Taimanov's Selected Games [Paperback]

Mark Taimanov (Author), Alexei Shirov (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Everyman Publishers (August 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1857441559
• ISBN-13: 978-1857441550
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #604,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Cames Collections I've Read, January 13, 2000

By 

Brian W. Kulik "bkulik" (Honolulu, HI United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Taimanov's Selected Games (Paperback)

I read this book after I read Tal's "Life and Games" and I was surprised at how much MORE i learned after all of Tal's instructive commentary. Taimanov is a master at the harmonious coordination of pieces, but I was surprised to find his applied to both positional (by grabbing space) AND tactical (by well-coordinated attacks) situations, often following up the former with the latter. The book is divided into thematic chapters, such as various attacks on the king and a clear treatise on technique (i.e. turning a small advantage into a win). Taimanov's comments are crystal-clear without getting bogged down in analyses of variations. It's amazing how someone can, with a few words and a variation of only a few moves, explain a difficult position. Tal can do this (he's the best), and with this book Taimanov shows that he can too. And like Tal, Taimanov (and Kotov, for that matter) can make his excitement for chess contagious. This is one of the best games collections I've ever read.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Collection, September 1, 2001

By 

B. Symes "Happy Vacuumer (is that a word?)" (Barrie, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Taimanov's Selected Games (Paperback)

This is an excellent book for Intermediate or low-end Advanced players. There is a great emphasis on strategy, and the organisation of the book helps greatly; Taimanov presents his games by theme/motif (King's Indian Motifs, The Sicilian, Nimzo-Indian, Attack on Uncastled King, ...Castled King, ...Opposite side castling, etc). This is clearly better than the more traditional "game #1", "game #2" format. There are many deep explanations of positions, especially critical ones in the games. This is not just a book of meaningless variations. Taimanov, of course, does give variations and lines, but they are not overwhelmingly long and Shirov-like. Also, Taimanov's humanity and humour were not lost in the translation, a nice touch!
Overall, an excellent book that I am very happy with.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A harmonious blend of games collection & instruction manual, May 4, 2011

By 

iman - See all my reviews

This review is from: Taimanov's Selected Games (Paperback)

This is a games collection from one of the top Soviet players & opening theoreticians. It stands out from most by avoiding the unimaginative chronological ordering followed by almost every other author. Instead Taimanov arranges them according to themes & motifs:

1. Games won... at Home (opening preparation)
2. Strategical concepts in opposition (monographs on the KID, Sicilian, Nimzo)
3. Storming the Royal Fortress (uncastled, castled, attack with reduced forces, counterattack)
4. By Technique Alone

I have heard the instructional value of games collections extolled many times; but this is the ONLY games collection I have ever seen that fulfills this promise. It is much easier to understand themes when they are presented along with their related variations - rather than at random. Why has no one else copied this structure? I would take issue with the classification 'for intermediate or low-end advanced players' - it would be valuable for anyone without a title, and for many with! One insight I'd never come across before -

"In positional play the accumulation of advantages usually proceeds via their transformation".

Complementing the structure is the clear concise writing style, somewhat similar to Capablanca's in his Chess Fundamentals. Unlike Capa, Taimanov conveys a range of emotions in his annotations that I have only seen from Tal & Bronstein. He writes engagingly of two games against Fischer, but ends by admitting that he does not want to probe deeper, because the memory provokes too much pain.

Overall the book manages to convey the authors theoretical insights, competitive record & emotional demons - you could not ask more.