Chess Strategy Workbook: A Blueprint for Developing the Best Plan Paperback – September 1, 2010

This book is a welcome addition to the extensive library of books on the ancient game of chess. The target audience is the young, intermediate chess player, one who already understands well the basics of the game and is ready to advance to the next level. This book is full of readily absorbed concepts, such as the discussion in the first chapter about what environment each type of piece "likes" and "dislikes".Each concept and strategy is backed up with a wealth of examples from actual chess games. These problems naturally build on each other with increasing complexity and subtlety. The solutions are provided and discussed at the back of the book.Appendix B is particularly imaginative and helpful. It is entitled "How To Think" and lays out a clear and careful strategy for how to think about the game as it is progressing and what exactly to focus on when it is your move and when it is your opponent's move. This strategy keeps the clock in mind and provides a very workable recipe for the effective use of your pondering time.Throughout, the book is written informally, with the young reader in mind. The author never talks down to his audience, yet he keeps his young readers in mind by keeping the discussions clear and practical. I should note that though I am not young, I found the book a very enjoyable and informative read. There are no age barriers for this material.For the right type of enthusiastic chess student, young or old, this is the perfect workbook to fill in the gaps in his or her understanding of chess, to provide the framework for an increasingly strategic level of play, and to lay the foundation for years of enjoyment playing chess.

My general opinion on this book is it's actually NOT written for children.It is written as a "blueprint" for older players who struggle in finding "basic", general ideas and strategies that are not outlined in more "advanced" works.A lot of the problems and examples are actually quite strong in player strength, more like towards expert level knowledge of position and tactics, if you understand everything and the logic behind each play.This is a very well written book, and it is quite easy to read, just takes about a week to read if you read it all in a few sittings. I have been reading it for about a month and I am quite impressed with it.I disagree that this is for 900 rated level players. It is more for around 1500-1600 and even higher if you seek the basic concepts behind position and a general display of strategic knowledge.It is also a very fun and enlightening book to read.

First of all, I would like to say that I only gave it four stars because I think alotof what is covered can be learned, or should I say, would be obvious by having a reallystrong foundation in tactics. Beyond that I have to say that this book is well writtenand laid out very nicely. Probably the best ' first book ' for someone wanting to learnabout chess strategy. I strongly recommend tactics first and/or tactics along with studyof the material in this book. The only other thing a newbie should know before digginginto this is to have a firm grasp of the chessboard layout [have a good idea of thesquares and their correlating algebraic name in your mind to visualize the sequences inthe text] but that really goes for all study of chess. Only after tactics [tactics!tactics!! tactics!!! ]and good endgame study should you delve headlong into strategy.After this book the next best step, in my opinion, would be Silman's 4th ed. ofReassess Your Chess. Chris Ward's "It's Your Move" series are good as well. Do notbe afraid to study these books as you would any other -- Study the position and if youcannot make sense of it after 5 - 10 minutes consult the solution and understand whatis going on.

Really enjoying this book, content is accessible and there are practice problems with different difficulty ranges. It's hard sometimes to be disciplined enough to work through all the problems before moving on, but I think that's the best way to get the most out of the book. Seems like solid advice so far, and tracks with what I've been reading elsewhere. I just discovered the chessify app, which lets you scan boards from the book onto your phone and follow lines much easier than doing it with a real board, highly recommend this approach.

Not as helpful as I hoped for a beginner.

This book is a great chess strategy 101 book for kids. It focuses on the essentials of chess strategy and is much easier to understand than other adult strategy books. The funny illustrations are also very attractive. I like the challenging example puzzles and how they were explained clearly. It helps me to reach 1600+ from 1200 in several months. Highly recommend it for kids and folks who don't have a lot of time and would like to master the key ideas.- From A 2nd Grade National Champ

This book introduces you to the range of things you should do when there's no obvious threat or tactic. How to look at the board, devise a plan, and execute the plan - at each phase of the game. It provides a broad enough range of ideas to keep you busy, learning, and to go more in depth with other resources later. It's intended for kids, but perfect for late 50's me, as well.

This workbook makes my return to an old hobby an enlightening and enjoyable journey. It's amazing what I had forgotten about chess theory and practice but just as amazing how easily the workbook brings it back. Well written and will be picking up more in this series.

👍👍👍

Assuming you know the rules, this is the first book to get. It's good for children (and probably intended for them) but I used it well into my fifties. I now buy as present for new players.

At the grand old age of 70 I am learning to play chess. This book gives a really clear theoretical overview and plenty of problems to work through. I intend to read it over and over and when I have finally worked through all the problems I intend to begin again and maybe start getting some of them right! I was so excited about the book that I bought it for my ten year old grandson who is also learning to play chess. My only “could do better” comment is that the notations in the problems are not explained, but they are pretty standard.