The ChessCafe Puzzle Book: Test and Improve Your Tactical Vision (Paperback)

by Karsten Muller (Author), Susan Polgar (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Combines clear discussions of tactical themes with over 600 well-chosen positions to test, challenge and teach. Although the classic combinations are not ignored, the emphasis here is on positions from modern tournament practice of the last decade. Tactics is a very important part of the game of chess and conscientious study and application of tactical principles is crucial to success. This book offers every type of tactical motif imaginable, from the more common back rank mates, pins, skewers, forks, up to and including some beautiful and rare combinations. This tactical book will prove exceptionally useful for a wide range of players, intermediate through master strength and beyond.

About the Author
Karsten Muller, German grandmaster, is one of the most respected writers on the royal game today. His books on the endgame include The Secrets of Pawn Endings and Fundamental Chess Endings.

Product Details

• Paperback: 301 pages
• Publisher: Russell Enterprises (September 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1888690216
• ISBN-13: 978-1888690217
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #292,031 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tactical problems from real games, organized by motif, October 27, 2006

By	John Gossman (Seattle, wa USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have a large collection of books of tactics and tactical problems, but I had avoided this one because the title misled me (and at least one other person I talked to) into believing it consisted of artificial studies, whereas I prefer my problems to be from real games. When I finally saw this book at the local chess club, I was pleasantly surprised to find the positions are from real games, labeled with the player's, dates, etc.

There are 565 problems in all, organized by motif (pin, fork, etc.), with some problems further labeled with hints like "White's position looks shaky. How to make it crumble?". Most of the problems are recent, from games in the 21st century, though there are a scattering of classics all the way back to Morphy. Almost all are from GM games, which of course means the difficulty is fairly uniformly high.

Because of the high quality of the diagrams and solutions, this book has replaced Reinfeld at my bedside for motif-based practice. I also recommend "Sharpen Your Tactics" which presents 1125 problems organized by difficulty, rather than motif. I believe the approaches of these two books, both high quality, complement each other in fully rounded regime of tactical study.