The Italian Game is the front-line of modern chess. After a hundred years of oblivion, in the 21st century, it edged out many other renowned openings, and is employed today by all the world's top players. Its modern interpretation is full of new ideas, and its theory has grown thanks to the research of modern grandmasters. This book is an attempt to comprehend the current state of this opening. The book, however, is not just a collection of lines of this fashionable opening. Its main idea is to demonstrate the key ideas and typical techniques in various opening positions, with every key idea being highlighted in the text. The manual can thus be used as a strategy textbook in Italian-type positions; it even includes a special section called 'The Italian Endgame'. A separate chapter is devoted to one the most important problems of modern chess, that is, getting similar positions of the Italian type from other openings. The book should be of interest to players of various strengths.

One of the best and most popular ways to meet White’s first move 1.e4 remains the tried and tested 1...e5. After this move the majority of games steer for the Ruy Lopez. A perfectly fine choice for White, but one that requires you to study the countless different setups and follow the continuously evolving theory in that opening. Karsten Müller and Georgios Souleidis present an alternative that is ideal for the average club player: a complete repertoire for White in the Italian Opening. This modern version of the age-old ‘Giuoco Piano’, with the innocent looking pawn moves c3 and d3, is not only popular at club level, but is also regularly adopted by many strong Grandmasters including the very best, such as Magnus Carlsen and Anish Giri. The set-up is easy to learn and understand, and theoretical novelties are much less important than the sound principles it is based on, such as the pawn push d3-d4 or bringing the b1 knight over to the kingside and into the attack. The Slow Italian may look innocent, but is actually full of venom, because White has a lot of options to create aggressive play by making natural looking moves with his pieces. Müller and Souleidis have created a solid weapon that every amateur chess player will delight in playing. With a foreword by Anish Giri.

The Italian Game (sometimes referred to as the Giuoco Piano) is one of the oldest openings around, and also one of the first lines a player learns when he or she is introduced to chess. It leads to play that is easy to understand: both sides develop their pieces logically and begin attacks on the opposing kings. The Italian Game gives both White and Black the opportunity to play either aggressively and in gambit fashion, or in a restrained and positional manner. One of White's most exciting and attacking options is the legendary Evans Gambit, which has been brought back into the limelight in this modern era by such uncompromising players as World number one Garry Kasparov, Alexander Morozevich and England's Nigel Short. In this book, openings expert Jan Pinski investigates the different strategies and tactics in the Italian Game and Evans Gambit. Using model games for both White and Black, Pinski provides crucial coverage of both the main lines and offbeat variations. This book arms the reader with enough knowledge to play the Italian Game and Evans Gambit with confidence. * Written by well known opening theoretician * A useful guide for club and tournament players alike * All main lines are covered

Modern Ideas in Chess is a series of 45 essays dealing with the evolution of game, its leading players, their ideas and contributions to their respective periods. The chronology starts in the Romantic era of Anders-sen and Morphy, continues through the Classical School of Steinitz, Tarrasch, Lasker, and runs to the dawn of the Hypermodern Revolution; the 70 year stretch from 1852 to 1922. Working in small chunks Rti had to be selective in what he extracted from each player and period. Plus the individual elements all had to tie in with the larger canvass Rti was painting for his readers. You dont have to get too far into the book to realize that Rti was a creative artist using the tension of chess ideas to reflect the larger intellectual struggle of mankind. How does Rti do it? A solid chess foundation obviously helps, also keen observation of the human experience coupled with a powerful command of language. Together these serve up indelible images that stick in the mind of the reader and lift this work far above the ordinary. Modern Ideas in Chess is one of the rare books that transcends the time frame in which it was written. It stands on its own, timeless, one of the true classics in the literature of the game.

This book fills a gaping chasm in chess literature. For years, those who wish to take on the black side of the Ruy Lopez have had to muddle their way through against the variety of alternative openings at White's disposal, because there have been no good books to assist them. This is a detailed guide, written from Black's viewpoint, to facing such openings as the King's Gambit, Vienna, Scotch, Four Knights, Italian Game, Bishop's opening, and the variety of oddball gambits White can try.

Seven years after his acclaimed and bestselling The Kaufman Repertoire for Black and White, Grandmaster Larry Kaufman is back with his new repertoire book, covering the entire scope of chess openings in one volume. Two important developments made this new book necessary. Larry Kaufman, who routinely himself plays the lines he advocates to others, discovered that after 1.d4 (the recommendation in his previous book) it became nearly impossible to show a consistent advantage for White, especially against the Gruenfeld and the Nimzo/Ragozin defenses. The other factor was that chess engines have become so much stronger in recent years. Komodo, the top chess engine that computer expert Kaufman helped develop, is now able to apply the celebrated Monte Carlo Tree Search algorithm. With Komodo MCTS it is now possible to abandon lines that may be theoretically best against other computers, and instead choose lines that are likely to succeed in actual practice against strong human opponents. Larry Kaufman presents a completely new White repertoire with 1.e4 aiming for an objective advantage in the simplest practical manner. You are presented with two options, while you don't have to play the sharpest lines. The Black repertoire has been thoroughly revised and updated, with some crucial chapters replaced. Kaufman's New Repertoire for Black and White is the first opening book that is primarily based on Monte Carlo search. The highly original analysis has resulted in many improvements on existing theory. This is a ready-to-go and easy-to-digest repertoire with sound, practical lines that do not outdate rapidly and are suitable for masters while accessible for amateurs.

The Ruy Lopez is one of the most popular openings of all time. It is a frequent guest in the games of players around the world from novice to Grandmaster. As a result of the increased power of analysis engines the theory of the Ruy Lopez has greatly expanded. Lines that did not exist years ago have been fully developed, supported with extensive analysis, and incorporated into the repertories of top players. Despite this exponential growth in theory, I believe that when armed with sound knowledge it is possible to pose certain practical problems for Black. The purpose of this book is to provide you with detailed and clear explanations of the intricacies of the Ruy Lopez.

GM Martyn Kravtsiv shares his insights on The Italian Renaissance from White's perspective. The first topic is the Bishop's Opening, which can be used as an Anti-Petroff move order as well as a weapon in its own right. Next is the more popular 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3, when White must be ready to deal with the Petroff Defense (2...Nf6). Kravtsiv includes a large number of untested yet dangerous ideas.

The second half of a two-volume work, this set is intended for a broad range of chess enthusiasts. The author believes that anyone making a thorough study of the available material can expect an improvement in playing strength in this system of approximate 200 Elo points. This second volume contains 61 theoretically important games for independent analysis, an encyclopedia of variations, a summary of the 3.e5 system, games for further study, and the latest theoretical developments.

The Sicilian Defense is an opening that commences with the moves 1.e4 c5. The Sicilian Defense is the most popular and best-scoring response to White's first move 1.e4. For example, 1.d4, is a statistically more successful opening for White because of the high success rate of the Sicilian Defense against 1.e4. The Sicilian is Black's most dynamic, asymmetrical reply to 1.P-K4. It produces the psychological and tension factors which denote the best in modern play and gives notice of a fierce fight on the very first move.' The Modernized Grivas Sicilian is an unique variation within the Sicilian developed by Grandmaster Grivas, the reason why it has his name.