Bøger af Jerzy Konikowski

Any player who prefers to rely on main lines will be well acquainted with the problem of the sheer masses of opening theory. And as they do not stop growing, there's always the risk that sooner or later they will grow over one's head.Therefore, the wish for a simpler approach is understandable. The wish for an opening that does not necessarily aim for the earliest possible advantage. The wish for general conditions which ensure that the beginning of the game can be carried out without great risks and that the actual combat action begins in the middle game.And, indeed, such an opening does exist - the so-called 'King's Indian Attack'. It offers a strategically interesting approach to the treatment of the opening which allows one to avoid all elaborate lines. In a simplified way one might call it: a lid that fits every pot. White initially only puts the king's pawn in the center. Then he turns it into a very solid central bridgehead and develops his forces in the spirit of the 'King's Indian Defence'. And what happens next depends on the defence that Black is going to choose.And far from being 'second-rate stuff', this opening must be taken very seriously. This becomes clear after a look at which top players have or had it in their repertoire. We only want to mention (representative of many others) the reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen and the former World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik right now. Hear about others in the book.

What does a chess player need who is familiar with the rules, but often gets into trouble right away in the opening? This question was the starting point for the authors before they began to compile their material. The result is a book that gives explanations to help the reader understand the Queen's Pawn Openings and instructions to show him how to use them.With this work, the reader gains access to systems that are very popular today, such as the Trompowsky Attack and the London System, or surprise weapons such as the Richter-Veresov Attack or the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, of which the latter has enjoyed a loyal following of fans for many decades and is therefore surrounded by a very special aura.The main systems are presented in 11 chapters, which are de- signed according to the guidelines of the series 'read - understand - play'. The openings are explained in detail, with the authors paying special attention to the presentation of the inherent ideas and plans to ensure that the reader understands them properly instead of just playing moves that he has learned by heart. Even the meaning and purpose of a single move may be explained, insofar as it is important for understanding.Based on the knowledge that the reader will surely acquire by studying this book, he will be able to use the discussed Queen's Pawn Openings with the white and the black pieces in an appropriate way. At the same time, the work offers one or the other new idea that can surprise even an experienced opponent and promises interesting, entertaining and - last but not least - successful chess games.

The Queenside Fianchetto Factor In the first full book to examine 2.b3 against the Sicilian, French and Caro-Kann, mainlines, interesting sidelines and current theory are reviewed. In addition, what actually happens in modern practice is surveyed. The authors are optimistic for White, and concentrate on the best continuations while trying to be objective. It is in that spirit that they conclude that 2.b3 is sound against the Sicilian, fun against the French, and curious against the Caro-Kann. In all three cases, the objective is to sabotage Black's play, to take him out of his comfort zone. The word "sabotage" has historically derived from throwing a clog into machinery, or in other words, throwing a monkey wrench in the works; here the wrench is a queenside fianchetto. White aims his light-square bishop toward the right flank; he typically delays Ng1-f3 so that he may play Qd1-f3 or advance his f-pawn, and use his light-square bishop to build a full-scale kingside attack. Queenside castling often occurs, hoping for a kingside pawn storm. Yet, despite all these characteristics of 2.b3, White may still retains the option of d2-d4 for a more conventional-looking 1.e4 opening. With 2.b3, you will have one more arrow in your theoretical quiver to battle Black. And, like it or not, Black will be compelled to do deal with the queenside fianchetto factor.

Since every world champion was the most outstanding player of his time, it makes sense to study the various aspects of the royal game using the world champions' games - and of course to enjoy them.In this first of two volumes on the world champions' art of combination, the authors (both recognized experts in the field of chess literature) offer the reader the opportunity of trying to find plenty of these best combinations themselves - and thus to assess and improve their own tactical skills.But that's not all. In addition to often breathtakingly spectacular sample games, which are thoroughly analyzed and commented on in a comprehensible way, individual pet topics are highlighted in which the world champions have created particularly outstanding works.So you are invited to take a closer look at how Steinitz handled the 'Steinitz King' - at Lasker's phenomenal art of defense and Capablanca's mastery of 'small combinations' (for which the French term 'petite combinaison' has become common in chess language).Furthermore, at Alekhine's dashing attacks, at Euwe's seventh sense for dynamic transformations, Botvinnik's tactical solutions to strategic problems, Smyslov's virtuosity even in tactical endgames and - last but not least - at Tal's downright magical tactical works of art with which he not only bewitched his opponents, but the entire chess world.Thanks to the QR-codes above the diagrams, you can download the position directly to your smartphone and watch or analyze the game, so that the laborious and error-prone input by hand is no longer necessary.Volume 1 contains 260 combinations and many fully annotated sample games.

Since the world chess champions excel in all areas of the game, it goes without saying that you can learn the most not only from their skills in the opening and the middlegame, but also from their superb handling of the endgame. Regardless of whether they were renowned tacticians or excellent positional players - regardless of whether they analyzed their openings in depth or played them more intuitively: it is completely out of the question that any of them could have reached the highest title without perfectly handling the endgame.In order to enable his readers to learn from the world champions, the author has concentrated on their individual 'specialities' - such as Petrosian's unmistakable instinct in questions of the right exchange and his skills in the endgame '¿+¿ vs ¿+¥', on Spassky's handling of the initiative, Fischer's precision in the so-called 'Fischer endgame' with '¿+¥ vs ¿+¿', on Karpov's dominance and restriction methods, Kasparov's attacks on the king with reduced material, Kramnik's strategic power play especially on a weakened color complex, on Anand's unrelenting pressure play and - last but not least - Carlsen's technique in the so-called 'Carlsen endgame' with rooks and same-colored bishops.In addition, all sorts of 'evergreen classics' of the players are offered, some of which appear in a new light thanks to current analyzes. The reader is also given the ideal training opportunity of numerous exercises to put himself in the shoes of the world champions and to look for solutions himself. Since the model of the '4 types of players' (activist, pragmatic, theorist and reflector) is also dis- cussed in the margin, additional information can be obtained about the impor- tance of this topic, especially in the endgame.And with this in mind, the Romanian GM and endgame expert Mihail Marin invites you in his foreword not just to take a look at the most outstanding end- game achievements of the world champions, but also to enjoy them.Volume 2 contains 292 combinations and many fully annotated sample games.

Each section of a chess game - opening, middlegame and endgame - has a special significance. In the case of a material or positional disadvantage at the beginning of the fight, it's not easy to master the middlegame, and mostly there will be no endgame at all. This means that without convincing play in the opening you will not be successful in chess.For this reason, opening books enjoy great popularity. However, since building an individual opening repertoire requires reviewing a lot of material, it makes sense to look for a time-saving approach like the one offered by this quick course.The author has tried to present all the important openings objectively and without paying particular attention to fashion trends. His work is based on the evaluation of a lot of games from tournament practice, supplemented by many of his own analyzes and those of well-known theorists. It can therefore be assumed that, after studying this book, readers will treat their preferred openings with greater understanding and will be rewarded with corresponding successes.The author, FIDE Master Jerzy Konikowski, is a recognized trainer and chess theorist. His numerous books and articles have been translated into several languages and published in many countries.

What does a chess player need who is familiar with the rules, but often gets into trouble right away in the opening? This question was the starting point for the authors before they began to compile their material. The result is a book that gives explanations to help the reader understand the 'Queen's Gambit' - and instructions to show him how to use it.And no matter if he is little or even completely unfamiliar with opening theory, this book gives him easy access to this difficult and comprehensive field. The ideas and plans behind each line are explained in detail to ensure that the reader understands them properly instead of just playing moves that he has learned by heart. Even the sense and purpose of single moves are ex- plained, if they are not quite obvious.Based on the knowledge that the reader will surely acquire by studying this book, it will be easy to build a game and play interesting, entertaining and - last but not least - successful chess.FM Jerzy Konikowski has published a large number of excellent opening books. Uwe Bekemann is a national master in correspondence chess. He is the author of books on gambits and the co-author of many others.

"Winning with 1.d4!" offers a complete repertoire for d4 players against all plausible responses. The recommendations were selected with the main goal of enabling the reader to leave out vast amounts of opening theory and to concentrate on a comprehensible number of lines that promise some initiative and active play and often even an opening advantage.Here is what you can expect from "Winning with 1.d4!".- Well chosen promising opening systems from the abundance of theory- Easily understandable presentation and thorough discussion of ideas and plans- Novelties and other discoveries from current tournaments, both in classical and in correspondence chess- Annotated games for your practical trainingFM Jerzy Konikowski has published a large number of excellent opening books.Uwe Bekemann is a national master in correspondence chess and has published several books on gambits.

What does a chess player need who is familiar with the rules, but often gets into trouble right away in the opening? This question was the starting point for the authors before they began to compile their material. The result is a book (the first of a small series) that gives explanations to help the reader understand the openings that arise after the initial moves 1.e4 e5 (e.g. such renowned and important openings as the 'Ruy Lopez', the 'Four Knights Game' or the 'King's Gambit') - and instructions to show him how to use them.And no matter if he is little or even completely unfamiliar with opening theory, this book gives him easy access to this difficult and comprehensive field. The ideas and plans behind each opening are explained in detail to ensure that the reader understands them properly instead of just playing moves that he has learned by heart. Even the sense and purpose of single moves are explained, if they are not quite obvious.Based on the knowledge that the reader will surely acquire by studying this book, it will be easy to build a game and play interesting, entertaining and - last but not least - successful chess.