Winning Chess Explained

A Gambit Classic Reissue: How chess games are won and lost in practiceZenon Franco has regularly annotated top-level games for more than a quarter of a century. He has drawn upon this vast experience to present 50 hugely instructive games illustrating a wide variety of chess ideas, reinforced by 13 supplementary games and 45 exercises.Key themes are illustrated by several games, so that we gain a well-rounded appreciation of the relevant ideas, and develop foresight that will enable us to make the right decisions at the board by anticipating problems before they arise.Topics include:Pawn SacrificeExchange SacrificeThe Art of ManoeuvringThe Second WeaknessPermanent vs Temporary AdvantagesRegroupingThe King’s Destiny‘Strange’ ExchangesDenying the Opponent SquaresThe Central BreakthroughZenon Franco is a grandmaster from Paraguay who now lives in Spain. He is an experienced chess trainer, his most notable pupil being Francisco Vallejo Pons, now one of the world’s top grandmasters, whom he taught from 1995 to 1999.“An emphasis is placed on explaining positional aspects and providing strategic commentary, with an occasional foray into tactical situations, in a manner that is accessible to amateurs. Furthermore, each chapter ends with a number of exercises of varying difficulty designed to reinforce the relevant points.” - Mark Donlan, Chess Horizons“Franco manages to develop the relevant ideas in each section from game to game, with each game showing a different or more sophisticated version of the various shared features. ... the author must have spent a long time finding ones that served such a purpose. ... What makes the book stand out most is the clarity of Franco’s annotations” - IM John Watson, The Week in Chess“This book will serve well as a training tool for students, trainers and amateurs alike. It is also simply a good read. There are many topics covering a variety of aspects of the game. The translation is very clear and good, and I think we will be seeing more books by Franco in the future. Excellent!” - Akram Shehata, ChessCafe“The games are well-chosen to illustrate the theme under discussion, and the author sticks to his task without being distracted by tempting side-lines. I shall be dipping into it for some time to come.” - Alan Sutton, En Passant“made unique by the the exceptional quality Franco has put in to explain the ideas and characteristics of the position and how it should be played, as well as the excellent instruction found in the exercises following each chapter. Altogether a very instructive book and one I highly recommend!” - Andy May, nsgchess“The 45 training exercises come with detailed explanations that make this two books in one.” - IM John Donaldson (USA Team Captain) Read more