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Chess Endings: Essential Knowledge Paperback – Illustrated, July 1, 1993

by Yuri Averbakh (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 57 ratings
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By concentrating on the basic principles the average player is not only given a working knowledge of the endgame but also a firm foundation on which to further develop his or her interest and technique in this fascinating stage of a chess game.

The author, a Russian Grandmaster and endgame expert, takes the reader from the most elementary checkmates, through the exploitation of positional and material advantage, right up to the analysis of actual endings from master play.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    116 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Everyman Chess
  4. Publication date
    July 1, 1993
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1857440226
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1857440225
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

By concentrating on the basic principles the average player is not only given a working knowledge of the endgame but also a firm foundation on which to further develop his or her interest and technique in this fascinating stage of a chess game. The author, a Russian Grandmaster and endgame expert, takes the reader from the most elementary checkmates, through the exploitation of positional and material advantage, right up to the analysis of actual endings from master play. (5 3/4 x 8 1/4, 116 pages, illustrations)

About the Author

Yuri Averbakh was one of the leading Soviet grandmasters for two decades, competing in the USSR Championship 15 times between 1949 and 1969. He finished in an extremely respectable 10th place in the famous Zurich Candidates' tournament of 1953. His previous books for Cadogan include Chess Endings: Essential Knowledge and Chess Middlegames: Essential Knowledge and the monumental five-volume series Comprehensive Chess Endings.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Everyman Chess; 3rd edition (July 1, 1993)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 116 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1857440226
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1857440225
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 57 ratings

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
57 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Edson Bastos
5.0 out of 5 stars Must have book
Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2008
Verified Purchase
I have played chess for more than 20 years but never had the chance (or the willingness) to read a chess book. I play very well for a amateur, but I started to get serious and join some tournaments. I won some games from players around FIDE 1800-1900, but I also lost many others, since I lack the fundamentals and tournament experience. So, my chess professor, said that I should start my chess education with endings and tactics. This was my first chess book that I have ever read in my life, and I found it amazing. After studying carefully all the diagrams I asked myself why I haven't studied this book before, I would have benefit from it so much. I have just to agree with a comment that I read that the author approaches rook vs queen endings in the begnning of the book, which is quite difficult and took me many hours of practice to get used with the position and the many variations possible. I have also checked the positions with Nalimov tables, and practicaly the book has no mistakes. I have also like the author's approach for pawn endings using the key squares theory. My chess professor's book, called "The Final Countdown", and the Fundamental Chess Endings from K. Muller, both also used this modern approach. In the overall this is a must have book.
18 people found this helpful
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Jack Woehr
5.0 out of 5 stars Read this first if you are a beginner
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2014
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This is the best modern short introduction to the Chess endgames I have found, have shared it with my students.
7 people found this helpful
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Clark R Goldentyer
4.0 out of 5 stars Very complete, sometimes hard to follow without a board ...
Reviewed in the United States on July 7, 2015
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Very complete, sometimes hard to follow without a board in front of you. Though I'm only a 17-1800 level player.
4 people found this helpful
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AJS
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended.
Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2014
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An update in algebraic notation to a modern classic. Highly recommended.
6 people found this helpful
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A.W.Alo
3.0 out of 5 stars for the medium rated player
Reviewed in the United States on July 1, 2020
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For the medium rated player..just curious what older books look like.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2016
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great endgame book received it fast!!!
One person found this helpful
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Matthew T. Deluca
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfectly sized booklet on the endgame
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2006
This book attempts to provide a foundation of endgame information for the beginning chess student. After an introduction and a brief discussion about the scope of each piece the book presents five chapters meant to introduce the reader to the basics of endgames. Since there is no "Search Inside" option for this book the table of contents is reproduced here:

1 - MATING THE LONE KING

Mate with a Queen

Mate with a Rook

Mate with Two Bishops

Mate with Bishop and Knight

Mate with Two Knights

2 - VARIOUS PIECES IN COMBAT

Queen versus Rook

Queen versus Minor Piece

Rook versus Knight

Rook versus Bishop

3 - VARIOUS PIECES IN COMBAT WITH A PAWN

Queen versus Pawn

Rook versus Pawn

Minor Piece versus Pawn

4 - QUEENING A PAWN

King and Pawn versus King

King, Minor Piece and Pawn versus King

Knight and Pawn versus Knight

Bishop and Pawn versus Bishop

Bishop and Pawn versus Knight

Knight and Pawn versus Bishop

Rook and Pawn versus Rook

Queen and Pawn versus Queen

5 - PRACTICAL ENDINGS

Pawn Endings

Knight Endings

Bishop Endings

Bishops of the Same Colour

Bishops of Opposite Colours

Endings with Bishop versus Knight

Rook Endings

Queen Endings

One of the best things about this book is that it is the perfect size for digestion in just a few study sessions. For those starting with little or no endgame knowledge this means that at least a basic understanding of endgame concepts is attainable in a reasonably short period of time.

If you are inexperienced with endings, the information in this book is sure to not only increase your confidence at the chessboard but also provide a nice bridge to other more advanced endgame books. After studying this book one could move on to Seirawan's "Winning Chess Endings", which is still aimed at the beginner but contains slightly more in-depth information, or the superb "Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual" by Dvoretsky, which is more suited for the advance player.
37 people found this helpful
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M. Gabrielson
5.0 out of 5 stars No complaints, here.
Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2007
I refrained from writing a review for this book until I finished it (just two days ago). I am now undecided as to whether I should move on to another book, or simply go through it again! I thoroughly enjoyed reading/playing through this book, and I shall explain why.

This book is small, indeed. However, I should emphasize that it is extremely *dense*. This book has no anecdotes, no analogies, and few sentences that do not directly relate to the discussion of a given endgame position. Some may not like this, but that is fine for them; they are going to miss out on a good book. After reading such an informative book such as this, one can only wish, as I did, that Mr. Averbakh had written more. This, however, would be contrary to his goal of creating a book of "essentinal" knowledge taken from his vast amounts of endgame material. Indeed, along with Alexander Kotov and another gentleman, Mr. Averbakh originally wrote a book titled Shakhmatnye Okonchaniya, available from Amazon as  Shakhmatnaya shkola , it seems.

This book is also very compelling with its examples, especially to a beginner such as myself. In fact, I think I developed a certain fascination for the endgame after reading this book. I eagerly anticipate working on endgame puzzles and reading/playing through more volumes on the endgame, which brings me to my next point.

Realistically, I do not think that there is any need to move on to another book! As Mark Dvoretsky advises (and I am sure others do, as well) that one should know relatively few endgame positions, but understand them totally and to be able to execute them expertly. In this manner, and as a beginner, I could follow this advice and stick to this book for some time and not suffer from a lack of endgame knowledge.

Through a small part of the beginning, I played through the varations on my chess board, but after a bit I skipped them in favor of merely acquainting myself with the positions and ideas, since this was my first undertaking of actual endgame theory. (I caught a glimmer of it in various parts of Chessmaster 9000, but nothing as serious as what is in this book.)

From my estimation, all one would need for endgame theory is this book and one more advanced or exhastive book for later study. Highly recommended.
19 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Andre Luis F. Santos
5.0 out of 5 stars Great introductory book
Reviewed in Brazil on June 5, 2022
Verified Purchase
I really liked this book. Well written, content covers nearly everythink a club player/non professsional needs to know about endings.
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Susie
5.0 out of 5 stars Good condition of book .
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 21, 2019
Verified Purchase
Just the book I wanted.
One person found this helpful
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匿名
5.0 out of 5 stars コンパクトなエッセンス‼
Reviewed in Japan on March 11, 2019
Verified Purchase
私はエンドゲームの本を読むのが初めてで、この本が自分に適しているのか(適切な難易度なのか)実際に読んでみるまで不安でした。しかし、この本を手に入れて読み進めていくと最初の本として選んで正解だったと思いました。というのも、この本には多すぎないページ(100ページほど)の内に、エンドゲームのエッセンスが丁寧な解説とともにまとめられていたからです。
私は本書がエンドゲームを初めて学ぶ初心者の方から、エンドゲームの知識をリフレッシュしたい中級者の方まで多くの方に役立つとおすすめします。
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Jonathan Turcotte
4.0 out of 5 stars good book
Reviewed in Canada on September 25, 2014
Verified Purchase
I prefer Silman endgame course. But still Very good for player u1800. I knew most of the examples from others training tools.
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Frank Vermeulen
5.0 out of 5 stars Essential endgame studies
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 18, 2013
Verified Purchase
This is one of the endgame books that was required for my endgame studies. I am training with a professional chess coach now, and this was one of the required books.
4 people found this helpful
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