New June 2005

Sets

Shot Glass Chess Set with glass board (35 x 35cm) $23.95

Back in stock

DVD Searching for Bobby Fischer (Paramount) 105 minutes - Waitzkin, Fishburne, Ben Kingsley etc. A wonderfully acted, heart warming family film. - $39.95

Chessbase

Opening Encyclopedia 2005 $175

The ChessBase Opening Encyclopaedia 2005 features the complete coverage of all opening sectors, offering an optimal start for opening training. Many well-known specialists have made contributions in their field of expertise, such as Anand, Bareev, Dautov, Dr Huebner, Jussupow, Kortschnoj, Krasenkow, Nunn and Ribli. For each of 500 opening sectors according to ECO standard there is at least one opening survey, so that the database is the ideal tool for building up a complete opening repertoire. The game database includes 2.2 million games, about 72.000 of them with annotations. The new opening key has been considerably enhanced, providing even more depth (109.000 single keys) and clarity. Furthermore, the CD contains a separate directory with 179 special theory databases from the CBMs.

How to play the Najdorf Vol I DVD $59.95

Kasparov: How to play the Najdorf Vol. 1
The Najdorf system in the Sicilian Defence has a legendary reputation as a defensive weapon for Black. It is an opening where people often strive for a full point, instead of simply defending the position with the black pieces. Many great players have contributed to the development of this complex opening. There were two world champions who formed much of their careers using the Najdorf system as their weapon of choice against 1.e4: Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov celebrated spectacular successes with it. Both players used the Najdorf (pronounced “ny-dorff”, rhyming with “high-dwarf”) during their child prodigy years and retained it as an important part of their repertoire during their entire careers.

The Paulsen System (B40-B49) Sommerbauer $44.95

Norbert Sommerbauer: The Paulsen System B40-B49
The Paulsen System in the Sicilian Defence (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6) consists, after the further moves 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4, of two large subsections: the Paulsen ( Kan )Variation (after 4…a6) and the Taimanov Variation (after 4…Nc6). There are numerous transpositions and it is logical for both variations to be treated on a single CD. In addition to this, Norbert Sommerbauer has also examined all the other sub-variations which fi t into B40-B49. The CD offers to the player of the black pieces an almost complete repertoire against 1.e4, but is also well suited to the player with White, since the author also offers the latter his recommendations.

ABC of Chess Openings - Martin $44.95

THE ABC of CHESS OPENINGS
The CD consists of three parts. First you learn the basics of opening play, the strategy and tactics of the different openings. In the training database you can then test your progress by answering practical questions or solving specific positions. Each chapter is accompanied with a video introduction by the Grandmaster and chess trainer Daniel King. Multimedia: In video clips the well-known English Grandmaster Daniel King gives you valuable advice on how to play the opening. Language: English and German

Books

Curacao 1962 (Timman 2005, 216 pages) NIC $49.95

In Curaçao 1962 Jan Timman returns to the 1962 Candidates Tournament featuring Fischer, Petrosian, Tal, Kortchnoi and many other giants who battled it out to earn the right to challenge world champion Botvinnik. Timman takes a fresk look at the games, annotates the most important ones (including 16 of Fischer's!) and describes the course of the tournament.

224 pages

Secrets Opening Surprises Vol III (NIC, 2005, 143 pages) Bosch $41.95

Everyman

Fire on Board Part II: 1997-2004 - Shirov (2005) $59.95

Alexei Shirov has dazzled and inspired a generation of chess fans with his unique brand of attacking chess. The Grandmaster, originally from Riga, Latvia, is widely regarded as one of the most aggressive and inventive chess players of the modern era, an argument backed up by his wealth of amazing games, rich in tactical fireworks and extraordinary moves. Fire on Board begins where the best-selling first edition left off in 1996. Shirov traces his progress at the top of the chess world since that year and presents a delightful collection of his favourite games, all explained in great detail to the reader.
 
- Shirov’s best games, unravelled and explained by the man himself
- A compilation of violent, attacking and imaginative chess
- Written by one of the world’s leading players

Offbeat Nimzo-Indian - Ward (2005) $49.95

Chris Ward investigates unusual white tries, including three uncompromising and underrated ways of battling against the Nimzo: the Sämisch, the Leningrad and the 4 f3 variation. Each line is ideal for putting your opponent under immediate pressure from the start of the game. By studying the various strategies and tactics in these variations, White players can confidently arm themselves with three new menacing lines against the Nimzo, while Black players must again search carefully for antidotes!

OLMS

Moscow 1951 - Botvinnink (2004) $43.95

Three years after winning the world championship, Mikhail Botvinnik had to defend his title against the challenge of David Bronstein. Though out of practice and largely outplayed by his brilliant young opponent, Botvinnik nevertheless demonstrated his fighting qualities, levelling the scores in the penultimate game and thereby retaining his title. All 24 games of the match are deeply annotated.

This is Botvinnik’s account of the first defense of his title, translated from Russian. The young David Bronstein played daring, exciting chess and he gave the world champion quite a fight. The controversial end of the match has led many to think that the Soviet authorities put considerable pressure on Bronstein not to win. Special supplementary sections and a preface by Vladimir Kramnik rounds out this book nicely.

Moscow 1961 - Botvinnink (2004) $43.95

When Mikhail Botvinnik lost the world championship in 1960 to the dazzling attacking player from Riga, Mikhail Tal, there seemed little chance of him regaining his title. Yet in the Return Match a year later, with a surprising demonstration of aggressive chess, Botvinnik completely outplayed his young opponent and ran out the easy winner. All 21 games of the match are deeply annotated.

In May 1960 Mikhail Tal had defeated Mikhail Botvinnik to become the youngest world champion ever. His creative, slashing style made him a favorite of chessplayers worldwide. However, he would only be able to hold the title for a year. This book is about the re-match. Additional sections include excerpts from Botvinnik’s opening notebooks and a preface by Vladimir Kramnik.

My Most Memorable Games (Gelfand) OLMS 2005 $59.95

Edited by Ken Neat. With a preface by Vladimir Kramnik and an introduction by Dirk Poldauf. 2005.

For more than ten years Boris Gelfand has been one of the world's top-ranking players. Born in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, he has been living for several years now in Rishon-Le-Zion, Israel.

This is the first collection of his best games, which the 35-year-old grandmaster has annotated in great detail, and on a level that is suitable for every club player. The book gives an insight into the thoughts of a professional player, who has been a candidate for the world championship and who is well known as a very effective adviser of many other top players. There is a special chapter on the 8 Îb1 variation in the Grünfeld Defence, on which, like the Sicilian Najdorf, Boris Gelfand is one of the world's leading experts.

Lenningrad System, A complete weapon against 1.d4 - Kinderman (2005) OLMS $59.95

The Leningrad System is one of the sharpest and most interesting replies to 1 d4, and since this typical set-up is also playable against the flank openings 1 c4 and 1 If3, it provides the Black player with a genuine universal weapon. A repertoire for Black based on 7... Ee8 in the main line of the Leningrad System is presented here, but since the typical motifs and ideas for both sides are fully explained, White players too will benefit from a study of the book.

This English edition is a fully updated version of the German edition, which received some highly favourable reviews, for example:

"...must be among the best opening books of the past five years...rich with history of the variation, meticulously researched, enhanced by explanation and exercises, and full of original analysis…Anyone interested in the theory of the Dutch Defence and the Leningrad Variation will find it an absolute must for their library...Obviously I highly recommend this book..."
John Watson in "The Week in Chess".

Stefan Kindermann has been a grandmaster since 1988 and is one of the world’s leading experts.

Ideas Behind Modern Chess Opening: Black - $39.95

Following the success of Ideas Behind Modern Chess Openings comes this complete repertoire for Black that allows players to dominate the game right from the start. Award-winning openings expert Gary Lane provides every expert tip, trick, and trap in the book, and chess grids throughout demonstrate key lines and accelerate the learning process. All the games are annotated throughout, in the same appealing easy-to-follow style that has made Lane (Find the Winning Move, Grand Prix Attack) one of the most popular chess writers in the world today.

Books from Russia

Chess Endings Encyclopedia by Nickolai Kalinichenko, Russian and English languages. Hard cover. 703 pages. Moscow 2004. $59.95

• All the basic chess ending types (pawn, rook, queen, bishop and knight piece, multi-piece) revealing typical ideas, tactical and strategic methods. Multi-piece endings are of major interest since their being scarcely inspected in chess literature
   
• Over 3000 ending examples taken out of the world's best chessplayer games
• All the World Champions' studies, for correct understanding of most endings gets impossible without mastering them
• Vast material for teaching chess in groups as well as individually

Russian and English languages. Hard cover. 703 pages. Moscow'2004.

Chess Combinations Encyclopedia by Nickolai Kalinichenko, English and Russian languages. Color hard cover. 829 pages. Moscow 2004.  $59.95

The course contains 2 parts:

1) Direct hit methods
The material grouped into 24 traditional chess themes and illustrated by over 900 classical examples gives you a possibility of gripping basic tactical methods.
This course is the basis for a deeper insight in chess tactics of the encyclopedia's following part.
2) Supported methods
Most complete classification of tactical methods. More than 3500 hand-picked examples classified by grade of difficulty are suitable both for individual training and for chess school and groups.
Thanks to multilevel system, the material of the book can be used by professional chessplayers as well as those who make their first steps in chess tactics.

English and Russian languages. Colour hard cover. 829 pages. Moscow 2004.

Small Chess Openings Encyclopedia by Nikolai Kalinichenko, English and Russian languages. Hard cover. 640 pages. Moscow 2003.  $57.95

English and Russian languages. Hard cover. 640 pages. Moscow 2003.

Encyclopedia of Errors in Chess Openings by Anatoly Matsukevitch, English, German and Russian languages. Hard cover. 798 pages. Moscow 2002. $67.95

English, German and Russian languages. Hard cover. 798 pages. Moscow 2002

Man v Machine $18.95

In May 1997 world chess champion Garry Kasparov, regarded by many as the greatest player of all time, came to New York to face his most unusual and challenging opponent yet. Deep Blue, a supercomputer developed by a team of IBM scientists in a project started over ten years earlier, was capable of calculating 200 million chess positions in a single second and was incapable of tiring, losing heart or making an oversight. Six games would be played for over $1 million in prize money.

This book tells the full story of this historic encounter, from the personalities, hype, and controversies to the debates over computer intelligence and the future of chess. Every game is analyzed in detail and the earlier 1989 and 1996 matches between the two contestants are reviewed. Man versus Machine: Kasparov versus Deep Blue is the definitive on-the-scene report that every chess enthusiast must read.

Tarrasch Formula $29.95

Summary

Dr. Siegbert Tarrasch was the first to formulate and express the rule that "If one piece is badly placed, your whole game is bad." The genius of this phrase lies in its simplicity as well as its correctness. Properly applied, it is a significant addition to Steinitz's theory. On the basis of this single axiom, various types of positions can be studied where the difference in force between corresponding pieces. Applying the Tarrasch Formula in this way develops and builds chess theory by emphasizing the interrelationship between the location of a piece and its real power. Examine any modern textbook of chess strategy and you will see its lasting value. The Tarrasch Formula is a fundamental and unifying principle that embraces familiar core concepts such as "good/bad bishop," "advantage of opposite-colored bishops in an attach," "superiority of knight over bishop" and vise versa), and so forth.

Playing steadily to reduce the power of a single enemy piece, to "turn down the volume" until its normal voice become only a whisper, can provide enough advantage to win the game. Why? Because it is functionally the same as winning a piece. Every chess player loves to have an extra piece. The Tarrasch Formula points the way toward having a virtual extra piece.

Thinking of a strategy in this way is a very useful part of your chess planning. It offers a straightforward and effective method for improving your decision-making and move selection, as demonstrated in the games collected for this new book.

About the Authors

International Grandmaster Sam Palatnik is co-author (with GM Lev Alburt) of three volumes in the best-selling "Comprehensive Chess Course" series: Chess Tactics for the Tournament Player, Chess Strategy for the Tournament Player, and The King Jeopardy.

National Master Mark Ishee is the author of Evans Gambit Games and has written articles for numerous chess publications including Chess Life, School Mates and Inside Chess.

Test, Evaluate and Improve - $37.95

by IM Danny Kopec and Hal Terrie

Dr. Danny Kopec earned his PHD in Computer Science with concentration in Artificial Intelligence. He is also an International Master of chess.

For more than 15 years Kopec has been testing and evaluating hundreds of chessplayers in the UK, Canada, and the US in order to quantify their overall chess strength, their specific deficiencies and definite abilities. Test, Evaluate and Improve Your Chess, represents the sum of Dr. Kopec's overall efforts to help chessplayers understand and aquire the knowledge necessary to achieve chess mastery.

National Master Hal Terrie has been working with Kopec to improve upon his testing methodology and to raise the ultimate effectiveness of their knowledge based approach. Together they have produced a book which will surely advance the science fo chess.