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László Polgár
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Chess: 5334 Problems, Combinations and Games Paperback – Illustrated, August 13, 2013

by László Polgár (Author), Bruce Pandolfini (Introduction)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 1,658 ratings
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Win at chess with practical instruction from one of the world's leading teachers! With clever tactics and strategies for more than 5000 situations and clear diagrams, Chess is for the enthusiastic novice as well as the competitor taking the game to the next level.

Chess takes you through more than 5,000 unique instructional situations, many taken from actual matches, including 306 problems for checkmate in one move, 3,412 mates in two moves, 744 mates in three moves, 144 simple endgames, and 128 tournament game combinations. Organized by problem type, each combination, or game is keyed to an easy-to-follow solution at the back of the book.. More than 6,000 illustrations make it easy to see the possibilities regardless of where your pieces are on the board. The book also includes the basic rules of the game and an international bibliography. Chess is the ultimate book on winning the game.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    1104 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Black Dog & Leventhal
  4. Publication date
    August 13, 2013
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 2.5 x 9.13 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1579125549
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1579125547
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Bruce Pandolfini is perhaps the most experienced chess teacher in North America. He is the author of eighteen instructional chess books, and was portrayed by Ben Kingsley in the film Searching for Bobby Fischer.

László Polgáris a Hungarian chess teacher whose writing and strategies are respected and known worldwide. He holds the title of master coach and coached his daughters, Susan, Judit, and Sophia, to several world championships and Olympic gold medals. They host the annual Global Chess Festival in Budapest.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Black Dog & Leventhal; Illustrated edition (August 13, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 1104 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1579125549
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1579125547
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.46 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 2.5 x 9.13 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 1,658 ratings

About the author

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László Polgár

László Polgár

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
1,658 global ratings
The Most Comprehensive, Easy-To-Understand Book on Checkmate!
5 Stars
The Most Comprehensive, Easy-To-Understand Book on Checkmate!
I'm blown away by the sheer, immense volume of knowledge shared with us in this incredible teaching book! It's truly a magnificent demonstration of one man's passion to contribute all he can to the world of chess. The incredible results achieved by his three daughters after having learned these 5334 problems, combinations & games is amazing! Thank you!
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Top reviews from the United States

kes
5.0 out of 5 stars A Tremendous Resource
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is a great book. With even the most introductory material on how each piece moves, you can literally start at the very beginning. Other reviewers will tell you all about the mate in one, mate in two, mate in three sections, and about the endgame studies, the combinations, and the game miniatures. Enough material for many years study.

If you love chess, and desire greater insight into how the pieces work together, then this book is a tremendous resource.

Of course, tournament players will want to know if this book is suitable for their rating level, and if it will increase their tournament results. One reviewer has said that if you're over 1300 Elo, then the book is a waste of money. Let me strongly disagree. I know of one Grandmaster who claims that this book was a significant part in their training and who also continues to solve (and re-solve) the problems daily. My own rating is 1600 USCF and I find the material very helpful in gaining greater insight and skill.

Highly recommended.
7 people found this helpful
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Husky and aidy
5.0 out of 5 stars Abundance of games
Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2024
Verified Purchase
This book is filled with an enormous amount of chess games there are 6 games for each page, if your eyesight is weak then it could get overwhelming but it's an amazing book worth buying
2 people found this helpful
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Dr. T
5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible value for the money
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2024
Verified Purchase
I kept looking for books i could read to get better until i finally accepted what everyone said: at the early levels the beat bang for your buck is doing a bunch of tactics. And man, over 5k puzzles for 20 bucks?! Every chess website or service wants to charge at least 15 bucks a month. This’ll be like two or three years worth of content for me. Incredible.
3 people found this helpful
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CFL
5.0 out of 5 stars I love to try the check mate in 2
Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2024
Verified Purchase
I love the many options it has to set up your board to check mate in 1,2,3. My 7 year old son loves it too.
2 people found this helpful
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Keith Allan
4.0 out of 5 stars very good
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2024
Verified Purchase
Found the book itself very cumbersome but the puzzles did stretch my mind and were very enjoyable
2 people found this helpful
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Also_was_There
5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Puzzle Book & Some Advice
Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2023
Verified Purchase
I just recieved my 2nd copy of this famous chess tome: the first was falling apart after 3 1/2 years. But not from poor quality but from daily use over the last 12 months or so. It's a classic; the story goes that Lazlo put together this book based on the exercises he gave to his 3 daughters, all of whom hold master's titles. My advice is this: 1. He gives only white's 1st move as the answer, not all the moves as most other books do. 2. Some, not a lot, of the puzzles have more than one correct answer; at least in the Mate-in-2s as I've yet to get to the later ones. So check your answers closely, you both may be right. FWIW, Reddit seems to confirm this too. 3. They begin to get tougher around the #1470 and up level. There are so many problems that, especially if you are a novice, you should expect to hit several plateaus on the way; just step away for a day or two and re-try. You will improve and really none of them would stump a real expert. Hang in there! 4. Here's a clue for you: once you get above about #1500 you will hit a string of literally 100's of problems where giving a check on your 1st move is rarely, rarely correct. Almost any combination involving a check on move 1 can be discarded up front in favor of calculating other lines first. 5. Finally, many combinations involve a lone black king who would be in stalemate if black moved first; your job as white is to first release the mating net, allow black a move, then close the trap on move two. Good luck!
16 people found this helpful
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C. carnes
5.0 out of 5 stars Chess Pattern recognition Masterpiece
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2018
Verified Purchase
When I was learning to play jazz guitar I struggled for years to figure out how to play at really fast tempos until I learned the secret of memorizing 3 and 4 note 'motives' that I had so well memorized that I could play them with out thinking. Think of this book as 5334 chess 'motives'. These are the 'guitar licks' of chess. Play them over and over and over until you don't even have to think when you see them. They become automatic. Then when your clock is ticking you won't miss that 3 move checkmate that you only had 60 seconds to find. It does no good at all to build up a winning position if you cannot finish off your opponent quickly and efficiently. There are plenty of sites on the internet where you can practice tactics. They will NOT do what this book does, which is systematically train your eyes to recognize the patterns of trapping and killing an opponent's King. The ONLY problem with this book is it is BIG and the diagrams are rather small... But, hey! That is because it is a treasure trove. One hour a day every day with this book and your chess 'eyes' will improve without fail. After working on this book for weeks the one unexpected takeaway is that the beauty of these puzzles eventually turns working on tactics from a drudgery into something inspiring and fascinating. I never quite appreciated the aesthetics of chess as much as I do now after being shocked and awed by the beauty of something as seemingly simple as a mate in two.
143 people found this helpful
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Naqib Mashrur
5.0 out of 5 stars Great gift for people interested in chess. A good way to get started with chess with a book
Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2023
Verified Purchase
Great book for someone interested in chess and solving puzzles. A lot of the puzzles are kind of repetitive though. I think you are meant to solve dozens of puzzles at a time. I solve like 30 in each sitting. If you are looking for a rate of one puzzle a day, this might not be it.
There's also a collection of played game states at the end of the book. That was insightful too. Overall I found this puzzle solving approach a quick and enjoyable way to figure out some basic strategies and tactics.
4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Hugo de Moraes Santos
5.0 out of 5 stars DEVE ESTAR NA SUA ESTANTE!
Reviewed in Brazil on February 20, 2024
Verified Purchase
Se me perguntassem qual o único livro que eu poderia ter, com certeza seria esse TIJOLO!

Acredito que ele deva estar na estante de todo enxadrista, independente do nível, pelo seguinte:

1) Ele ensina o jogo do básico. Sim, são pouquíssimas páginas, mas mostra TUDO o que um novato precisa saber - nome das casas, peças, como andam, movimentos especiais (roque, en passant), promoção, enfim. Pra quem já sabe pode pular, mas pra quem quer aprender... tá aí.

2) Existe uma infinidade de diagramas de mate em 1, mate em 2, mate em 3 que são excelentes pro treino de tática e visão posicional. Os diagramas de mate em 1 são resolvíveis rapidinho e sem montar no tabuleiro. Mate em 2 também, salvo por alguns que talvez precise. Mate em 3 é um meio termo - uns são bem tranquilos e outros exigem sentar, por a posição no tabuleiro e dar uma fritadinha na cabeça.

3) Existem várias miniaturas (partidas rápidas com até 25 lances) com combinações maravilhosas, cheias de temas táticos e golpes, onde nos mostra como o preto ou o branco fica com vantagem (em algumas chega até o xeque-mate).

4) Vários diagramas de finais (o que é importantíssimo, principalmente pro nível básico-intermediário.

5) As soluções são bem explicadas, e em notação algébrica.

Por ser um livro tão completo, é que ele tem um lugar especial na minha estante, e é tão recomendado por mim. A entrega da Amazon demorou bastante (quase um mês!), mas valeu a pena.
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Hugo de Moraes Santos
5.0 out of 5 stars DEVE ESTAR NA SUA ESTANTE!
Reviewed in Brazil on February 20, 2024
Se me perguntassem qual o único livro que eu poderia ter, com certeza seria esse TIJOLO!

Acredito que ele deva estar na estante de todo enxadrista, independente do nível, pelo seguinte:

1) Ele ensina o jogo do básico. Sim, são pouquíssimas páginas, mas mostra TUDO o que um novato precisa saber - nome das casas, peças, como andam, movimentos especiais (roque, en passant), promoção, enfim. Pra quem já sabe pode pular, mas pra quem quer aprender... tá aí.

2) Existe uma infinidade de diagramas de mate em 1, mate em 2, mate em 3 que são excelentes pro treino de tática e visão posicional. Os diagramas de mate em 1 são resolvíveis rapidinho e sem montar no tabuleiro. Mate em 2 também, salvo por alguns que talvez precise. Mate em 3 é um meio termo - uns são bem tranquilos e outros exigem sentar, por a posição no tabuleiro e dar uma fritadinha na cabeça.

3) Existem várias miniaturas (partidas rápidas com até 25 lances) com combinações maravilhosas, cheias de temas táticos e golpes, onde nos mostra como o preto ou o branco fica com vantagem (em algumas chega até o xeque-mate).

4) Vários diagramas de finais (o que é importantíssimo, principalmente pro nível básico-intermediário.

5) As soluções são bem explicadas, e em notação algébrica.

Por ser um livro tão completo, é que ele tem um lugar especial na minha estante, e é tão recomendado por mim. A entrega da Amazon demorou bastante (quase um mês!), mas valeu a pena.
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Matt
5.0 out of 5 stars Lots of puzzles, good variety
Reviewed in Canada on December 2, 2023
Verified Purchase
Covers lots of material from beginner to advance. Don’t pass up on this book.
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Rosa E. A.
5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente
Reviewed in Mexico on November 21, 2021
Verified Purchase
Es un libro sencillo de pasta blanda, creo que por ser casi 500 hojas requiere manejarlo concuidado, o almenos esa precaucion tendría yo. Fue un regalo para mi papá y le encantó.
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Rénato
5.0 out of 5 stars Livre culte
Reviewed in France on May 29, 2023
Verified Purchase
Livre culte très imposant du joueur d'échecs amateur livré rapidement merci Amazon. Maintenant il va falloir que je trouve le temps pour m'y consacrer.
One person found this helpful
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ADOLFO CATRAL
5.0 out of 5 stars Indispensable para empezar en el Ajedrez!!!
Reviewed in Spain on August 9, 2021
Verified Purchase
Un buen conjunto de ejercicios... al finalizar serás muy buen jugador
2 people found this helpful
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