Hunting for Checkmates
If you are a competitive chess player who is just getting started, this book will help you develop your ability to spot checkmating opportunities while in the heat of battle. There are over 400 unique high quality color diagrams providing clues and explanations for 138 checkmate problems. With the new formatting and the additional checkmate problems including a new Mate in Three section, it seems like a different and totally new book.
Working through this problem set will help the aspiring chess player develop pattern recognition skills while under pressure during competitive play. In over ten years as a chess coach I have found no better way to develop this skill than the methods used in this book.
Also included is a repeat of the checkmate problems in isolation from the answers. This section is designed for timed exercises where the students work to perfect their score, improve their time and practice writing down the moves. These are all essential skills for scholastic tournament play.
In the back of the book you will find a section called More Checkmates. In this section you will be offered an opportunity to join our e-mail list. This e-mail list will provide exclusive access to additional checkmate problems. Also as a member of the list you will receive advanced notice of upcoming books and discounts on those books.
I would like to point out that the book format is superior to chess playing software in one respect. The pages of a book are static, you can not move the chess pieces around. This will help discipline you to use your mind - not your hands. This is one more essential skill that must be mastered for successful scholastic tournament play.
Please note this book looks fantastic on a Kindle Fire and Kindle for PC. What you see here on the web site does not do it justice. I also tested the book on Kindle for Android - it looks good there also. You can try a sample of this book for free. See the section in the upper right portion of this page called “Try it free”. Also, if you buy the book and it is not to your liking, you can get Amazon to return 100% of your money within 7 days of your purchase.
The chess diagrams are designed to be aesthetically pleasing and to provide focus to the chess pieces and board markup. The color patterns of the chessboards mimic that of leather in order to make it easy on your eyes. On a Kindle Fire HDX you should be able to view the board positions for hours without eye fatigue.
With broadband, the download time is only a few seconds.
The book is best suited for USCF Class G - Class F players. There will be exceptions and they are all welcome. I personally think anyone who loves chess will enjoy working through this book.
Help Us Take Chess to the World
About 11 years ago, I decided to become a professional chess coach with the idea that teaching others would help me improve my game. It has of course, but it’s done much more than that. In fact it has been a very rewarding experience. I have had some great students. I have developed meaningful relationships with parents, teachers and fellow coaches. I have worked with chess students from four years old to nearly one hundred. I have donated my time to work with the poor, our veterans and a few students who suffer from brain damage. All these experiences have enriched my life and given me many keen insights about the learning process.
In the last ten years I have developed a system that has helped my students increase their USCF rating by more than a thousand points in approximately one year, while spending as little as one hour per week with them. This is an amazing result. Former Women's World Chess Champion, Susan Polgar, has achieved a similar result with her son, but I would guess that she spent more than an hour a week on it.
The method I use is a simple one. It is based on the saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. In fact I would say that a well constructed image with the addition of just a few words is the ideal.
Help us share this wonderful game with those who do not have access to a coach, a book, or a board.
Checkmates in Two
In order to be a successful chess player, you must master the art of checkmate. A good place to start toward that mastery, is through books like this one where you gain experience spotting common checkmate patterns that can occur in actual games.
Most checkmates are not brilliant examples requiring the sacrifice of material. Most are just ordinary easy to understand combinations that should require little or no thought to spot and then execute. The problem of spotting them in the heat of battle can be reduced substantially through the type of training that this book and the other books in this series provides. This type of training helps new chess players develop their board vision, so they can clearly see what is happening on the chess board.
In Checkmates in Two, there are 111 checkmate problems for you to solve with a total of 163 solutions. The books use a training method that Ron has developed and applied to his students. Some of his students have advanced about 1,000 USCF rating points in one year using this method.
Chess Openings for White, Explained
“A must for every chess player!”―Anatoly Karpov, 12th World Chess Champion
Every chess player needs a set of openings he can trust. Use Bobby Fischer’s favorite first move, 1. e2-e4, to begin your games as White―and know the ideas and moves that follow, no matter how Black defends!
White moves first in chess and can, if he’s well prepared, immediately put the pressure on Black. In this highly praised volume, three leading grandmasters logically explain a system of carefully selected and interrelated openings, covering all responses by Black!
You also get a an informative review of every opening from White’s point of view, even ones not part of the book’s recommended repertoire. This book, together with its companion volume, Chess Openings for Black, Explained (available separately), gives you the most thorough explanation of chess opening ideas available. More than 1,700 diagrams let you study many positions without using a chess set.