, and it shows in the way he writes about it. Great games too.

My Best Games as White - Victor Korchnoi
My Best Games as Black - Victor Korchnoi

Any video recos? I think there are lot of videos out there. I have read reviews of some. I feel videos add much more value though no experience yet.

Originally posted by pdunne
Well, you don't say what you already have, so it's a bit hit and miss. Here's a list off the top of my head, focusing on enjoyment rather than study.

Dr. Tarrasch, 300 Games of Chess
Dr. Tarrasch, die moderne Schachpartie (has it been translated? don't know)
ANY/ALL of Dr. Tarrasch's tournament books: Nürnberg 1896, Ostende 1907, St. Peterburg 1914
.. ho really loved chess, and it shows in the way he writes about it. Great games too.

I highly recommend "Improve Your chess now". I wrote a review here http://www.passionforchess.com/blog/54/book-review-improve-your-chess-now/

Originally posted by torten
Looking to extend my chess library.
If you know a chess book you consider a must-read,please mention it here.
It doesn't matter if it's out of print.
No opening books,zero interest in those.

Thanks.

Bobby Fischer Goes to War is a fascinating book about Bobby Fischer and the 1972 World Championship match. Searching for Bobby Fischer is an interesting memoir from a chess parent and especially interesting for those (like me) who've had extensive interactions with the American scholastic chess world. Silman's Complete Endgame Course is one of the best endgame books out there for anyone below master level. Josh Waitzkin's The Art of Learning isn't strictly about chess, but rather the life lessons and psychological lessons that chess (and martial arts) teaches.

Thanks all for the contributions

Improve your chess now is an enjoyable book- a pity Tisdall never wrote another.

Simple Chess by Michael Stean. His way of explaining positional aspects, and his chosen examples, I found to be really instructive

Originally posted by Varenka
Simple Chess by Michael Stean. His way of explaining positional aspects, and his chosen examples, I found to be really instructive

The problem, as I experience it, is not choosing good books (there are so many), but rather getting the endurance to finish them... 🙁 That's the tough part!

Originally posted by Eternal Student
The problem, as I experience it, is not choosing good books (there are so many), but rather getting the endurance to finish them... 🙁 That's the tough part!

Originally posted by torten
buy only thin ones 🙂