English Chess Forum

FM Richard Webb has reviewed

Secrets of Queen Endgames

from Gambit Publications

by Ferenc Berkes and Tibor Karolyi

at https://britishchessnews.com/2024/06/17 ... -endgames/

Am I the only person to be disturbed by the misaligned pawns next to the White queen in the cover image above? There is something slightly sinister about them and the shadows they are casting. I suspect the photographer aligned them to 'look nice', but any OTB chess player would instinctively want to adjust them!

Kudos to the authors on an excellent book, and to Richard Webb on an excellent review. Is the position on the cover included in the book? (Difficult to tell, as not all the board is visible.)

Christopher Kreuzer wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 17, 2024 2:47 pm

Am I the only person to be disturbed by the misaligned pawns next to the White queen in the cover image above?

Quite possibly. Therapy is only a telephone call away.

I somehow doubt this book is revolutionary. The authors are rubbish at chess when compared to the chess playing elite, Gambit is hardly renowned for its back catalogue of respectable publications.

if only there was some way for us to find out if it is a good book.

MJMcCready wrote: ↑

Fri Aug 23, 2024 7:14 am

I somehow doubt this book is revolutionary. The authors are rubbish at chess when compared to the chess playing elite, Gambit is hardly renowned for its back catalogue of respectable publications.

A 2605 and a 2318 are perfectly capable of doing top-quality analysis in the quiet of their own study, though, particularly when they have multiple other resources such as tablebases to draw on. What matters more than their playing strength is their communicative ability.

No doubt about it.

The best players don't always make the best writers, and vice versa (just as with trainers and managers) And the Gambit range of publications has been praised by no less a hard taskmaster than one E G Winter, so must have something going for them.

You could argue that they rarely do. The very best don't usually write anyway. It's not a revenue source they need to pursue.