How to Play the English Opening (Batsford Chess Books) [Paperback]

Anatoly Karpov (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2007 | Series: Batsford Chess Books

The English Opening (1.c4) got its name because it was first used in international competition by an Englishman: 19th-century world chess champion Howard Staunton. But it achieved the great popularity it enjoys today with the help of a Russian: the author of this definitive book, former world champion Anatoly Karpov. Among its advantages, as Karpov demonstrates, is that it can transpose into many other openings, including the Queen’s Gambit Declined, the Reti, the Caro-Kann, the Sicilian with colors reversed, or the Polish—any one of which may provide a winning edge by leading an opponent into unfamiliar territory. This kind of flexibility is what every player needs, and Karpov provides it with a thoroughness no one else could possibly match.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Anatoly Karpov is a living legend of chess; he has dominated the world of the chess for over a decade as the world chess champion between 1975 and 1985. Garry Kasparov, the current champion, dethroned him and the two ideologically opposed Russians have had a bitter rivalry ever since. Anatoly Karpov is also the winner of the largest number of tournaments in the history of chess, with more than 160 due tournaments. He is considered the best positional player of history of chess and is the author of several other books on chess theory. He lives in Russia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Batsford (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0713490659
• ISBN-13: 978-0713490657
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #308,632 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good but missing a few items, October 10, 2007

By 

R. Hutchinson "ChessNut" (Southern California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Play the English Opening (Batsford Chess Books) (Paperback)

If you are interested in this book at all it is because you want to learn more about the English Chess Opening. From a white or black side.

This book is good for that purporse. It will give you good positional ideas about the English. The book contains 30 well anotated games. Karpov is sharing his knowledge about this opening to you.

Here are the drawbacks to this book.

1. It says nothing about what you should do if black plays a 1. c4 c6 (slav) or 1. c4 e6 (queens gambit). If you play the English you need to know what to do here. (probably even need to study the Dutch opening also) You will get these replies from black alot, trust me.

2. Alot of the games are 10 years old or older. Now true it seems like all the Super GMs play nothing more than Petrof, Slav, and Ruy Lopez these days. But I would of wish for some more modern games.

But if you want a good positional understanding of 1.c4 c5 or 1.c4 e5, this is a good book.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lot of chess wisdom, an enjoyable read, May 6, 2008

By 

M. Houston "mh" (Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Play the English Opening (Batsford Chess Books) (Paperback)

I enjoyed this book a lot, and will be reading it a second time. It gives you an insight into an opening that the author, one of the greatest chess players of all time, clearly loves deeply. I particularly enjoyed reading how this opening developed over the years that Karpov was engaged in epic battles with Kasparov. The book also provides you with a bit of a behind the scenes of how the great players prepare for combat, with dedicated researchers and similar.

Before purchasing this book though, it is important to understand what it is, and what it is not. This book is not:

1. an English opening system (like Kolsten's "Dynamic English"),

2. an upto date theoretical tomb on the English

3. a guide as to what variations to play.

This book will be of interest to players, black or white, who want to:

1. gain better understanding of the types of positions and games that specific c4 lines lead too - e.g. 1. c4 e5, 2. Nc3...

2. gain insight into the hedgehog and other symmetrical lines (that can also arise from 1. Nf3)

3. are building a classical English defence against c4 (i.e. e5 or c5)

4. would like some understanding on how great players learn by imprinting critical games in their minds

5. enjoy reading a true great of the game describe classic battles

The chess lines in this book can transpose into d4 openings. I have come to the conclusion, that the reality is, that to play chess for "an advantage" in the opening, a price to be paid is that transpositions can occur. No 1 book can cover off the English and all these transpositions, unless one is willing to compromise with a set system (e.g. Kolsten's 2. g3). Set systems can work, but are not for everyone (they can ultimately get a bit dull, at least for me).

If you want to play English lines like the four knights, or too augment a d4 repertoire with some anti-nimzo lines or similar, this book is useful, but will need to be supplemented with a more theoretical book (I have Vladimir Bagirov's books - although I guess they are probably out of date).

So with that said - I really do love this book. If you like chess, for the sake of chess, and are not looking for someone to tell you what to play, but rather to read a Grandmaster describing what he played, and the struggle over English variations during his time at the top, all you will enjoy this book a lot.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book for any Player!, July 28, 2008

By 

Jennifer Sinclair - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How to Play the English Opening (Batsford Chess Books) (Paperback)

Firstly, this book is very good for both white and black. Also, this book doesn't contain any complex 20 move analysis that is hard to understand. In fact, the annotations are very good for any player, and, because of the positional nature of the English Opening, neither side really ever needs to know any lines at all. The book is more geared towards gaining an understanding of the positions, not memorizing lines. That way, when you sit down to play this opening, you don't have to be thinking 'What does the book tell me to do in this position?'. Instead, you can be able to figure it out yourself, choosing a variaty of plans shown in the book. Finally, it should be noted that this contains far more than the thirty games advertised. For every game there is usually at least one 'side game' that presents an alternative to what was played in the game. Highly recommended!