Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #210969 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-15
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Customer Reviews

Excellent introduction to tactics
As a USCF 1790-rated player, i bought this book for a quick tactics refresher. I read the book, solving all the puzzles in a few days (while noting major errors on examples 2-70 [1...Kh3] and 2-120 [1.Ne4#]) The #1 greatest tactics primer is still the immensely enjoyable book, Winning Chess: How To See Three Moves Ahead. This book by Heisman not as enjoyable, but a bit easier and therefore perhaps an even better starting point than "Winning Chess". Also worthy is Chess Tactics (Batsford Chess Book).

Especially valuable for the improving player are Heisman's early sections on "counting" and piece safety, because proper evaluation of a tactic is impossible without accurately tallying the "body count" of a series of exchanges. (while being mindful of any "zwischenzug", of course!) The only other book that competently covers "counting" ideas is the VASTLY underrated Lasker's Manual of Chess, though Lasker labels the idea something else that escapes me at the moment.

Make no mistake, B2B:T is about how to win material. There were times when i would think twice about snagging a certain pawn because i imagined it would grant the opponent some sort of extra piece activity (counterplay), but on checking the answer i saw that Heisman's comment was only, "wins a pawn." That is probably well enough, as the book's intended audience is usually afraid of phantom threats when they ought to simply win the material, and usually in a game i'd probably end up taking the pawn anyway. There is a short section on checkmates, but it is insufficient in itself. You will NEED The Art of the Checkmate and (secondarily) How to Beat Your Dad at Chess (Gambit Chess) to complete your basic study of checkmates.

This book is full of practical pointers and wisdom, many of which go a long way toward instilling objectivity in a player rather than emotions like hope, fear, greed, overconfidence which invariably spell poor results at *any* level.

This is a solid & worthy 4-star book for its stated audience (under 1500). Higher-rated players can read it with very little time investment (while unfortunately paying the same purchase price), so the book can benefit a wide range of players.

Very Clear and Logical
I was familiar with Dan Heisman's articles on a popular website, but this is the first book of his that I've come across. Like his articles, it is intended for chess players from beginner to average club level. Also like his articles, it is characterized by clear and logical writing, with well chosen content reflecting his vast experience as a chess teacher. One of the things that separate this book from other tactical books is that it covers what Heisman calls the Counting tactic. This refers to positions where a piece is attacked and defended a number of times, and the player must count whether a sequence of captures leads to a net material gain. It also covers the possibility that the defense is inadequate due to defending pieces being more valuable than the capturing pieces. For a lot of the kids I coach, this is one of the main tactical issues they face in every game.

Execellent introductory book.
My rating is just above 1000 and this book has perfectly organized presentation on the common tactical techniques that I need to improve my mid-game. It may be too basic for 1500-rated players, but for me it is the best chess book I have ever read.