Customer Reviews

The Modern Morra Gambit: A Dynamic Weapon Against the Sicilian

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The pawn sacrifice 1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Nxc3 against the Sicilian Defense is known as the Morra Gambit after the Frenchman who advocated it several decades ago, or (usually in the U.S.) as the Smith-Morra Gambit, referring to the late Ken Smith, a Senior Master who was a staunch advocate of the gambit, but scored 0-3 with it at the San Antonio 1972 international chess tournament. The gambit is usually ridiculed by grandmasters, but has many advocates among lesser players. White gets some play for a pawn, though probably not quite enough if Black knows what he is doing. If he doesn't (and many amateurs won't), White has excellent chances to score a swashbuckling tactical victory.

Langrock's book is far and away the best book ever written on the gambit. It is also the most objective: Langrock, although an advocate of the gambit, tries hard to be even-handed in his assessments. Unlike some other authors, he admits when a line is good for Black. For example, Langrock admits that Black has scored a staggering 12.5 out of 13 games after 4...Nc6 5.Nf3 d6 6.Bc4 a6 7.0-0?! (his assessment; he recommends 7.Bg5 Nf6 8.Bxf6) Nf6 8.Qe2 Bg4! 9.Rd1 e6 10.Bf4 Qb8! 11.h3 Bxf3 12.Qxf3 Be7. He also admits that some lines that other analysts have pronounced weak, such as the fianchetto variation with an early ...g6, and the "Chicago Variation" with ...a6, ...b5, and ...Ra7-d7, are sufficient for equality with best play. He even acknowledges that 4...Nc6 5.Nf3 e5, which has been almost universally condemned, may be playable. Langrock also has a great deal of original analysis.

The only serious problem with the book is its organization. Langrock buries two important lines (the aforementioned 6...a6, which he calls "the notorious 6...a6!?") and the Finegold Defense (with ...d6, ...e6, ...Nf6, ...a6, and ...Nbd7) on pages 278 and 248 of Chapter 10, entitled "Sidelines," where they are very difficult to find. This is a very odd placement, since Langrock calls the Finegold Defense "very important" and, as noted above, admits that Black has scored 12.5-.5 in what has been considered the main line of "the notorious 6...a6!?" Notorious, indeed. The Finegold Defense was the subject of a well-reviewed book by Bob Ciaffone and International Master Finegold (one of the highest-rated IM's in the world), while Grandmaster Joe Gallagher recommends 6...a6 in his popular book "Beating the Anti-Sicilians."

Despite this flaw, anyone interested in playing the Morra Gambit should certainly get this book. Devotees of the Sicilian may also want to get it to see what their gambit-playing opponents will be reading. Anyone who gets this book should also read the reviews by IM's John Donaldson, Jeremy Silman, and John Watson, available on the Internet, all of which further the theoretical discussion.

I was not planning to reveiw this book. however, when I saw the other reveiwer give it only 1 star I had to chime in to remedy this travesty.

The book, contents, diagrams, text, explainations, and game examples are all excellent. This is the most up-to-date work on this opening.

I share the other reveiwers frustration with some of the format - the font used and the layout do not "flow" as nice as some chess books. but the content and learning value is otherwise quite good.

I have played the Morra gambit for several years in both OTB and Internet play with results that are generally way beyond my rating level. (I make up for it with poor results in other openings :) that bring my rating back down to earth.

My practical results have been excellent. Most players, especially below the expert level consistently fall into well known traps.

But I digress - if you are looking for a good up-to-date book on the Morra grab a copy of this work, spend a few hours to get boned up, and then go trash someone !

What's not to like about this book? Coverage? Both broad and deep. Currency? With the exception of e-sources, this is the state of the art for the Morra. Bias? The author admits he is a fan of the gambit, but that only serves to enhance my impression that he did his absolute best to be even handed. I detected none of the "get rich quick" mentality that can easily be found in too many other opening books. In short, if you want a violent, exciting and sound way to take most Sicilian "robots" waaaay out of their comfort zone you simply could not do better than this definitive tome. Leave your opponents to complain about the aesthetics of your choice, you merely pile up the points with one brutal attack after another. Is that a chain saw I hear in the background?

The Modern Morra Gambit is simply the best (and most up to date) look at an exciting opening. Langrock has done a good job of presenting as close to a balanced view as I have seen in any opening book. I thought I knew something about this opening, but when I started digging into this book I realized just how ignorant I had been! One thing I feel could have been done better is to spend more time on common tactical themes (e5 push, Nd5 sacrifice, Nb5 sacrifice). While he spends some time on them, a more through break down would be helpful for weaker players. Some will claim that the Smith Morra Gambit is rubbish, to those critics I reply 1.e4 c5 2.d4 game on!

A superb tome on the Smith-Morra Gambit. This book has the rare quality of using illustrative games and covering many lines with a comprehensive analysis of alternative moves. The introduction provides a brief overview of common motifs. There is only one chapter on the Smith-Morra Gambit declined, but perhaps this is sufficient; in my experience black accepts the gambit 99% of the time.

Variations should be in format like Modern Chess Openings. Full game results should be an appendix of wins and losses by white.

Some notation is very clumsy.

I would like a book that does a better job of presenting this opening.