Winning Chess Middlegames: An Essential Guide to Pawn Structures

Winning Chess Middlegames: An Essential Guide to Pawn Structures

Finally this modern classic is back in print!
Ever wondered why grandmasters take only seconds to see what's really going on in a chess position? It's all about structures, as Ivan Sokolov explains in this groundbreaking book.

Winning Chess Middlegames addresses the often ignored but extremely important topic of pawn structures, divided into 4 main types: doubled pawns, isolated pawns, hanging pawns and pawn majorities.
With its highly accessible verbal explanations and deep analyses of top-level games, this book helps you to solve the basic problems of the middlegame: space, tension and inititative.

Club players studying Winning Chess Middlegames will:
-- greatly enhance their middlegame skills
-- develop an accurate feeling as to which particular positions suit their style
-- acquire new strategic and practical opening knowledge

Ivan Sokolov explains matters profoundly, honestly and objectively, and includes lots of inside stories from top-level chess, neither sparing his collegue grandmasters nor himself in his comments.

GM Michael Adams:
"This structured approach is quite instructive as often players choose their opening repertoire according to quite haphazard criteria, randomly picking up lines without giving serious consideration to how the resulting middlegames would suit them."
Dennis Monokroussos, ChessToday:
"Sokolov covers his material deeply, offering not glib generalities but very specific insights and explanations. Great Games, marvellous analysis."
Martin Rieger, FreeChess:
"I recommend this book to everyone who, coming out of the opening more or less ok, doesn't know how to proceed."
IM John Watson, The Week In Chess:
"Terrific instructional content and great games."
 3-Times British Champion GM Jonathan Rowson:
"The author skilfully unearths the main ideas and pivotal moments in structures that continuously recur. I like his verbal notes which tend to be very clear and, indeed, instructive."
 

IM David Vigorito, ChessCafe:
"'A pioneering effort from Ivan Sokolov that will benefit players of all levels, including masters."
Sean Marsh, CHESS Magazine:
"The lucid and informative explanations convey a large amount of genuine Grandmasterly wisdom. This is easily one of the best middlegame books of recent times."

IM John Donaldson:
"Using 45 model games, which includes a nice balance of analysis and prose, Sokolov explains the pros and cons of each structure. A great book"

Johan Hut, Gooi en Eemlander:
"A major achievement by Sokolov. Where opening books stop, this book continues"
The Judges of the ECF Book of the Year Award:
"Sokolov, who writes clearly and directly, shows the kind of tactical and strategic play appropriate to a wide range of middlegame pawn positions."

ChessVibes:
"I recommend it to anyone interested in Nimzo-Indian and Queen's Gambit pawn structures - which should be pretty much everyone interested in chess, of course. The book contains fantastic, personal and sincere views of chess and game analysis"

Max Euwe Center, Amsterdam:
"An extraordinarily instructive book and indipens

Ivan Sokolov was born in Bosnia in 1968. He was Yugoslav champion in 1988 and Dutch champion in 1995 and 1998. In his rich career he has beaten world champions Garry Kasparov, Vladimir Kramnik and Viswanathan Anand.

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Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide by Mauricio Flores Rios (miękka okładka)

Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide by Mauricio Flores Rios (miękka okładka)

Książka wydana w języku angielskim, miękka okładka. Mauricio Flores Rios provides an in-depth study of the 28 most common structures in chess practice. In Chess Structures – A Grandmaster Guide you will find: *Carefully selected model games showing each structures main plans and ideas *Strategic patterns to observe and typical pitfalls to avoid *50 positional exercises with detailed solutions GM Axel Bachmann from the Foreword: Chess Structures – A Grandmaster Guide is an excellent selection of

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Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide (hardcover) by Mauricio Flores Rios

Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide (hardcover) by Mauricio Flores Rios

Książka wydana w języku angielskim, twarda okładka. Mauricio Flores Rios provides an in-depth study of the 28 most common structures in chess practice. In Chess Structures – A Grandmaster Guide you will find: *Carefully selected model games showing each structures main plans and ideas *Strategic patterns to observe and typical pitfalls to avoid *50 positional exercises with detailed solutions GM Axel Bachmann from the Foreword: Chess Structures – A Grandmaster Guide is an excellent selection of mod

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The Power of Pawns: Chess Structures Fundamentals for Post-Beginners

The Power of Pawns: Chess Structures Fundamentals for Post-Beginners

If you want to improve at chess, you must know the characteristics of typical pawn formations. Understanding the pawn structure is a key tool when you are evaluating a position on the board. One simple pawn move can ruin your position or win the game. Post-beginners should know the basic essentials of chess structures and that is what this modern training manual focuses on. Experienced chess teacher Jörg Hickl helps you to: - Assess the strengths and weaknesses of pawn structures - Recognize strateg

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Positional Decision Making in Chess by Boris Gelfand (twarda okładka)

Positional Decision Making in Chess by Boris Gelfand (twarda okładka)

Wersja językowa książki - angielska. Positional Decision Making in Chess offers a rare look into the mind of a top grandmaster. In his efforts to explain his way of thinking, Boris Gelfandfocuses on such topics as the squeeze, space advantage, the transformation of pawn structures and the transformation of advantages. Based on examples from his own games and those of his hero, Akiba Rubinstein, Gelfand explains how he thinks during the game. Grandmaster Boris Gelfand won the European Junior Champion

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Just the Facts!: Winning Endgame Knowledge

Just the Facts!: Winning Endgame Knowledge

Nothing more clearly separates chess master from chess wannabee than winning endgame play, the last lap of the race. Depending on whether or not you command the necessary endgame knowledge, you can spoil hours of planning, or you can enjoy the victory you've spent the whole game earning. You can even extricate yourself from the steely jaws of a "certain" defeat! Winner of the prestigious Chess Journalists of America Book of the Year award for 2000-2001, Just the Facts! boils down all essential endgame

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A World Champion's Guide to Chess

A World Champion's Guide to Chess

In A World Champions Guide to Chess, Womens World Champion Susan Polgars exclusive training methods will have you playing winning chess! Topics include Chess Essentials, Tactics, Strategy, Pattern Recognition, Endgames, Chess Etiquette, Advice for Parents Coaches and much more! Susan Polgar is a winner of four Womens World Championships and the top-ranked woman chess player in the United States. She became the #1 woman player in the world at 15 and remained in the top 3 for over 20 years. In 2013,

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The Chess Toolbox: Practical Techniques Everyone Should Know

The Chess Toolbox: Practical Techniques Everyone Should Know

In chess, as in repair or construction jobs, you will not get very far without the right equipment. If you want to win more games you simply need the right tools. Unfortunately, most amateur chess players have no toolbox to speak of. Whats more, they dont even know which tools they actually need. Or what tools are available. If a chess hardware store would exist, most amateur chess players would be clueless what to ask for. International Master and experienced chess trainer Thomas Willemze is the handyma

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e3 Poison by Axel Smith (miękka okładka)

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Wydanie w miękkiej okładce, wersja językowa - angielska. When Axel Smith was chasing his final Grandmaster norm, he decided he needed a change in his White opening repertoire. Instead of his usual approach of memorizing many concrete moves to try to force an advantage, he would focus on pawn structures and typical plans. The result was a repertoire based on a set-up with the moves d4, Nf3, c4 and e3. It helped Axel Smith to the GM title, and led to the creation of e3 Poison. This repertoire can be pla

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e3 Poison by Axel Smith (twarda okładka)

e3 Poison by Axel Smith (twarda okładka)

Wydanie w twardej okładce, wersja językowa - angielska. When Axel Smith was chasing his final Grandmaster norm, he decided he needed a change in his White opening repertoire. Instead of his usual approach of memorizing many concrete moves to try to force an advantage, he would focus on pawn structures and typical plans. The result was a repertoire based on a set-up with the moves d4, Nf3, c4 and e3. It helped Axel Smith to the GM title, and led to the creation of e3 Poison. This repertoire can be play

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Winning Pawn Play in the Indian Defense

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 The Kings Indian and Benoni defenses may look similar, but they lead to vastly different strategies for each player. Why does White usually attack on the queenside in the Kings Indian but on the kingside in the Benoni, while Black does the opposite? Do you know when and where to launch your pawns forward, and when to rely on piece play? Can you stop your opponent from blocking up the position? Are you mystified by the subtle differences that totally change the game? In Winning Pawn Play in the Indian De

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Winning Pawn Play in the Indian Defense

Winning Pawn Play in the Indian Defense

The Kings Indian and Benoni defenses may look similar, but they lead to vastly different strategies for each player. Why does White usually attack on the queenside in the Kings Indian but on the kingside in the Benoni, while Black does the opposite? Do you know when and where to launch your pawns forward, and when to rely on piece play? Can you stop your opponent from blocking up the position? Are you mystified by the subtle differences that totally change the game? In Winning Pawn Play in the Indian Def

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Revision and Exam 1 by Artur Yusupov (miękka okładka)

Revision and Exam 1 by Artur Yusupov (miękka okładka)

Wydanie w miękkiej okładce, wersja językowa - angielska   Revision Exam 1 – The Fundamentals is the essential companion to Artur Yusupovs award-winning Fundamentals series. Containing 432 exercises, Revision Exam 1 offers the perfect way to test your understanding of the material covered in the series. Whether as a refresher course on the topics in the series, or simply as a brand-new collection of instructive test positions, this book is indispensable for any ambitious and improving chess player.

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Small Steps to Giant Improvement by Sam Shankland (twarda okładka)

Small Steps to Giant Improvement by Sam Shankland (twarda okładka)

Książka wydana w języku angielskim. Twarda okładka.   In chess you cannot take your move back, but you can always return a misplaced piece to its former square at the cost of some time. Pawns on the other hand can never move backwards, making pawn moves truly permanent decisions. This irreversibility makes Pawn Play among the most difficult aspects of chess strategy, which is one reason few books have been written about this topic – and some that have are almost incomprehensible. Double Olympiad go

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Small Steps to Giant Improvement by Sam Shankland (miękka okładka)

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Książka wydana w języku angielskim. Miękka okładka.   In chess you cannot take your move back, but you can always return a misplaced piece to its former square at the cost of some time. Pawns on the other hand can never move backwards, making pawn moves truly permanent decisions. This irreversibility makes Pawn Play among the most difficult aspects of chess strategy, which is one reason few books have been written about this topic – and some that have are almost incomprehensible. Double Olympiad go

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The English Attack against the Taimanov Sicilian: A Guide for White

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