Lasker's Manual of Chess

Lasker's Manual of Chess

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Editorial Reviews

"Lasker's Manual of Chess" is one of the greatest chess books ever written. The fact that it was first published over 80 years ago has diminished neither its relevance nor significance in today's modern chess world. Lasker was both a wonderful fighter and a deep thinker; his book is the quintessence of the exceptionally successful experiences he had over many long years, and his thoughts about them. He teaches what he himself considers most important: general principles and methods applicable to any situation. Once you have read the "Manual", you will become smarter - afterwards, this is bound to help you, both in chess and in life. Emanuel Lasker, the Second World Champion, begins at the most basic level, explaining the board, the pieces, how they move and then goes on to describe the fundamentals of chess strategy, chess tactics and even chess philosophy. The result is one of best chess books ever written. This 21st Century Edition has been supplemented with dozens of archival photographs of Lasker and his contemporaries. In addition, an entertaining and instructive feature, "Lasker Lore," highlights the chess history and trivia of the Lasker era. Finally, if the significance of "Lasker's Chess Manual," needed to offer more, the greatest chess instructor of the modern era, Mark Dvoretsky, has penned a special foreword to this new edition of the legendary classic.

Customer Reviews

Lasker's Manual of Chess

Reviewed by Susan Anderson, 2009-10-11

Very thorough treatment of the subject, for beginners to more experienced players. An excellent resource to learn the game.

Much improved edition of a great chess book

Reviewed by revbd, 2009-01-30

This is a review of the new (Russell) edition of Lasker's Manual. Lasker's Manual is justly famous as one of the greatest ever chess books - and the glowing foreword the book receives from Mark Dvoretsky, in this new Russell edition, reiterates the greatness of both Lasker and his Manual. It is an indispensible book for every chess enthusiast's library. But in which edition?
My four star rating (which is, perhaps, a tad harsh) relates specifically to this edition rather than to Lasker's content which, of course, deserves the highest possible rating.
In comparison with the older Dover edition this new Russell edition is a huge improvement. The older Dover edition suffered from having too few diagrams, poor quality diagrams, hard to read print, poor layout, and descriptive notation. All these drawbacks are very well addressed in the Russell edition which is beautifully produced and has an exemplary layout (among the very best I've seen in a chess book). This Russell edition also has lots of wonderful old photographs and numerous anecdotal asides ("Lasker Lore"). In addition all the analysis has been computer checked for the Russell edition - which confirms the high quality and accuracy of Lasker's analysis.
So why four stars? The editor does admit to some editing of Lasker's words and, for me, this is a negative. I want to read what Lasker wrote - not what someone else thinks he should have written. However, in fairness to the editor, it must be admitted (and I do so having compared the two editions) that any such editing is very light. The Dover edition contains two Lasker prefaces - one to the initial German edition and the other to the later English edition - the Russell edition contains only the first of these. Also missing from the Russell edition is the "Lasker Appreciation" by Fred Reinfield in the Dover edition. But these are minor quibbles/omissions in this wonderful edition of Lasker's great book.
In short, the Russell edition of Lasker's "Manual of Chess" is a must buy for chess enthusiasts.

SUPERB

Reviewed by thecityofjoy, 2008-05-02

This has got to be one of the top chess books . It is superbly written and by that I mean 6 stars . Lasker was world champion for 28 years -- you read his book and you will be champion in your small league for sure!!
I haven't gone through the whole book but already am losing sleep over it --- it is that good !! Do yourself a favor -- pick this up NOW . I am an average player and I do not write good reviews like this . Lasker will show u how and why to play . Will definitely improve your rating to 2000+ -- NO MATTER WHERE YOU START FROM !! If you do not see any improvement , I will say this --- you have not read this book ! It probably stayed on your shelf for too long .

Introduces chess and goes well beyond

Reviewed by Anonymous, 2006-06-13

"Lasker's Manual of Chess" doesn't mess arround. It is absolutely perfect for someone who needs a brief reminder of the basic rules and then is ready to get quickly into the strategic parts of chess. It is a well written book for an adult reader or older teenage reader; younger kids or someone who is a super beginner should start with "Chess For Jrs" or possibly "Learn chess: A complete Course".
This may be an older book but it is very well written and a largely forgotten about classic.

I like this book

Reviewed by Anonymous, 2005-02-02

I like this book. It starts off with the basic rules and quickly gets into openings and strategy. I wish they would put it out in "algebraic chess notation" which is the only drawback. Since I get an A in all my classes as a 7th grade student I can understand this book well even with the old form of chess notation.