Endgame Magic

by John D. Beasley and Timothy Whitworth

No less an authority than World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov has remarked on his fondness for chess studies, adding, "The time I take to solve studies tests my sporting form, and I use many ideas in... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0805047271
• ISBN13: 9780805047271
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Excellent introduction to studies for chess players

This book gently introduces the various concepts of studies, through annotated examples of studies. The introductory chapter on "how a study differs from a game" will be most valuable for over the board and/or Internet players who have summarily dismissed chess studies as "weird." This work also introduces the reader to the giants of composition: Rinck, Kasparian, Gurgenidze, just to name a few. These names may not be familiar, but in the study world they resonate strongly. Very enjoyable, and most highly recommended.

Its Awesome

The endgame study is a never ending source of fun for me. I am absolutely horrible at solving these things mind you (I got one study completely right the first time through), but they are great fun and make regular endgame play seem simple. It is a shame this one is out of print.

Five stars aren't enough for this wonderful collection.

This is perhaps a book that was destined to be out of print after the first printing (1996). It is also one of my most prized chess books. None of the problems are easy; indeed, most of them are quite difficult even for grandmasters. Each endgame study has been designed to tease out the most fantastic, unexpected, and beautiful maneuvers and positions that the chessmen are capable of exhibiting. Even if you fail to solve the puzzles, playing through the copiously illustrated and annotated solutions is pure pleasure. The positions did not arise from actual play, but were composed, mainly for enjoyment rather than for instructional purposes. But this is chess at its most marvelous and breathtaking!