Chess is the quintessential game of strategy. It pits 2 players against each other on a 64 square board with neither player having an advantage in pieces and without luck playing any role. Despite the simplicity of the game’s rules, it’s still one of the most studied games, and one of the hardest to truly master.
While chess tactics and strategy can be divided into multiple levels (openings, middlegame, endgame, etc.), the whole together combined with the critical thinking of when to use a given tactic combine to create the strategy. The following are some books I’ve learned about in my chess journey. Some will be easily applicable, some will be out of your level for better or worse depending on where you are.
This isn’t an exhaustive list by any means. I focused on books most applicable for people starting to learn about chess, but some works can stretch up into the more advanced intermediate to advanced levels. I also restricted this list to works which are easily available to purchase.
Why Strategy?
I focused on general chess strategy rather than opening moves, mid-game, end-game, etc. type resources. These are each individual parts of chess tactics, but I wanted something focused more on the game as a whole rather than individual pieces. I’m a bit new to formally learning chess, so I wanted to focus on what would give me the most bang for my buck with studying (which is similar to learning a language). End-game puzzles are fun, but I’ll just do them on a phone app more often than not.
Chess is much more than the pieces that make up the game. To play chess, you have to think strategically, and you have to plan ahead. Tactics are easy, how to use them requires critical thinking and understanding of the game. While critical thinking can’t be directly taught, how to apply it in the confines of chess can be scaffolded.
You have to be able to analyze your opponent’s strategy and make changes based on that analysis on the fly. Chess is also a game of mathematics (with human elements). When you play chess, you are solving complex problems within a problem solving framework. You also have to deal with the human element with blunders and seemingly irrational actions from time to time.
If you are playing an expert chess player, they will be able to predict your moves and counter your moves if you don’t employ a solid strategy with your tactics. Both players have access to the same pieces and the same movements, neither has a true advantage outside of skill. If you make the wrong move, your opponent will have time to make a countermove and defeat you.
Strategy is what keeps me interested in chess and all of its many variants. While luck may factor in with real life, all that matters in chess is skill and strategy.
Beginner and Intermediate Works
These works are targeted at newer players or people just getting started systematically studying chess. Some will explain the board and basics, others only the tactics required to really begin learning formally. Each focuses on a more holistic approach which incorporates the parts of the game with how to put everything together or how to approach the tactics in a way which can help formulate an actual strategy.
The Tao of Chess – Peter Kurzdorfer
The Tao of Chess is a book by Chess Master Peter Kurzdorfer which touches on the philosophy of chess. This book is divided into 42 chapters in 2 main parts (technical and “personal”). Each chapter is further divided into little adages described as “principles” which lay out a rule of thumb or similar and then expounds on it with descriptions from games, puzzles, etc. as needed.
This book is extremely efficient at teaching some more general chess strategy to beginning and intermediate players. Some of the examples might be useful to more advanced players as well, but they’d mostly just be extra examples of things an advanced player should already know. That said, the general advice is good and most of the examples are from tournaments and famous games.
I like the combination of general advice, examples, and applications. This book is probably my favorite chess book I’ve read (though it isn’t necessarily the best). The tone is conversational, it provides good examples and illustrates its points, and it covers a lot of examples from famous games or common, usable chess examples (e.g. openings, end-game, etc.). If you want to learn more about chess without getting too into the weeds or if you’re strapped for time, this book is amazing.
The Tao of Chess is a great add to any newer player’s chess library, but it does make the assumption you already know the basics of playing, and that you can read modern chess notation (e.g. e4 e5, …, Rxe4). This might be a fun read for an advanced player, but it’s suited for lower level players or people looking to formalize their study. It’s a great first book or an easy getaway depending on where you are in your learning and what you’re looking to do.
Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess
Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess is the quintessential “learn to play chess” book that you’ll hear about from anyone suggesting a first or early chess book. The book has Bobby Fischer’s name attached, but it was (most likely) produced by a team. This isn’t the best chess book, but it’s a great choice for people looking to learn how to play chess. It uses a systematic approach to teach how the pieces move, the rules, and it skips out on notation in favor of diagrams and simple explanations (“rook takes pawn” or similar).
While this isn’t strictly a strategy book, it covers general chess strategy for new players. The system is also designed so that advanced beginners can get some use out of it. This book is mainly for people new to chess though, so your mileage will vary if you’ve done much studying of other material. Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess is a beginner book with some value for lower-intermediate players and maybe some variable value for intermediate players (depending on weaknesses in learning).
One thing to take note of too is that this system uses pages printed upside down. Basically, one side is printed right-side up, you read through, and then read the book backwards. It’s all explained in the introduction, but a lot of negative reviews stem from this specific printing method.
This is a great book to work through with children if you want them to learn about chess. It teaches a lot of great chess tactics based on what matters for chess without convoluted language or notation.
Also, there’s a DOS game available on archive.org based on this book.
Lasker’s Manual of Chess
Lasker’s Manual of Chess is one of the most famous classics of modern chess learning. It was written by Emanuel Lasker who was considered one of the strongest players during his career.
This is a great book to read, but the most easily available copies use an older notation system (for most of the book) which is confusing compared to modern algebraic notation. That said, it does explain the older notation and covers many great topics worth learning about. There is also a newer edition with modern notation, but it’s pretty expensive and has gone from copies in stock, to no copies in stock, back to copies in stock while writing this article.
I don’t really care who Lasker was as a person which seems to mar this work (despite the fact he isn’t getting royalties from it). It’s a great work which teaches important concepts involving openings, the value of pieces, etc. The current Dover edition apparently has some typos in it which can make it confusing, but that’s common in many older, reproduced works.
This isn’t a first book on chess, but is a good add to any aspiring chess player or someone looking to expand their library. This book will teach you the basics of play (should you need a refresher), openings and opening gambits (and how they impact the middlegame and endgame), chess tactics, positioning, example games, etc. It’s an influential book, but it’s also an amazing tool for learning chess (with some caveats).
It’s dated in some ways, but it’s still a very valuable resource even for better players. A lot has changed in the almost century since it was published, but the game of chess is largely the same and many tactics and strategies remain valid at all but the highly advanced levels.
Chess Fundamentals – José Raúl Capablanca
Capablanca’s classic, Chess Fundamentals is a great book which covers the basics of chess (minus the basic game rules like how a pawn moves, how a rook moves, etc.). This ranges from openings, middle-game play, end-game play, chess theory, and so on. This book covers a good mix of chess basics and advanced techniques, but it’s more for advanced beginners or intermediate players in my opinion.
This book focuses on the fundamentals of chess, but not the absolute basics of the game. It will teach you fundamental theory and fundamental play which is different than basic rules and basic ideas. You need to know something about chess, but this book will help provide new opportunities to see how everything goes together.
Chess Fundamentals is a good add to any burgeoning chess player’s library, but it’s more a transitory note in a chess learning journey. It provides a great mix of tools and techniques to round out an advancing player’s repertoire, it has a good mix of problems and exposition, and it’s cheap (even in algebraic notation). You could argue it’s a bit like Lasker’s Manual of Chess, and just like it, it’s valuable as long as you understand the limitations.
Upper Intermediate to Advanced (1400+ Elo)
While some of the previous books may be applicable to players at this level or higher, these books are primarily of use for someone who is at an intermediate or advanced level or at least around a decent intermediate level with some level of study.
How to Reassess Your Chess Imbalances – Jeremy Silman
Jeremy Silman is an International Master (IM) known for multiple chess books from beginner to advanced. How to Reassess Your Chess is targeted for players with an Elo between 1400 and 2100, but he has other works for lower Elo players (e.g. The Amateur’s Mind).
The book can be a bit polarizing depending on who you ask, but it has a lot of good information and strategy to develop your chess. Some advice can be conflicting, though I chock a lot of that up to introducing rules of thumb, explaining the specifics, and then expecting some level of critical thinking to read between the lines.
Don’t put your king in harm’s way, but don’t forget your king is an attacking piece. It sounds conflicting, but each piece of advice is situational. You need to learn what defines each scenario. This book doesn’t just hand it to you, you need to understand the concepts and figure out where the gray area is yourself.
How to Reassess Your Chess is a massive tome of a book which covers how pieces work, what pitfalls there are for pieces, the psychology of chess, positions and spacing, etc. All of this is centered around what goes into imbalances in the game and how to take advantage of said imbalance. It has a bit of focus on middlegame tactics.
A bishop may be weaker than a queen, but it can be stronger in a given situation. At that point, a queen sacrifice makes more sense (assuming the situation continues to unfold). This work expounds on the various imbalances (how they’re formed and how to use them) and goes from basic tactics to more advanced positional play. It helps you to to exploit weakness in an opponent’s position while taking advantage of strengths in yours. I also like how this is a somewhat systematic approach to learning strategy, but you do need to look at all the pieces and put them together with actual practice.
The Soviet Chess Primer
Ilya Maizelis‘s The Soviet Chess Primer is an excellent work on really learning chess. While “primer” is in the title, this book is more on par with How to Reassess Your Chess for level. It covers the basics, but it quickly jumps into more complicated theory and strategy. Chapter one explains the basics of the game, chapter two how to win, and by chapter three we already get into the thick of more complex tactics and strategy. The book just keeps going from there.
The problems are also a lot harder than the theory seems as well. Each concept is explained in easy terms, but the impact is profound. The translation and adaptation to algebraic notation is also excellent and the tone is enjoyable and entertaining. Most older chess books are pretty dry, but this book is fun and exciting.
While this book is probably going to be of the most value to a more advanced player, it covers enough with enough depth to be valuable to lower level players as well. It touches on complex theory and techniques, but it does it in a way which even greener players will benefit from. You’ll probably want to reread it down the line as you learn more about chess. This book is a great work with a variety of problems and theory ranging from rote technical to abstract thinking about the game.
Conclusion
All of these works are great for learning various aspects about the game of chess. No one book will necessarily be the right choice for studying chess, but each of these works has many great qualities which make them accessible. This is just a small subset of the great books which can help you learn chess. Some of these may not be the best choices for the raw skills, but they may speak to what can teach you the best.
The Tao of Chess isn’t the best chess book on the market, but it has been the best one for my schedule and life at the moment (or past few years with a small child). Consider what will speak to you and what fits with how you want to learn. If you want bite size pieces, something like How to Reassess Your Chess may not be the best fit. If you haven’t internalized all of the rules (movements, en passant, castling, etc.) then several of these works may not fit your needs.
Each of these books has its own merit and value for learning strategy in chess. These all have aspects which are above tired, rote tactics and derivative theory. Each work helps get you thinking about chess like a chess player while learning the necessary tactics, theory, and techniques to do so efficiently. The level and depth given to each aspect will vary depending on the author and their focus, but that’s true of any chess work. If you’re looking to get started or to get going a different direction, consider one of these books depending on your needs.
Image by Reinhold Silbermann from Pixabay