Soviet Chess Primer (Chess Classics)

I wish I got that book years ago (many years ago). The style is typical for old (but good) school of teaching - goes from 0 to 60 quickly (or 0 to 100, if you are using metric system :)). No unnecessary fluf - if something requires deep discussion (pawn endings) it does it in a comprehensive way, but otherwise explains many core concepts quickly, with many examples on why those are important. It should give a very solid foundation on what one should work on. Some people aim books based on their Elo rating. Not certain that's the correct approach but I'd say if one wants to really excell in the beautiful game of chess (and not just win with a few friends) this book shows many areas one should be working on to become a well rounded player. Then you know "why" you need to work on something. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the paper in the book. It's soft cover but print and paper are superb. I pick up the book with pleasure and think the game of chess receives the treatment it deserves :) I read it every day, just for pleasure. Definitely "a must" on every chess player's list of books to have.

THE chess introduction and primer for learning the game. If there is one thing Soviet era Russian gave to the world, it is some of the greatest chess players and strategies the world has ever seen. With this book, a translation of the book Chess (In Russian), you're learning from the very text that basically every chess master from Russia began reading. I would recommend this over any introductory book to the game and even if you already know how to play. This book will help you 100% if you're sub 1200 rating.

I own a copy of The Soviet Chess Primer, and I have some comments regarding the binding of the book. It appears that the book consists of a series of sewn together groups of pages, which are embedded in some glue attaching the whole to the cover of the book. The problem I am encountering is that the very first group of pages has pulled away from the glue and is barely hanging together. I have worked about half-way through the book and have not encountered the same thing with any other group of pages. I also own a copy of the Soviet Middlegame Technique, and I observe that the binding appears to be more traditional, in that the pages appear to be all embedded in the glue that constitutes the binding. I do not see any pulling away of the pages similar to the situation I encountered with The Soviet Chess Primer. I would be surprised if I am the first customer to experience this pulling away. In the future when more Primers are published, I would like to suggest that the binding be changed to be more like the Soviet Middlegame Technique binding. BTW: I still like the Primer very much, and am sad that the binding is letting go. It is in all other respects a very superior book, although openings are not covered to the same extent as other aspects of the game.

Instructive in the nuances and strategies of the game of chess. This book will help your thinking process and increase your power of concentration. This book has helped me become a better chess player, defeating much better players. I have only begun playing in the last three months and I'm 79 years of age. Highly recommended. The book is also well made and the charts clear and instructive.

Originally called simply "Chess" when printed in Russian, this book was widely used as an early instruction handbook for Soviet chess players. Far be it from me to want anything to do with the Soviet Union, but even I have to admit, this is one of the finest tools to quickly advance your chess game if you're an advanced beginner or intermediate player. Where I think some people may become a bit confused is the word "primer" in the title. Though this book does begin with the basic rules of chess--and even teaches the reader how to read the book because it takes the time to explain algebraic chess notation right at the start--it quickly moves on to more advanced tactical and strategic ideas. Beginners who genuinely are just learning the basic rules of the game could hypothetically read this book, but I think they will very quickly become overwhelmed by the more advanced ideas discussed even as early as the second or third chapters. However, readers who already have some familiarity with the game will benefit a lot from its discussions of ideas which are fairly simple to understand but often difficult to apply in real games. For example, simple tactics like pins and forks are easy enough for even absolute beginners to understand. However, where this book shines is that it provides enough examples (of increasing complexity) that reading the book will help the reader begin to recognize when those tactics might become relevant. Chess is largely a matter of pattern recognition, and this book will help you start to recognize the patterns. Ultimately, I'd recommend this for the serious beginner or early-intermediate chess player looking to deepen his or her knowledge of the game.

Having ordered this book in June and now coming to its end I have seen great improvement in my understanding and playing strength. I highly recommend to beginners setting up the positions on a physical board or even two, to keep track of the main line and accompanying variations for the numerous examples. This is a great book and a concrete step to chess improvement. I would recommend this to all new chess players and for those teaching chess to utilize its rich content as well.

Love the book it has instantly improved my chess. Easy to understand and I can see why it’s a standard

This was a classic chess training manual in the Soviet Union, and is now destined to become a classic in The West. The book is endorsed by three former World Chess Champions - Lasker, Karpov and Kasparov, as well as the eminent Russian chess trainer Mark Dvoretsky. While the book starts off treating elementary chess basics, it quickly becomes very challenging and advanced for the beginner-novice. In this respect it is really more suitable for the experienced player, intermediate level and above. It is designed to take one, with diligent (!) study, to at least Expert level, and perhaps beyond. If you don't yet have "Master" in your chess title, but have aspirations (or fantasies) in that direction, and are looking for a chess course to help you along the way, this would be a great one to consider. Kudos to Quality Chess for publishing this exceptional work. For the beginner-novice player, two good choices for a first chess course would be " Pandolfini's Ultimate Guide to Chess " by Bruce Pandolfini, and " Winning Chess Strategy for Kids " by Jeff Coakley. (Regardless of the title, the latter is not just for kids!)

Un livre d'échecs que tout joueur d'échecs doit lire. Vous trouverez tous les grands principes que doit connaître un joueur d'échecs.

Excelente livro, mas definitivamente não é para quem está iniciando.

No words are enough. If you never played chess but you feel you can make a difference just buy it and study it. Your game will undoubtedly improve. Cheers.

クラシックですが初心者向けでは一番いいと思いました。駒の動かし方から始まりルールの次は、tactics, strategy, calculation, combination,positional play, endgame, middlegame, opening theory と初心者向けですがひと通り網羅されています。 ソビエトメソッドは流石ですね。前書きで、レーティングで1600を超えるまでは頭の中だけで考えるのは無理なので駒とボードを用意すること、Blitzなどの早指しは卓越したプレイヤーのみに向く、という趣旨の文言があります。

This should be everybody's *second* primer or it's title should be 'The Soviet Chess *Handbook* If you have a national chess federation ELO rating of 1300-1599 I highly recommend this fantastic book. If you are absolutely new to chess or under 1300 rating this may be a little advanced for you in which case I would recommend one of these three classic primers first: Siegbert Tarrasch's 'Game of Chess', Capablanca's 'Chess Fundamentals' or Lasker's 'Manual of Chess'. Lasker wrote the forward to the original Russian edition and the famous coach and author Mark Dvoretsky has written the new one for this English translation, it's his favorite chessbook of all time. Garry Kasparov and Anatoli Karpov (former legendary world champions) have both praised it having learned from it when they were schoolboys. The author presents the material in an engaging and concise manner and includes practical examples after the theory, and exams at the end of each chapter. To get maximum value out of the book I suggest you use a chessboard and take the time necessary to work out the moves and write out your answers as they can get quite tricky and the practice of doing this is similar to over the board play where you must do the same in your mind. I'm currently halfway through the book and plan to run through it again for any chapters that I score less than 80% correctly. Another neat feature is that new concepts are in many cases are introduced and the author then cites the diagram numbers from previous sections to point out that the new concepts exists in *those* positions as well. This is a great instructional technique as the student sees firsthand with positions they've gained familiarity with earlier that any given chess position will have multiple themes in it. 5 stars, I have had many chess books but this is one of the few I will never willingly part with!