Closed Sicilian (Paperback)

~ Daniel King (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The Closed Sicilian has always been a great favorite with chess club and tournament players. Here, Grand Master Daniel King explains the strategy and tactics of this dynamic opening variation, using model games for both sides to illustrate the important ideas. Armed with this book, readers will have everything they need to know to play the opening with either White or Black.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Chess Press (September 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1901259064
• ISBN-13: 978-1901259063
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,104,081 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars CLOSED SICILIAN, NICELY DONE, November 24, 1999

By	"jfbtaylor" (Santa Fe, New Mexico) - See all my reviews

The Closed Sicilian variation (1 e4 c5 2 Nc3 Nc6 g3) is presented with alternate move orders. Part One covers the main line ( 1 e4 c5 2 Nc3 Nc6 3 g3 g6 4 Bg2 Bg7 5 d3 d6 6 f4 e6 7 Nf3 Nge7 8 0-0 0-0). 9th move alternatives are presented in three chapters. Part Two gives sixth move alternatives for white. Part Three involves early deviations - when black plays ...e7-e6 and ...d7-d5. One chapter covers 1 e4 c5 2 g3 for white. Each book chapter ends with a verbal summary and move order summary, along with associated games. 100+ Grandmaster games are used to illustrate the chapter ideas. The games' opening moves are thoughtfully annotated, although lower-rated players (like myself, 1950 USCF) will really have to dig to find "thematic" ideas on their own. This book is a Chess Press Opening Guide book, part of their opening series. So, if you own one of their other books, you will know the format. The author, Daniel King, is an English Grandmaster.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical And Relevant: Well-Presented, November 1, 1999

By A Customer

Any 1.e4 player needs to know something about that irritatingly common reply 1...c5. Why not learn the Sicilians with a variation they may not have wanted to play? GM King presents the Closed Sicilian in a clear, straight-forward manner that allows one to quickly feel confident about employing the opening's ideas. I'm only rated 2012 so I can't comment on whether or not Grandmaster King's analysis is sound at the world champion or grandmaster level (and neither, I think, can most of those who attack an opening they don't care for), but at the level that thousands of us play, this is a book that will be invaluable. Having played Open Sicilians against booked-up players, I like knowing we don't have to play their favorite variation. Bring it on!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This book covers many different Closed Sicilian lines, December 15, 1999

By	Robert H. Nunnally Jr. "gurdonark" (Allen, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Everyone who plays 1. e4 but does not enjoy the white side of the open Sicilians searches out alternatives to play such as the Grand Prix Attack, the c3, or the Closed Sicilian. Each system has its own strengths, and drawbacks, and the problem with playing the Closed Sicilian is that while white has a fairly clear plan, black's plan in the main lines is also fairly straightforward. This book is quite helpful, because it goes beyond "what is the main idea" into "how will one actually play a game against best play". The problem with coverage of the Closed Sicilian in most works is that the author tends to give a line or two against each of the major black systems, but little analysis is done of multiple white alternative lines. King's book excels in going further than the usual Closed Sicilian book, by offering detailed chapters on move 6 alternatives for white other than the "main line". I like that, in addition to playing the "main line for white" set forth, King also shows how to play less favored lines which nonetheless offer white the chance to maintain initiative with somewhat quieter play. The text is based on playing through games in the variations, but unlike some books, King does not just throw a game at us as if to say "so there", but rather provides detailed thematic commentary. I am a lesser player of low 1700s USCF, and I found the commentary entirely useful. I am not sure it would be as useful for, say a 1300, but I still recommend this book to any player who wants a system against the Sicilian but has never been able to get the bang from the Closed Sicilian that, say, Spassky did <g>.