Book Description

Book Description

Customer Reviews (1)

A disappointment, maybe useful for specialists
I very much liked the first volume in this series, but by comparison to the volume on the advance and gambit lines, this book is a huge disapointment. When I opened the book, i looked for comments on the lines I play most as black, and discovered they weren't covered. This was amazing, since I play the main lines!

In all likelihood, Mikhail Podgaets is the principal author; his name appears on the cover under Karpov's. When Karpov co-authored The Caro-Kann in Black and White with Beliavsky, the first thing he covered under the Panov was a transposition into "The Karpov Variation" of the Nimzo. The transposition isn't even mentioned in this book. How likely is it, if Karpov were the primary author, that he would ignore the Karpov variation, especially as it's his preferred choice against the Panov? (Incidentally, it's well covered in Hansen's book on the Rubenstein)

In the preface the author(s) state(s) that variations characteristic of other openings would not be covered. What's really poor is that the transposition points aren't even identified, and the Panov is largely about the transpositions.

There are other gigantic gaps: in the good but fairly limited repertoire book "Easy Guide to the Panov" Agaard gives two chapters on what he identifies as the most popular lines in the Panov, (linew in the B-b4 Panov where black captures on c4 and castles. Thess lines, used by Karpov, go unmentioned. In the Steiner, the line where white takes twice on d5 and black recaptures with the queen is given, a less popular line, popular in the former USSR, but not used by Karpov, and one which is essentially a QGA. But the much more popular knight recapture is ignored.

Lots of the stuff in the book is high quality,( hence the two stars rather than one) and it will probably be useful to those who specialize in the Caro-Kann,(for instance the Steiner queen capture line has better coverage here than in anything else I've seen) but as an overall guide it's totally inadequate, and someone taking up the opening - particularly as white- would be better served by almost anything else. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Good Start
Published in 1992, former World Champion Anatoly Karpov offers 6 chapterson facing Black's Grunfeld defence. An uncompromising system. At the timeof publication Karpov had scored 6 wins, 1 loss and 16 draws vs GarryKasparov (1986-1990) using his anti-Grunfeld approach. Chapters 1 & 2(1.d4 Nf6, 2.c4 g6, 3.Nc3 d5, 4.cxd5, Nxd5, 5.e4 Bg7). Chapter 3 (5.e4 Nxc36.bxc3 Bg7). Chapter 4 (4.Nf3 Bg7). Chapter 5 (4.Bf4 Bg7) and Chapter 6(3.Nf3 Bg7, 4.g3 c6, 5.Bg2 d5). Sorry for the technical jargon, but whowants to buy an opening book without at least knowing the types ofpositions that may arise after the first few moves? I have turned downseveral books due to the lack of opening description. I hope this helps. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (2)

deep thought
A quick view of this book says much about thedeep thought wich Karpov and his co-Author usually apply in their works.

Good but missing a few items
If you are interested in this book at all it is because you want to learn more about the English Chess Opening.From a white or black side.

This book is good for that purporse. It will give you good positional ideas about the English.The book contains 30 well anotated games. Karpov is sharing his knowledge about this opening to you.

Here are the drawbacks to this book.
1. It says nothing about what you should do if black plays a 1. c4 c6 (slav) or 1. c4 e6 (queens gambit).If you play the English you need to know what to do here.(probably even need to study the Dutch opening also)You will get these replies from black alot, trust me.

2. Alot of the games are 10 years old or older.Now true it seems like all the Super GMs play nothing more than Petrof, Slav, and Ruy Lopez these days.But I would of wish for some more modern games.

But if you want a good positional understanding of 1.c4 c5 or 1.c4 e5, this is a good book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A Small Selection of Karpov's Great Games
This contains 43 games of Karpov, covering 25 years of his career from 1969 to 1994.The games are brilliant, but the book is relatively short.Some of his famous victories, e.g. vs Topalov in Linares 94, are missing.Also notable is that Karpov has White in the vast majority of the selected games.

From one of the best chess players of all time!
Anatoly Karpov's chess are some of the best positional games of all time. While he has been accused of playing a very dull style this couldnt be the furthest thing from the truth! Anatoly's games are fantastic for instructional purposes and the collection of games in this book will definately help players with there game and understanding the theory and its application of positional chess. While a great many people, including myself, love attacking chess, after studying Karpov's games you soon learn that all tactical maneuvers are born from a sound position. A great book from one of the best of all time!

Brilliant!
Karpov's play is rich, deep, and brilliant. In fact, I have always considered him, in some ways, to be the successor of another great---Petrosian, whose deep strategic play and sharp tactics I havealways admired. However, while the public hasrecognized the richness anddepth of his play, Karpov has often been accused of being dull. This bookfinally puts an end to that pernicious lie. In this work, we see thefull brilliance of Karpov's play demonstrated---much of which, sadlyperhaps, occurred only in the latent variations of his games. Nonetheless,there is a wealth of real brilliance in this collection---just look at hisgames against Tatai, Korchnoi, and Kasparov. My Lord, Tatai-Karpov featuresa positional pawn sacrifice which is later followed by a queen sacrifice:If that is not brilliant, I don't know what is! Anatoly Karpov's BestGames's only flaw is that its selection of games is too limited! (Gamesfrom Karpov's 1974 candidates matches are conspicuously absent.) Yet thisis hardly a significant flaw. If you get the chance, purchase thisbook: It is a collection of deeply annotated, richly strategic brillianciesfrom one of the greatest players of all time. ... Read more

Product Description
Elista Diaries is the classic first-hand account of one of the most intensely fought World Chess Championship matches seen for decades.The World Champion and his chief trainer deeply annotate all of the games from the 1996 World Championship Match. In the first chapter, the authors pay tribute to all the World Champions (from Morphy to the present day) by analyzing their favorite games played by the great chess artists who have, each in turn, captured the Chess Crown. Karpov includes seven of his own favorite and brilliant games from the period 1992-1996. Subsequent chapters deal with Kamsky's 1993-1995 progress to the finals, previous Karpov-Kamsky encounters (dating from 1991) and the 1995 Karpov-Gelfand Candidates Match.Anatoly Karpov was World Chess Champion from 1975 to 1985, regained the title in 1993 and defended it successfully in 1996 and 1998. He has played more games and more matches for the World Chess Championship than anybody else. He has won 161 grandmaster tournaments, more than anybody else. He has won more games against grandmasters than anybody else.Grandmaster Ron Henley was Karpov's "second" or assistant during some of these matches. Henley kept notes of the analysis in preparing for and playing in these matches and these notes form the basis for much of this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A great chess read
Being not only a writer but also a chess grandmaster, Ron Henley has provided unique insights into the multiple dynamics of the matches.

I was president of the high school chess club in Houston Texas where Ron and I were students.Even then Ron had the ability to provide all the members with analysis and explanations of strategy that we could each immediately utilize. Under his tutelage we won the Houston high school chess championships against much stronger competition.

I was delighted to find that Ron's ability to communicate his observations and skills as a chess grandmaster to those of us without his chess ability has only gotten better with time.His thorough explanations and clearly understandable writing style will allow the reader to have a much greater appreciation for the marvelous complexity of the matches. I know I sure did, and I am certain that the otherreaders/chess players to whom I will be presenting this book will also.

F.D.Garcia
San Antonio TX

A Grasshopper Learns from the Sage
As a beginner yearning to gain a true understanding of strategy, I find it best to learn by example and the notes are clear and concise.The insights are outstanding and the writing is easy for a novice to understand.

This is definitely good stocking stuffer material written by some talented authors.

Great book!
Was always a big fan of the original book, which discussed Karpov's final "true" World Championship match in vivid detail. This update is especially important, given Kamsky's roll in Khanty-Mansiysk World Cup, as well as the great trimuph for Vishy Anand in Mexico City this year.

Super book by excellent authors. Great read!

Long Over Due, But Glad it's Here
I just got my copy of the new Elista Diaries. I haven't had a chance to dive into it yet; I've only gotten as far as the Intro (found a few typos, but nothing that detracts). But from what I've seen so far, this promises to be a more exciting read than the original classic edition with more pages, up-to-date games (can't wait to read their take on the Anand Mexico City match!) and more instructive material.

I've got my holiday reading taken care of with this one... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A wonderful insight
In his autobiography Karpov details everything from his early childhood to his rivalries with Korchnoi and Kasparov. The fluency of the book, however, is flawed and there is a virtual chasm between his childhood and rest-of-life. That said, I think this is one of the best autobiographies I've ever read. Karpov tells about his spiritual approach to the game, his gentle and kind personality, and most importantly, his match with Korchnoi.
To be honest, I think that the description of the match with Korchnoi (actually all their matches) is one of the best passages in a book I've read yet. The absolutely intense labor, momentum of the match, and conspiracies surrounding all of his games are fascinating and intriguing. If you are going to buy a book on Karpov or any autobiography, but this one.

Near Masterpiece
The first half of this book is startlingly well written, literary, and even sometimes quite humorous, as when Karpov recounts the story about his mother checking up on him after he had been forbidden to think about chess.As the book nears the present, however, Karpov loses the thread of his own story and begins to wander (some would put it stronger than that) in his analysis of Kasparov and their bitter rivalry.One wishes, therefore, that Karpov had waited til he was well into his 50's before attempting the sort thing he tries here; because his childhood is recalled with vivid insight and the point of view that emerges is astonishing: he just happened to find himself World Champion one day!On the other hand, I can easily imagine chess players not liking this book at all since it has no chess games in it; but that really doesn't matter if one is fascinated by the subject (as I am).I only mention the fact to warn people who might be expecting something other than what they will find here: an autobiography.That said, this is a very good book from the former World Champion which ends with him hopefully predicting his future re-claiming of the world title (the book came out in 1990).You can read that last part any way you like or ignore it, but there it is: Karpov is a romantic who had to somehow make his way through the demi-human universe of Soviet Chess.A number of fans will undoubtedly disagree with this assessment, but one can tell when someone is lying about the unacceptable deeds of their past: Karpov's memoir is, therefore, touching at times, as his telling of the events surrounding the aborted match with Fischer amply demonstrates....I recomend this book to anyone who has a heart, and, wants to know more about the history of the royal game in our times. ... Read more

Book Description
Chess is like an intellectual labyrinth; whenever you open a door, you find yourself facing ten new doors. Negotiations and other business maneuvers are similar; each decision or action generates new opportunities. And, like chess, it is more important to determine the paths not taken. As Richard Nixon taught us: "Always know ahead of time what you don't want." In Chess and the Art of Negotiation, a world-renowned chess master and a CEO of a global company combine forces and apply the principles of chess to illuminate the dynamics of competition, strategy and negotiation, whether angling for a promotion, beating your arch rival to a lucrative contract, or landing the sale. In a colorful interview format, the authors argue that it is not enough to be well prepared or well informed, nor is it sufficient to be trained in only the tactical aspects of engagement. Strategy drives tactics, and understanding the motivations behind your opponent's strategy will help you navigate your way through the labyrinth. Drawing from their own experiences in chess and in business, as well as many historical and contemporary examples, the authors offer insight into the strategic mindset and how to apply it to any kind of negotiation or competitive situation. Not for the faint of heart, Chess and the Art of Negotiation assumes that in business, as in any game, there are winners and losers, and aims to help you prepare for combat and emerge victorious, not vanquished. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Poor Excuse for a Book on Chess or Negotiations
The less said about this potboiler, the better. It is clearly a vanity piece designed to showcase an obscure French businessman by linking him with a former world chess champion who is along for the ride.
It contains no insights into either chess or negotiations. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (4)

CaroKann from the theoretical and practical expert.
For decades, A. Karpov has been the world leading expert and supporter (both in theoretical discusion and practical results) of this very solid defence. This book is focused in the sharp advance and gambit lines (ECO B10-B12) and accomplishes the task of pointing out the best continuations and ideas for both sides in a wonderful way. Either you like to defend the resourceful positions arising from this defence or to crack it, this book will help you to choose the best way to do it. The variations follow a prelation order helping the reader to identify them from bad or dubious to recommended ones.

Overall, an excellent book which surpasses the good old work from V. Kotronias on the same subject.

Good book BUT...
This is a great book. This is not a repertory book but a reference book. I found every variation I was interested to learn. I would say that this book is for people +1900 and for seasoned Caro Kann players. This is not a good book for starting to play the Caro.
There is something I did not like about this book... it is very hard to follow the variations. You have to be patient to find your way thru pages and lots of variations and sub variations.
If you already play the Caro, you are +1900 and have a lot of time to follow thru hundreds of variations then this is the book for you.
If you want to learn to play the Caro and want to learn the structure and plans look somewhere else.

This one is exceptional
If John Watson and David Bronstein were to write one on the Caro Advance, this would be it, except it's Anatoly Karpov, and Mikhail Podgets, of wich the latter is probably responsible for the lucid, insightful, and highly entertaining prose comments. Jimmy Adams was the translator. Coverage is balanced and exceptionally comprehensive, presented in a tree style. There are detailed tree indexes for every chapter, but it lacks an index for the hundreds of embedded games, just giving listings for the dozen plus illustrative games added on at the end. That's about the only flaw I see. The volume assumes some acquaintance with the main variations, but is probably accesible to anyone who's gone through Starting Out: Caro Kann or something similar. Anyone from A or B class through GM should find it more than useful.

Advance Variation and Gambit System
I just recieved this book in the mail and wanted to throw out a quick review of the publishing job and some of the content.I really think this is how an opening book should be made.Very easy to read and follow, multiple indices, an average of about 2 diagrams per page for 260 pages.The prose is conversational and direct.This book looks to be an excellent resourse for both black and white players who want to enter these variations.About 230 of the 260 pages cover the Advance system.I eagerly await the next volume, and I don't even currently use the C-K defense.This looks to be one of the best opening books I've seen.Very clean, professional.Buy it if you are at all interested in the Caro-Kann. ... Read more