Return of Chess Cafe

Finally, after a number of delays, Chess Cafe is back !

I have no idea what the makeover was about, since to my eyes the website has the same layout, and has exactly the same columnists ( saying more-or-less the same things as 6 months ago ! ) but maybe the important changes are "under the bonnet" .

The column I enjoy the most ( Tim Harding's ' The Kibitzer' ) has been continued at his own site during the break, so I didn't suffer too much from the enforced break !

I love his combination of chess + history, and the fact that he displays older games ( often played in a simpler and more understandable style ) from which you can learn. His writing is also fluid,and his chess analysis easy to follow.

The first-returning columns include those of the the two Opening experts ( Abby Marshall and Gary Lane) , both of which hold very little interest for me. Occasionally, I will take a peek, but not that often.

Another I avoid is the ' Chess Evoloution' by Arkadij Naiditsch : far too advanced for this patzer !

I will be eagerly awaiting Karsten Mullers'  " Endgame Corner" . Not so much fun as seeing him on his Endgame DVDs, where his style is incredibly educative, as well as highly amusing, but well worthwhile.

Similarly, Dan Heiseman's "Novice Nook"  will be good to read again. Homely and informative.

The book and product reviews are welcome and interesting to read, but I admit that the Chessbase and sometimes the Convekta/Aquarium section ( when it was there ) were largely not for me .

Although they gave some interesting information ( particularly in Aquarium , as it developed its new ideas on Interactive Deep Analysis ) most of the time I could not comprehend why these columns wrote about such basic usage of the product. Does no-one read a manual any more ?

One column ( or perhaps more correctly, author ) I will undoubtedly still miss is Nigel Davies, whose "Middlegame Motifs'  and "Let's take a look" columns were wonderful, but have not been seen on Chess Cafe for some time.

Luckily, the Archives section at Chess Cafe is still available so if you navigate to here and here, all those instructive middlegame columns are still available to enjoy.

You never know, maybe as July unfolds and more columns are published, new columnists or ideas will be revealed : just have to wait and see !

Chess Cafe Book of the Year ?

That time of year is coming around again : 2012 will be assessed and categorised in all areas that we can think of, and that includes chess !

As always, the Chess Cafe site has put up the first batch of nominated candidates ( with more to come no doubt ).

Looking through the suggestions offered so fa,r I hope that an opening book is not selected.

I have no doubt that Watson's latest French Defence book is detailed and precise, but I would rather these sorts of awards showcased the less theoretical ( and obsessive ?) parts of the chess arena to encourage us amateurs to think outside the opening phase of the game.

Unless I'm allowed to include the original and excellent edition of  Martin Weteschnik's  Chess Tactics from Scratch,   I own only one of the current candidates, Tim Harding's detailed and  intriguing look at Eminent Victorian Chess Players.  

I enjoyed what I have read so far ( I started with Captain Evans, but then jumped to Lowenthal and Zukertort ) and would recommend it , but I somehow doubt it will win, being a touch too specialised.

Reviews of the Nimzowitsch biography (  Aron Nimzowitsch, Path to Mastery : 1886-1924 by Per Skjoldager and Jørn Erik Nielsen ) are resplendent in praise for it, so despite it being more history/biography than pure chess, I would give that a great chance of success, since it deals with a giant among chess players, and seems well on the way to being the standard work on Nimzowitsch's life.

The Hawkins book ( Amateur to IM )  has had many good reviews, and seems to offer a good mix for a winner, consisting of a good tale ( his progress to International Master and now Grand Master in all but name as he is rated 2507 at present ), plus how he did it by a focus on endgames : both feelgood and didactic !

In the same mould, I would expect that a similar book from Matthew Sadler, explaining his preparation for his "chess comeback" , will also appear as a candidate soon, as he is a very readable author, although I admit, I haven't seen the level of reviews that the Hawkins book has.

However, I suspect that the provocative and perhaps controversial Willy Hendriks offering ( Move First, Think Later ) may well grab the prize, even though it has already won the ECF award.

This is a book that has generated a lot of interest and discussion, as it seems to indicate that intuition probably plays a large part in chess than previously thought  ( although no doubt structured by a huge chess knowledge in the case of Grandmasters ! ).  A short opinion  is here, a longer one here.

For us lazy amateurs, this also appears to offer the ideal antidote to the 10,000 and more hours of work that we should put in to make master-level, but I have no doubt that amongst his anarchistic and provocative words, he will also tell us that guessing ( which is what my intuitive move would be currently )  is no substitute for the insight that hard work brings !

I'll have to wait until 23rd January and see what the result is !

Chess Cafe Book of the Year

Yes , I guessed it even if you didn't !

I should have placed my bet, as Yasser Seirawan's "Chess Duels" was the winner.

Scarcely more information here.

You can see a blogger's short review, a slightly longer Chessvibes one, or grab it for yourself at a discounted price here from my favourite online book store.