Chess Strategy for Kids

Stoff om strategi og planlegging for ferske sjakkspillere er en utfordring. Denne nye boka gir begrepene og praktiske eksempler med mange gode observasjoner. Merk at den som så ofte ikke er spesielt for barn.

Boka har 50 ulike temaer og noen øvingsoppgaver til slutt. Det litt skuffende blant alt dette gode materialet er at forfatteren vanligvis glemmer å gi åpningstrekkene fra start som fører fram til de aktuelle stillingene, som hadde vært et naturlig og stort pluss i mange av tilfellene.

Som instruktører i kurs vil vi ofte kunne få med dette selv, mens den enkelte leseren kan føle seg mer i ingenmannsland, i verste fall, i forhold til hvordan disse stillingene = temaene ofteste oppstår.

Det er en solid innbundet bok. I praksis mest egnet for spillere med "antatt ratingstyrke" cirka 700 - 1200, men noe av stoffet vil være nyttig også for spillere helt opp til rating cirka 1600. Merk at vi alltid forsøker å forholde oss til rating i Norges Sjakkforbund, eventuelt FIDE, og at tallene ofte kan være forvirrende mye høyere på endel nettspillesteder.

Forlagets egen omtale:

So you have learned how to play chess, studied tactics and know some basic endgames and openings. What’s next?

The glue that binds it all together is strategy. By forming a good plan, chess-players seize strong points on the board and target the opponent’s weaknesses. Experienced player and teacher Thomas Engqvist shows that it all depends on logic that can be grasped by players of any age. He explains how to identify the right strategy in a wide range of typical situations. With his guidance, you will soon be finding good plans on your own – and then it will be time to demonstrate your tactical mastery!

He first teaches the importance of the central squares and the basics of pawn-play, before examining the role of each of the pieces and how they are affected by the pawn-structure. Finally we see how to use them together to launch attacks of many different types. You then get a chance to test your new strategic skills in 54 exercises, all with full solutions.

Chess Strategy for Kids provides a complete course that will help readers understand the potential of their pieces and play more purposefully in their games. Chess will stop feeling like a series of random events as you take command of your forces and direct them like a general in charge of an army.

Thomas Engqvist is an International Master from Sweden with more than three decades’ experience of international chess. He is a successful chess trainer and has also made notable contributions to chess theory. Engqvist is editor of the website schacksnack.se and teaches at a school in the Stockholm area.