The Queen's Gambit Accepted is Black's most straightforward answer to the popular Queen's Gambit.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Some lines good, others spotty,
By
This review is from: The Queen's Gambit Accepted: A Sharp and Sound Response to 1 d4 (Batsford Chess Opening Guides) (Paperback)
(My rating would be two-and-a-half stars if that were possible.)I'm a master who's played the QGA on and off for about 20 years. My other reference works were getting old, so I got a copy of Ward's book. The parts I've read so far have disappointed me. He spends a bit more than 1/3 of the pages on the 3.e4 lines, writing, "If the QGA is to be refuted, then 3 e4 is probably the place for White players to look." This statement is puzzling. He's implying that there could be a _refutation_ to the QGA (an eye-opening claim), and he says nothing of the likelihood that White can get an _advantage_ in this line, rather than in other lines (a more useful consideration). I don't know the e4 lines well, but I'm familiar with other QGA lines. He skips over some significant variations in those. Two examples: A) In the line 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bg4 5.Bxc4 e6, he doesn't analyze a common Black setup built around the moves a6, Nc6, and Bd6. [In a note -- not his regular analysis -- he mentions one game that began that way, in which White played weirdly and got into trouble.] B) In the line 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3, he never mentions one of Black's sensible responses, 4. ... Nc6, which has been played many times. Skipping lines such as these would make sense if this were a repertoire book, advising the Black player to choose certain variations. But it's not; it's a survey of the entire opening. Of course, you can never include every little subvariation of an opening, but the two I mentioned are hardly obscure. Ward does a nice job of describing some positional ideas in his analysis (rather than just complex variations). However, as he analyzes games, he focuses much more on the moves actually played than on possibly superior alternatives, which he either omits or glosses over. This book could also have used better editing and proofreading. A few examples: 1. Page 91: "The queen had look after the knight." 2. Page 100: a note mentions the move h5 for Black, but it should have been Bh5. 3. Page 103: a note says "As we shall see elsewhere," referring to something that happens in other games, but we are not told where to find those games. 4. Page 154: the text reads "It's inconceivable" when it clearly should have said "It's conceivable." A book by a grandmaster on an important opening raises the reader's hopes -- too much so in this case. If I were a specialist in 3.e4, I might have a much better view of this book. From my perspective, though, it merits no more than a lukewarm recommendation.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Chris Ward: As good as usual,
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This review is from: The Queen's Gambit Accepted: A Sharp and Sound Response to 1 d4 (Batsford Chess Opening Guides) (Paperback)
This book, like all Mr.Ward's books, is filled with generous texts and explanations joined to only the best players games.He admits giving more space to the variations with an early e2-e4 because he thinks it is the only real way to test Black's choice of opening. In this sens, probably the more positional players could be more attracted by other books on this system. I have seen on Amazon.com at least one book that puts more emphasis on the early Nf3 variations. A book that fits the needs of those who wish to understand the basic and more on the Queen's Gambit Accepted.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Master that doesnt know e4 lines?,
By Pirc_defense_expert (New England USA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Queen's Gambit Accepted: A Sharp and Sound Response to 1 d4 (Batsford Chess Opening Guides) (Paperback)
I had to write a review of this book after reading another reviewer who gave it stars. For the most part, Ward covers all possible move orders, not ducking giving his opinion about which lines lead to advantage and which dont. A lot of chess books these days are written without making any firm statements, this book is not one of them.One statement the author makes, that was reviewed as being bunk is that 3.e4 is the real test to the QGA. Whether or not you share that opinion it doesnt really matter(i happen to also) the point is that he at least makes an opinion and tries to back it up with analysis. Unfortunetly the bar is fairly low right now for chess books, so even though this book is far from perfect, it is better than many other books. For the next edition I would like to see more variations, alternative opinions from other sources, and incorporate some computer engine analysis. Think John Nunn, or John Watsons books. But as I said, besides that, its a good book, and so much as I can tell, has accurate analysis
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