wow simply wow, ummmm not sure what else to say 5 stars speak for themselfs, this is THE book on the end game and well worth the money

If you have played long enough to get to the endgame with some regularity, get this book. It covers all the basics, giving guidlines and reinforing the fact that caculation always wins out over rules. I found the knight ending particularly tricky, but this book give all the themes neccesary to form a plan. What ? you're only interested in the middle game? Knowing the endgame will help your middle game too, because you will see opprutinties to simplify to a favorable endgame.

I'm an unrated amateur just beginning endgame study and I have found this book to be very helpful. In fact it contains the first explanation of the procedure for KBN v. K that I've read that was clear and simple enough to allow me to master this particular endgame. Although Pandolfini's Endgame Course is probably the best endgame book for beginners, it really just gives one position after another in an exercise format; it does not do a very good job of explaining general principles and procedures for you to generalize to your own games. Fundamental Chess Endings fills that hole very nicely. While I admit that it may be a bit heavy to serve as a beginner's only endgame source, it makes a perfect companion to - and greatly enhances my results from - Pandolfini. Between these two books I think I've found an ideal endgame course.

This book is the absolute and final truth on rook and pawn vs. rook endgames. Another book will never need to be written. If you really want to know the truth on these endgames, then this is truly the book for you.

It's not as bad to read as a previous reviewer claimed. Of course, if you want to study rook endings more generally or less deeply, then this isn't the book for you. "Surviving Rook Endings" probably is--and it is a really good introduction. If you have any doubt, then you almost certainly want "Surviving" rather than this one.

Nunn gives credibility to this type of study. The reader knows he is getting the real deal. Although this book is a bit dry, I opine that anyone who works through this whole book will know rook and pawn endings like "riding a bike." I think this one is worth it. Do not expect to be entertained, though: this book is all about hard work.

Half of all endings in chess consists of rooks and pawns. This book will improve your overall chess results. Just like a lot of endgame books, this book is an absolute essential due to the fact that the endgame determines whether you can win, lose or save a draw.

This book contains Paul Keres' best games played in the period 1929-1950. And as one might imagine, almost all the games are against World class players. What sets this book apart from many others of its genre is the annotations. Another reviewer rightly mentioned that Keres' style of annotation is as good as Bronstein. Those who are familiar with David Bronstein's books will get the point. The book has around 250 pages and covers 50 of Keres' games. This might give you some idea as to how detailed the annotations would be(unlike the lightly annotated books that cover a players' 100 or more games in the same number of pages). The games are all Keres' wins but at no point one feels even the slightest hint of personal bias in his annotations. They are highly objective and very detailed. Keres clearly explains the plans of both the sides and devotes around 5-6 pages to almost every game. He gives detailed variations where necessary but nothing to overwhelm an average player.

The one slight dissappointment that I have from this book is that I expected it to be a complete autobiography of Keres' life. But Keres doesn't talk much about his life in general or shares any interesting chessic stories or incidents that might have happened in his life(unlike Tal in his autobiography). All he mentions is the tournaments and matches he participated in a given year and how he felt his standard of play was compared to other successful players. But this shouldn't keep anyone away from buying this book. This book would've been worth its price even if it had no autobiography. The set of games are worth studying.

Finally I would like to say that even though the games are highly annotated, a sound understanding of both tactics and basic chess strategy is needed. The level of the games is high and so I feel that this book will be most useful to players over 1700(uscf). Also the footnotes added by John Nunn are in no way a nuisance(as mentioned by another reviewer). I was amazed to see that after going over 35 games, there was no occassion when even a single variation given by Keres was completely wrong. All Nunn does is is add to what Keres had to say or point out another interesting idea or variation that Keres probably ignored.

In conclusion I would like to say that these games have been thoroughly scrutinized by their creator and there aren't simply many chess books that match this book's content. So you can't afford to miss it.

This is an incredible book. First off, the games alone standout by themselves. Paul Keres' style is crystal clear, without any particular weaknesses in his play. He handled all phases of the game well and was a great attacking and positional player. His games are very instructive for beginners to masters.

Second, his notes are amazing. Each chapter has a collection of few games from one phase in his career and he begins each with a very engaging essay on his thoughts and life during that time. You really get into his mind as he takes you through his ups and downs throughout his life and how he prepares for games. The notes to the games are thorough and engaging. You never feel like an idea, line or variation is left unexplained. I feel Keres was one of the best annotators to ever live.

Finally, the format and translation of this edition are excellent, as with most of John Nunn's reissues. I don't own the first issue, but I can say this one is extremely nice, if you don't mind Nunn's sometimes annoying footnotes. This is must have book, for those who want to study from it, or just enjoy the games. I'm saving up money for the second volume, "Quest for Perfection!"

The basic material in this book, and its companion, Paul Keres: The Quest for Perfection (also available from Amazon) were previously published under another title. British GM John Nunn has updated the notes and added some games.

The result is a book that every serious chessplayer should have. Keres' deep notes will help players from Class C on up to improve their games and get more enjoyment out of chess.

Barton's careful method and artful writing combine to create a powerful primer on the actor's responsibilities to the text, the character, and the play. This is a must-have-must-read for anyone preparing for the profession.

John Bardon, with the assistance of the players from the Royal Shakespeare Company, presents with great zest and humor not merely the mechanics of speaking the verse of Shakespeare, but the sense of the Style of Shakespeare and the Elizabethan Age. The actors demonstrate all of the means by which they have discovered the characters they portray and make their own, and their great fortune in the legacy of the RSC. They have absorbed with passion and insight the very beings of another time. I wish, when I was a young actor, that I had had John Bardon as a teacher of verse drama. It took me years to find anyone who could teach me the basic, uncomplicated approach to verse I found in this book. May I just add, I also saw the London Weekend Television production on which the book is based and it was magical. The book reinforces my memory of the living actors, most of whom are favorites of mine who I have seen in all types of productions. However, it is not necessary to have seen that program to appreciate and learn from the book. Highly, highly recommended.

I first read Playing Shakespeare when I was still in high school, and have reread it at least three or four times since then. A definite must-read for any serious stage performer. An eye-opener for anyone struggling with a Shakespearean role or character. Very literary, but easy to get into and understand. You have to read it for yourself! Definitely worth the price.

An excellent and entertaining selection of some of the best games of the last 30 years or so. Some of the games are so complex that a couple of pages of notes do not do them jusice. However, our author always tries to pinpoint the major variations and that point in the game when the game was lost. You'll be delighted with this book, I have no doubt.

Superb is not enough! Nunn has a habit of producing excellent chess books. Add 101 Brilliant Chess Miniatures to Nunn's list of well annotated, edited, researched, and written books.

These 101 decisive games were culled from over 65,000 games of twenty five moves or less between chess players of at least 2500 Elo. All of the games are post 1970 with many from the late 1990s.

Entertainment and instruction are seamlessly woven together in 101 Brilliant Chess Miniatures. Play through the classic, Tal-Uhlmann, Moscow 1971. Enjoy the virtuoso performance in Topalov-Ivanchuk, Linares 1999. The annotations and comments to all the games are top notch.

Buy this book now! If you are a tournament player, you'll win more games. If you just love chess, you'll fall in love all over again!

As a high school chess coach, this is the greatest book on chess that I have ever found. It unfolds like a "choose your own adventure" book, with the reader analyzing a scenario, and making a "move" by turning to a certain page. That page explains why the move was correct, or why it wasn't, in detail so that the reader can understand the strategy behind the reasoning. I picked this book up ...on sale... and immediately bought 5 more for my team! Buy this if you can find it!

I own 300+ chess books, and this one is my absolute favorite. To give you an idea of others in my top 10: The Amateur's Mind by Silman, Middlegame Planning by Romanvosky, My System, 300 Chess Games by Tarrasch, Grandmaster of Chess by Keres, Alekhine's Best Games. My version of "The Game of Chess," by Lasker (which has been re-named The Complete Chess Self-Tutor in this new edition) is from 1972 (I am not famililar with the edition that is currently in print but I understand it to be superb). This book is an utterly brilliant (and very demanding) chess course. It uses a unique method of instruction. The reader is given some textual introduction to a problem, and then is presented with three options for moves to pick. Depending on which option you pick, you are referred to a different section of the book. That new section will tell you if you picked the best move. If you picked the wrong move, it referes you back to try another choice. But even on the wrong choices, Lasker goes to great lengths explaining to exactly why it is not the best move. He presents variations of likely scenarios to make his point. He does this in a style that instructs, enlightens, and informs, always referring you to general principles to follow. Then, when you finally pick the right answer, you are presented with the next problem, which logically follows from the prior one. As a result, you gradually work your way through the book. There are large sections on the opening, the middlegame, and the end game. This is the greatest chess instruction book I have ever seen. Unlike so many chess masters, Lasker is a brilliant writer as well. His style is articulate, patient, and comprehensive. He does not "dumb-down" to you, but presents things more clearly than I have ever seen in the whole history of chess literature. He published this book when he was 84 years old! It has the feel that he wanted to sum up his life's work in chess in a manner that would leave a legacy to the aspiring player. Well, he did an amazing thing for chess players: he poured himself into this work with a sincerity and devotion that is unparallelled in chess history. His career was so long that he played against Em. Lasker, Capablanca, Nimzowitsch, and Alkehine, and here he is analyzing Bobby Fischer's famous 5. 0-0! in the Exchange Variation of the Ruy Lopez. Lasker is the Bertrand Russell of chess: a man who lived for 95 years, who saw the richest epoch in the development of chess, and who knew how to assimilate it and summarize it in an instructional format that would be of maximum value to the student. This is that rare work that demands hard work of the student, but constantly inspires you to continue tackling it. You will emerge from its hallowed pages a far stronger player. This is a stupendous work, that for some reason is almost unknown. If I had one book to take to a desert island, it would be this one. I could go on and on, but you get the point. Get the book!

John Nunn is another great chess author who is unashamed to call himself a fan of the game, and a fan of the players. This book is a very fascinating historical journey through several hundred years of chess games, including games and annotations. I don't know which I loved more: the games, or the text....great book!

I have been too frugal to go buy this revised edition of The Development of Chess Style, but have thumbed through a friend's copy, and like it very much. The text has been completely rewritten in algebraic notation and the diagrams are now placed where their positions occur in the text rather than in the middle of the page as in my old edition. The portion written by Euwe has only been subtly revised by Nunn through the use of unobtrusive footnotes. He completely rewrote the section on the Soviet school of chess and added sections on Fischer, Karpov, and Kasparov (as well as a few of Kasparov's most recent nemeses).

This is one of my favorite chess books. It is filled with Sicilians and King's Indians. Wonderful, exciting chess and incredible annotations. Some people complain that Nunn is too technical and analytical, but this book is an exciting and gripping chess read to me. The fact is, chess annotation does not get much better than this. This book is 320 pages of pure chess meat for the chess carnivore.

This book contains 314 pages pure chess. A selection of John Nunns best games with in-depth analysis of each stage (opening, middlegame, endgame). And instead of just giving variations, you will find variations AND written comments showing the strategy and explaining the decisions. It is great to learn every stage of chess playing and chess psychology.

Clear and concise instruction on how to learn the game. The exercises at the end of the chapter's are a must for someone who
is serious to start taking on opponents.

Buy, Read and enjoy it, but most of all learn the basics of this
wonderful game.

This book assumes no prior knowledge of chess. It teaches everything you need to know to play a strong game of chess, and even intermediate players will find useful chapters towards the end of the book. This book should take its place among the very best of the basic all-in-one beginner books. John Nunn is noted for his clear style and analytical approach to chess. I am no beginner (1900 elo rating) and I still found the book desirable as a fundamental refresher.

I have both 'Secrets of Grandmaster Chess' and the earlier 'Secrets of Grandmaster Play' that Nunn co-authored with Griffiths. SGC has about 120 pages more than SGP. Much of this difference is spent in narrating Nunn's autobiographical and tournament details, which is itself quite readable. Some extra games and snippets of games are also given. Some of the analysis has been corrected and amplified, on the basis of flaws found by Dvoretsky and Yusupov, and also by checking the analysis using Fritz4. The book has been designed as a prequel to 'John Nunn's Best Games'. It is a more professional effort than SGP. However, it has to be said that SGP has a more pedagogic slant, and is more likely to be useful to the bumbling club player trying to improve his play (i.e. myself). This is because of the input of Griffiths, a worthy chess pedagogue whose every book I've bought.

But coming back to SGC. This book can be unequivocally recommended as a top-flight book. These are the games and notes of a strong, modern Grandmaster who plays mainline openings, and has a preference for complex, tactical chess. Nunn has to be considered the strongest, most professional chess writer currently around.

The book is most likely to be useful to players who are rated at least 1800 or 1900. The earlier SGP could be used with profit by players at least 1700, or perhaps even 1600.

I thought my opinion on this book, although favorable, would not change. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth and quality the changes that were made from the earlier edition. I feel that chess books ideally should have the following characteristics; honesty, quality anotations, good explanations in prose, usefull topics and a well thought out layout. This book has all of these qualities and more. This book is most useful for those player who already study a lot and love to study. What John Nunn gives you is how Grandmasters look at positions and the amount they calculate before making their moves. It takes an ambious and diligent player to go over even one game. This book is very rare indeed.

I understand that this is a book for the more serious player. Nevertheless, I (being a 1500-1600 player) enjoys it very much and, at least imagines, that I get playing beneits from reading it.

Of course, it is very detailed, but I think I can follow the discussions quite well. And, you don't have to go through every detail if you don't have the time. Sometimes, I also read it in bed before I go to sleep.

The anecdotes placed between the games are also worth reading.

I highly recommend this book!