There is much published on chess tactics, strategy, openings and endings, but little on how to come up with imaginative solutions through logical thinking and evaluation. This book is dedicated to that task and provides over 700 'fresh' positions, incorporating a variety of schemes of thought for the reader to solve. The examples emphasise the power of logical and resourceful thinking, quick wit and imagination. In each chapter the author presents little-explored concepts, such as progressive and reciprocal thinking, to help the reader achieve decisive results and to make fewer mistakes in calculation. The material has been accumulated by the author over many years as a trainer and will be of great benefit to competitive players seeking to improve their methods of thinking.

Andrei Volokitin is one of a rare breed of chess players: he achieved a ranking in the world's top 20 while still a teenager. This book includes topics that are written in collaboration with his trainer. It features 375 positions where the reader is given a task or asked a question. These tasks resemble those that players regularly face.

Every chess player knows that some moves are harder to see than others. Why is it that, frequently, uncomplicated wins simply do not enter your mind? Even strong grandmasters suffer from blind spots that obscure some of the best ideas during a game. What is more: often both players fail to see the opportunity that is right in front of their eyes. Neiman and Afek have researched this problem and discovered that there are actually reasons why your brain discards certain ideas. In this book they demonstrate different categories of hard-to-see chess moves and clearly explain the psychological, positional and geometric factors which cloud your brain. Invisible Chess Moves with its many unique examples, instructive explanations and illuminative tests, will teach how to discover your blind spots and see the moves which remain invisible for others. Your results at the board will improve dramatically because your brain will stop blocking winning ideas.

• A unique exploration of those pivotal moments in which chess games are won or lost – if you know how to spot them • Packed with invaluable tips and tricks on identifying critical moments, illustrated with examples from 280 chess games • Fascinating new book from the author of Imagination in Chess, which has built up a cult following in the chess world This exciting and unique book deals with an aspect of chess that is hard to pin down: those monumental moments in a game when the tide turns and the course of the game is altered. It outlines the different types of critical moment, explaining how to spot them and, crucially, how to combat them, seize the initiative and turn the game to your own advantage. To back up the theory, the author has provided deep analysis of 280 chess positions from games by some of the greatest players in the world.

First published in 1942, the late B. H. Wood's classic Easy Guide to Chess has been successfully used by thousands of chess players around the world. Topics covered include: the men and their moves, starting the game, the importance of pawns, how to record the moves, standard openings, and much more. This introductory book has been substantially revised for the first algebraic edition, which will bring the game to a new generation of young players.

Garry Kasparov was the highest-rated chess player in the world for over twenty years and is widely considered the greatest player that ever lived. In How Life Imitates Chess Kasparov distills the lessons he learned over a lifetime as a Grandmaster to offer a primer on successful decision-making: how to evaluate opportunities, anticipate the future, devise winning strategies. He relates in a lively, original way all the fundamentals, from the nuts and bolts of strategy, evaluation, and preparation to the subtler, more human arts of developing a personal style and using memory, intuition, imagination and even fantasy. Kasparov takes us through the great matches of his career, including legendary duels against both man (Grandmaster Anatoly Karpov) and machine (IBM chess supercomputer Deep Blue), enhancing the lessons of his many experiences with examples from politics, literature, sports and military history. With candor, wisdom, and humor, Kasparov recounts his victories and his blunders, both from his years as a world-class competitor as well as his new life as a political leader in Russia. An inspiring book that combines unique strategic insight with personal memoir, How Life Imitates Chess is a glimpse inside the mind of one of today's greatest and most innovative thinkers.

Chess, the ancient strategy game, meets the latest, cutting-edge philosophy in this unique book. When 12 philosophers weigh in on one of the world's oldest and most beloved pastimes, the results are often surprising. Philosophical concepts as varied as phenomenology and determinism share the page with a treatise on hip-hop chess tactics and the question of whether Garry Kasparov is, in fact, a cyborg. Putting forth a remarkable array of different views on chess from philosophers with varied chess-proficiency, Philosophy Looks at Chess is an engaging read for chess adherents and the philosophically inclined alike.

The Best Move is a collection of very hard chess problems based on actual grandmaster games. The reader is asked who has the advantage and why. Points are awarded not only for getting the answer right but for seeing deeply into the position. These problems are based primarily on the games of grandmasters Hort and Jansa. This book was later translated into German with some changes in the diagrams and published in 1982-1984.

Jonathan Rowson, author of the highly acclaimed Seven Deadly Chess Sins, investigates three questions important to all chess-players: 1) Why is it so difficult, especially for adult players, to improve? 2) What kinds of mental attitudes are needed to find good moves in different phases of the game? 3) Is White's alleged first-move advantage a myth, and does it make a difference whether you are playing Black or White? In a strikingly original work, Rowson makes use of his academic background in philosophy and psychology to answer these questions in an entertaining and instructive way. This book assists all players in their efforts to improve, and provides fresh insights into the opening and early middlegame. Rowson presents many new ideas on how Black should best combat White's early initiative, and make use of the extra information that he gains as a result of moving second. For instance, he shows that in some cases a situation he calls 'Zugzwang Lite' can arise, where White finds himself lacking any constructive moves. He also takes a close look at the theories of two players who, in differing styles, have specialized in championing Black's cause: Mihai Suba and Andras Adorjan. Readers are also equipped with a 'mental toolkit' that will enable them to handle many typical over-the-board situations with greater success, and avoid a variety of psychological pitfalls. Chess for Zebras offers fresh insights into human idiosyncrasies in all phases of the game. The depth and breadth of this book will therefore help players to appreciate chess at a more profound level, and make steps towards sustained and significant improvement.

A treasure chest of puzzles designed to stretch the minds of all players. Imagination and calculation are two of the most important qualities of a chess player, and they are qualities which, with purposeful practice, can be developed significantly.