Afek Yochanan Livres

Solving studies is well established as an effective method of chess improvement. In Practical Chess Beauty one of the world's greatest study composers, Yochanan Afek, shares his finest creations.Fire your imagination, gain a greater appreciation of chess geometry, and develop a finer feeling for the pieces' potential by trying to find the ideas hidden in the hundreds of studies in this book. Or simply wonder at some of the most stunning chess moves ever conceived. From the Foreword by GM Emil Sutovsky: "The book you hold is full of energy; it is fresh and evidently written with a lot of love and passion for the game. Yochanan visibly enjoys sharing his knowledge and readily invites us into his magical world."

This book features both composed studies and real-game positions present on the board. We can focus purely on the key ideas, which makes them an ideal learning tool. As one of the world's greatest experts on chess composition, Yochanan Afek is the perfect man to select the best studies for this purpose. In over-the-board chess (in which Afek is also highly accomplished), the tactical ideas tend to be less complex, but they may prove harder to identify - unless they are already familiar to you. Afek provides a case in point in his introduction, where the stunning final move of those familiar with an earlier example. All the real-game positions in this book are taken from games by world champions (male and female). Following the structure of John Nunn's best-selling Learn Chess Tactics, in each chapter a theme is introduced and a number of examples are explained. Then the reader immediately gets to use this knowledge in a series of carefully selected exercises. -- back cover

The Royal Chess Couple in Action introduces the dominant leadership of the royal game. The King is its most significant piece while the Queen is its mightiest one. Following a brief historical overview the reader is met with the wealth of tactical abilities characterizing the main heroes, their strengths and weaknesses in attack and defence, while acting on their own or collaborating with other pieces. The authors, both are experienced players and tutors, offer to the improving player a selection of almost 500 instructive positions he may choose to use for training, just as fun read...or both!