I have this book as part of my chess library. Chernev and Reinfeld have collaborated on a marvelously instructive book on tactical wepons that can be used by any player of any strength. I consider it my tactician's bible and I take it with me to tournaments. In many years of chess play I have never seen another book on tactics to compare with this one. It is indeed a classic. Get a copy. I know you won't let it go

Just a casual, occasional player, so take my opinion as you will...but this book probably taught me more than every other book I have consulted on chess, _combined_. It is utterly invaluable for teaching the application of the critical chess tactics: from pins and forks to double check. I can't believe it's listed as out of print--a great loss to beginning players everywhere. Find this book!

Winning Chess is the best introduction to tactics I've ever read. I feel so fortunate to have run across this classic at the local library. Most chess books are rather dull and are difficult for the average player to follow without a chessboard. This book you can read anywhere and still follow the logic. It has sparked a renewed interest in chess for me, as I picked up the concepts in the book and began using them in my games. Someone please reprint this book so that everyone can enjoy Chernev's wonderful classic.

I used "An Invitation to Chess" when I taught a grade school course in chess fundamentals. Of all the chess books I have seen geared purely toward the beginner, I found this to be the clearest, best organized, and, just as the subtitle claims, it is "A Picture Guide to The Royal Game."

Lots of pictures help explain the moves and motions of a piece in the context of a larger strategy. Chernev and Harkness used photos of the board as well as standard board drawings. They require modernized, as the photos are a bit blurry, and the drawings have an old newspaper keyline look. The copy is succinct, but not dry. As a reader, I found it less clinical than many of the chess books with dozens of lines per opening.

This is a long way from anything Lasker or Fischer wrote, but the audience intended here is looking to play the game effectively, unworried about becoming a grandmaster. At least, not yet.

The content list breaks things down to subsections like "How the King Moves and Captures," and "How the Pawn Captures 'en passant.''" They provide a special section cautioning the new player of common mistakes, like "Premature Attacks," and "Pawn Grabbing with the Queen." This is invaluable because young players routinely shoot for point control over game control.

I fully recommend "An Invitation to Chess" by Irving Chernev and Kenneth Harkness. Use this to teach your children, or use it to study up when they start to beat you.

Anthony Trendl

Though this book is getting a bit old, a better beginners book has yet to be written. Getting into the habit of asking yourself "what does he threaten?" is crucial to the beginning player. They really should update it to algebraic.

When I first learned the rules of the game, I found this book to be of great value, if only for the simple advice of "always ask yourself why your opponent played a certain move. What does he attack?" and "before your make your move, ask yourself what your opponent's best reply would be." You can find more comprehensive books, but this is my choice for a useful, friendly, quick guide to better chess. I'd buy this for a younger player or newcomer in a heartbeat. Why intimidate someone with a huge tome when you can painlessly improve with this volume?

I read this book in IIT Kanpur Library(india) in 1993, was finally able to get a copy, thanks to the network of Amazon.com. It is a collector's item. If you love chess, this book is for you. Lovely stories, and good puzzles. A Must read for chess lovers.

If you are looking for a unusual book, or one that tells of Chess lore, this one's for you. Variety of stories, chess games, puzzles and problems. Easy to read... games in descriptive notation. I purchased this book in 1973. Greatest game is Bogolyubov vs Alekhine, Hastings, 1922.

This is a unique chess book that has something for everyone. It has amusing and intersting stories that apply to people who have litereary interests as well as chess interests and it has a striong theme throufghout that although chess is wonderful, it is really secondary to life. It also has fascinating stats, stories, and great game collections and puzzles to solve. Really it is a perfect chess book to go over and read by the fireside on a cold night or any night for that matter. Buy it or pick it up at a library, and if you love chess, you will love this book..

Irving Chernev wrote many chess books, all of them good. But the Fireside Book of Chess is unique. It is not an instructional manual. Rather it is anecdotes, historical stuff and fiction about the long and glorious history of the game. It's an old book, hence there's nothing in it about Fisher, Karpov, Kasparov and others of the last 25 years, but this book is timeless. It is also the only such book of its kind.

Of the many chess books I have read i still believe this book is the best ever. Chernev is probably one of the best chess authors ever and this book is his best in my opinion. He has a unique style in annotation that could make any game interesting, but these are the best! Twelve of the greatest chess players in history (as of about 1975) and their chess masterpieces are included, and Chernev studied over many books so as not to leave anything important out in his annotation. This not only shows the beauty in chess but is very instructional too! It also has a short bio of each of the great's and even some humorous anecdotes about some players. This book should be owned by every chess player, Novice to Master, Serious Student or Casual Player, it is a MUST for EVERYONE!

I have used this book as a study guide, and I found it very instructive and complete, Irving Chernev has a particular and delightful style to explain all the games, I reccomend it to any chess player.

Chernev certainly knew how to instruct club-level players and his love for the game was infectious. The reasons for every single move are explained clearly. The only drawback with this is that there are only so many ways to annotate 1 P-K4 (in the old descriptive notation of the book I had as a pre-teen)!

A number of very important principles are illustrated, and most club players need to know what rules apply in the majority of case. The games are also good to play through.

The games are usually one-sided, and show what can happen when one player makes strategic mistakes. As more advanced books such as Watson's "Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy" note, such games with unified grand plans really happen between evenly matched strong players, and he emphasises rule independence.

But Chernev's approach is appropriate for his intended audience. I think that the reason many players BECOME strong is that they know the sort of plans he illustrates, so they know what to avoid getting caught up in! And Chernev is not so naive as to think that rules have no exceptions. He points out that the best way to meet a rule-violating move is often with another rule-violating move.

This book was recommended to me many years ago by a chess book store owner when I was just starting to get serious about chess. I tore through the pages as fast as I could read them and my rating went up by 100 points almost immmediately!

This book is fantastic - every single move of every game is commented on. The comments are by Irving Chernev. He had a love of the game and its' great masters like few authors I have ever read. He also had a great sense of balance between verbal descriptions of the ideas behind the move, and the possible variations. In other words, his books are heavy on words and a little lighter on variations than many other books.

This is the perfect balance for developing players who need more explanation as to what is going on during the game. More advanced players (1700+) will probably not get much instructive value out of the book, but may still enjoy the games.

This is definitely a must-have book for players rated 1100 - 1500.

OK, so my title is a take-off on another of Chernev's excellent books, but it was this little gem that turned the lights on in my brain's chess circuitry. Before reading it, I just pushed pieces around without understanding why. After, I was able to focus on the characteristic strategy of each opening, find my way around the middle game, and handle an endgame. It's this last part of the chess puzzle that's most overlooked by beginners, who prefer to concentrate on their favorite openings. I learned endgames well enough that I was able to lose points earlier in the game and still pull out a win in the endgame. I was finally able to beat players I never beat before, and keep beating them!

The games are exciting! I never knew so much deep strategy went into each move. This book should be everyone's jumping off point in learning chess.

This book, along with Chernev's "Logical Chess Move by Move" is clearly the authors Magnum Opus.

The book features 62 chapters (i.e. games) played by the "older masters" like Tarrasch, Lasker, Capablanca, Rubenstein, Fischer(I know - not that old), Botvinnik, Nimzowitsch, Petrosian, etc. etc.

The games are dissected at a level comfortable for club level players. Each game focuses on a theme (i.e outpost, weak square, bishop pair, rook ending, Occupation of 7th rank, isolated pawn, etc.

I highly recommend this book (along with the other book mentioned) to anyone rated between 1100 - 1600. I can think of few other titles that will return as much value for the modest time investment to read them!

Chernev has an infectious love for the game of chess paralleled by few (if any) chess writers, past or present. He was probably around International Master Playing strength. Each game hammers on one particular positional theme. This book is incredibly instructive.

Easily one of the best books ever written. This is one of the first books I purchased over 30 years ago. I am sure it helped start me on the road to Chess Mastery.

Chernev, like Reinfeld, did NOT write chess books to impress other Chess Masters. He wrote books simply and with great care. He also put his tremendous love of the game into this book.

I simply cannot convey what a wonderful book this is. This book will especially appeal to the average player, especially someone who wants to improve his game.

I usually don't rave about books. This is an exception.

Here is what I say about this book on my web site:
<< The next book is by Irving Chernev. I met this man several times, and he had a real love for the game that few players today demonstrate. He would look at games by the hour with anyone. I personally believe Chernev was at least IM strength. (I believe he played in several U.S. Championships.) The book is:
"The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played."
[62 Masterpieces of Chess Strategy.]
It contains 62 true masterpieces of chess by various different players. (Masters such as Fischer, Capablanca, Alekhine, Tal, etc. Plus many more of the all-time greats!!) Each game is carefully and lovingly annotated. This book had a tremendous impact on me and the way that I viewed and looked at chess.
{I studied it many, many, many times.}

Chernev provides games with an almost blow-by-blow commentary. His ideas are simple, fresh, insightful, and expressed with great clarity. He explains all the basic ideas of the game in a manner that ANY chess-player can follow. The variations are perfect. Not too much to overload the senses. I have had players who were almost beginners to players who were accomplished tournament players ... tell me that they profited from a careful study of this book. I think one should study this book, as I did. Every time your rating goes up 100 points, you should work your way through this book from cover to cover! You won't regret it and you definitely will improve!

Another unique thing is he finds one idea or theme in each game,
and just hammers away at it. It is a VERY good study method.

It also contains some of the classics of Chess, and Chernev brings you a fresh insight and analysis to each game. (Indeed - his comments and analysis may differ greatly from the ones that may have been published in the {chess} press when the game was first played.) Chernev was one of the greatest all-time teachers and writers in the chess field. This book is a true pearl!!! I think it belongs in the library of every real chess aficionado. >>

I also rate this in, "The Ten Best Chess Books Ever Written." Need I say more?

This is a great book of 62 games that are highly instructive in all aspects of the game, but in particular strategy.
The games are played by some of the best players in history;
Botvinnik, Capablanca, Lasker, Rubenstein, Fischer. Just to name a few. Each Game is an instructive and entertaining masterpiece that will enlighten any player. Each time you read it you learn and understand more and more about the game of chess. This book however is not for the rank beginner. Perhaps it is best to consider it the sequal to the author's great book "Logical Chess: Move By Move".

This book is great. Get it. Read it. Enjoy it. You won't regret it.

I should give this book 5 full stars as it really is one of the best endgame book available. At our local chess club the Masters give lectures on Thursday nights. During their endgame series of lectures I was able to find every example they used in this book. The master's lecture concept was that rather than building up an opening repetiore, the beginning player would do better to build up an ending repetiore. By studying the endgame you learn how to attack and you learn the purpose of the middle game. And, since the end game occurs when you're usually in time trouble, the ability to play the endgame like a machine while your opponent must calculate every move is a great advantage.

However, I do have a few small gripes about this book.
1. I have found perhaps half a dozen endgames where I've come up with alternative lines where a win is not forced. Chernev does give variations on how to win many variations, but there are times when it appears that the opponent is not playing the best possible line.

2. Endgames often center around a theme or technique. Chernev gives you several endgames which demonstrate a technique, but he never specifically says "This position contains these key points which will lead us to use this particular technique". It is left up to the reader to figure out what the actual techniques used in the examples are. More importantly, it's left up to the reader to determine what factors require which techniques.

3. Occasionaly a term is used without explaination. For example: "1. K-B6 and the white king is said to have the opposition". But what is "opposition?" It is not explained. As in point #2 this is left for the reader to figure out. (By the way, there is an excellent description of Opposition in Jeremy Silman's book "How To Reassess Your Chess")

However, even with these faults, this is still one of the best endgame books available. Study the pawn endings until you can do them in your sleep, and then study the Rook endings. Then follow up with the rest of the book. This is the book you use to build up your "endgame repetiore".

This book is another great Chernev classic, at the affordable Dover price.

You are basically given a winning position and then Chernev outlines how to win with the position.

--It starts off with the basic endings, and then gets more complex as the book continues. I would recommend setting up the board and practicing these endings with your chess buddy. Your endings will improve tremendously.

Though it does have the ditraction of being written in descriptive notation (i.e. P-K4), this is compensated by the instruction given wonderful endgames, particularly for beginners. With sections on pawns and combined piece play, this is a wonderful beginning or compendium towards the study of the endgame.

I had been consulting and recomending this book for years to my youngs chess students with great and outstanding results, is a classic that show Capa finess technic and his economic cristal clear style....very good book to be use to learn endgames from beginners to masters...

Chernev is a master writer at illuminating the logic behind moves and helping the reader understand those reasons. This process starts with classics like Logical Chess Move by Move, and this book looks at endgames.

It's a fine book because it teaches you how to take small advantages and win. Too many beginner/intermediate chess players look for the brilliant combo to beat the opponent. This book shows that you can be a master at simplifying and winning with a small advantage. This technique is as brilliant as the best combination. Well worth emulating.

I gave away my copy of Fred Reinfeld's Immortal Games of Capa as Chernev's book, along with Capa's own Fundamentals and Primer of Chess (which contain a total of 26 games annotated by Capa himself) make a complete collection of the best games this former World champion has played. Chernev's book contains 60 games focusing analysis on the endgame, which was Capa's specialty. This is one of the few game collection books that I own that are printed in modern algebraic notation, in addition to Elie Agur's book on Bobby Fischer which I recently ordered. My older books in descriptive notation, though classics, are obsolete like Latin.

this is a goldmine of best short games which show how to take tactical advantage of opponent mistakes .annotation to games is not as detailed as i would like to be .nevertheless it is recommended

There have been so many times when my room mate and I played chess, with me ending up the loser. So, I started to go over the games in this book and I learned so much. If you like chess and want to learn to play well, I totally recommend this book. Heh, oh yeah, after 6 months of playing that guy, I finally beat him. :-p

Several games you'll want to memorize for the sheer joy of showing your friends these incredible combos