Chess Training Pocket Book: 300 Most Important Positions and Ideas

I'm not a big fan of Lev Alburt's other works, but this particular book is a real gem. The size, layout, and selection of chess problems is the best I've ever seen. The book does not fall apart after a lot uf use either. I sometimes wonder if some of the other tactical exercize books were designed intentionally to self-destruct. The book is smaller than average, and easy to carry around. The board size displayed and text solutions are larger than in most puzzle books and easy to see/read. Many of the problems are common themes that occur over and over in actual games. Not all the problems have a solution. Some are trick questions, where the apparent solution fails because of a hidden resource. This makes you look at each position more critically. The problems are not arranged in any particular order. Some puzzle book authors seem to think we want a clue to the solution before trying to solve them (i.e. arranging problems by tactical theme). This is not one of those. There are many practical endgame problems included, such as the Lucena technique and Philidor defense (rook and pawn vs rook drawing method). The solutions are on the opposite page of the problems. This is very convenient. I don't have to look in the back of the book for the solution, and the solution is not staring me in the face while I'm trying to solve the problem. It's a perfect placement. The solutions have a verbal explanation and most include the players involved. If the actual player to move missed the combination, that is also mentioned. Most players will find these problems challenging and the book is suitable for any chess player of any rating. If you find all these problems simple, then I'd guess you already went through the book before. The correct solution to many of these problems were missed by grandmasters in an actual game. I gave my copy of this book to a friend who really wanted it. Now I have buy it again.

Not a beginner book. Great format. Great selection of positions to learn. But you need to be over 1500 USCF before this book will have value for you. Study simpler tactics first.Addendum:My opinion of this book has risen steadily. I enjoy this book, and I am starting to watch for elements of the positions I have seen in it. Multiple readings are valuable, especially if you take the time to see why the key moves work. If a couple of pieces were moved, would the combination still work?A truly excellent chess book.

After working with a number of Pandolfini books (some of which were useful, some of which were not) this was my first experience with Lev Alburt, and it has been a good one. The big question when buying a chess book is "Is it at my ability level?" My tournament rating is in the 1200's. I felt that I've improved as much as I can by playing on the Internet, and needed to LEARN more about chess strategies in order to get better. The examples in this book are perfect for me. My mind is expanded again and again with new chess concepts in this book. I might not see these exact situations in real games, but probably will encounter variations on these themes. The way the book is organized, Alburt shows a picture of a board and lets you think about what you should do. Then he presents the "answer" which is usually 3 to 6 moves long. Not all are fancy checkmates; many are just ways to pick up a knight, for example. Alburt's explanations of why another line of play is not best are kept to a minimum, but when one is needed it's there. I am so glad I bought this book! For players rated 1150 to 1450 this book is ideal.

As a "Class A player" with very limited time for chess I can think of no better practical book for busy chess players who wish to master essential information in as short a period of time as possible. For those of us with careers, famiilies, school and other priorities, this book is formatted so that the on-the-go player can absorb what they need to know to win games. Especially valuable for casual players and anyone below 1800. I cringe every time I see lower rated players miss basic tactical shots and drift in won endgames-master this material and that won't happen to you!!

Not all the positions in this book were useful to me, but the ones that were, taught me very important ideas that have dramatically improved my game. Use this book as a springboard for positions from your own games as suggested by the author. The other 5 books are: 1. Chess tactics for students by Bain. 2. Essential chess endings by Silman. 3. How to reassess your chess by Silman. 4. Chess master at any age by Wetzell. 5. The ideas behind the chess openings by Fine. Start with Bain first then use the other 5 in combination. The KEY is to ANALYSE your OWN GAMES using a computer for tactics and a strong human for positional play. Then store the important concepts into chess computer software. Finally, review these concepts so that you know them like the back of your hand. Discipline yourself and good luck!