English Chess Forum

The Chess Openings by Gunsberg. My copy was published in 1920, though I believe it is basically a reprint of a much earlier version from around 1895.

It is a pocket-size book with a tabular layout similar to MCO. 45 of its 101 pages are devoted to the King's Gambit, whereas all openings beginning 1 d4 (I should say 1 P-Q4) get a total of seven pages. I don't refer to it that often.

Colin Purdon wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 08, 2020 8:30 pm

45 of its 101 pages are devoted to the King's Gambit

How does it assess the Muzio?

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 08, 2020 8:38 pm

Colin Purdon wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 08, 2020 8:30 pm

45 of its 101 pages are devoted to the King's Gambit

How does it assess the Muzio?

"We could very easily, and in an interesting manner, fill up this little volume with a treatise on the Muzio Gambit, and even then, perhaps, we should not have said the last word. For our own part, we should just as soon play this Gambit as any other."

I suppose that would be replaced by the "unclear" symbol, nowadays.

Thanks, I did not expect such an explicit answer.

World Champion Openings (1998 edition) by Eric Schiller. It has a large number of diagram misprints but was my introduction to the notable final game of the fourth Karpov-Kasparov world championship match.

The section on openings in The Mammoth Book Of Chess by Graham Burgess. I won it in a tournament many years ago when the organiser awarded a junior prize in my section and I was the only junior entry.

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 08, 2020 10:06 pm

Thanks, I did not expect such an explicit answer.

I thought as much, but I found that I was interested in the answer to your question so I looked it up!

"We could very easily, and in an interesting manner, fill up this little volume with a treatise on the Muzio Gambit, and even then, perhaps, we should not have said the last word. For our own part, we should just as soon play this Gambit as any other."

I much prefer books written like that!

"Catastrophe in the Opening" by Neishtadt was rather good from memory. He quoted an opening book where someone had said after move 12, "better for white", and some cunning postal player had found a rather good 12.....something, forcing resignation! I don't have my copy to hand or I would reveal what it was...

Kevin Thurlow wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 08, 2020 11:03 pm

"Catastrophe in the Opening" by Neishtadt was rather good from memory.

There's also "200 Modern Chess Traps in the Fianchetto openings" published in 1970.

Within the past couple of years, I worked my way through this, searching for the games and positions. It was a mixed bag as to whether the traps were genuine or illusory. The decisive error could be a few moves on from the highlighted position.

The very first example in the book is the Geller trap from 1968 which also caught Agdestein in a recent World Cup.

This runs 1. d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 0-0 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. Qd2 e5 8. Nf3 c6 9. 0-0 exd4 10. Nxd4 Nc5 and now 11 f3 is a mistake because of 11. .. Nf6xe4. The odd looking 11. Qf4 leaves White a small advantage, according to engines and games since 1968. The same position can arise from Black playing 6. .. Na6.

[SetUp "1"] [FEN "r1bq1rk1/pp3pbp/2pp1np1/2n3B1/2PNP3/2N5/PP1QBPPP/R4RK1 w - - 1 11"]
1. d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 0-0 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. Qd2 e5 8. Nf3 c6 9. 0-0 exd4 10. Nxd4 Nc5

Thanks Roger. Interesting game.

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Thanks for your replies. Anymore recommended General Reference Books for Chess Openings?

Simon Rogers wrote: ↑

Fri Jun 12, 2020 6:12 pm

Thanks for your replies. Anymore recommended General Reference Books for Chess Openings?

Also, I was wandering if the Fifteenth Edition, which came out in 2009, is the latest in the Batsford's Modern Chess Openings series?

Is the Fifteenth Edition of Batsford Modern Chess Openings the latest one.?
Does anyone know? It came out in 2009.

Any plans to bring out a Sixteenth Edition of Batsford Modern Chess Openings?
When did the latest edition of Nunn's Chess Openings come out?

There is only one edition of Nunn's Chess Openings: the original published in 1999.

I don't think this type of book is going to be published any more (overtaken by computer databases).