Backgammon Cuir grainé Brun 46 cm

"For me, a draw is not a result at all. If the game develops normally, I never think about a draw. I always think about playing to win. I blame all chess players who play chess to make draw and thus degrade this ancient game!"

"I like fast, "rocket" chess and always play to win. It seems to me that chess was invented precisely to have winners and losers. If someone offers me a draw, I take it as an insult."

"I start every game with the firm intention of finishing it with, or on, the shield!"

"One pawn more or less. I have 8 of them, don't I?"

"I am very pleasant to talk to and very unpleasant to play chess with!"  307 pages Hardcover

Pièces Staunton Meghdoot en sheesham (palissandre indien) triple plombage, feutrées cuir. Ces pièces conviennent à un échiquier dont les cases mesurent 55 ou 60 mm.

Sergei Tiviakov was unbeaten in a streak of more than a hundred chess games as a professional player. Who better to share the secrets of Rock Solid Chess and the activity and value of pieces than Tiviakov?

The highly acclaimed first volume of his chess strategy trilogy dealt with pawn structures. In this second volume, Sergei moves on to discuss piece play and unique chessboard situations. Topics covered include the bishop pair, opposite-coloured bishops, centralization and the almost-ignored question of when and whether to castle.

Tiviakov also demonstrates how the value of pieces can vary drastically depending on their exact position. He shows how the entire assessment of a position, and the correct strategy for playing it, can be changed by moving a single pawn from one square to another.

In the final chapters, Tiviakov discusses how to play cramped and passive positions, how to play for a win with Black and how to choose your strategy, based on the opponent’s style and other psychological factors.

Illustrated with examples from classic games and from his own games, and supported by instructive exercises, Volume Two of Rock Solid Chess offers invaluable and unique instruction on topics not covered in traditional textbooks. These strategy lessons will significantly improve your chess and are suitable for all readers, from club players to grandmasters.

Sergei Tiviakov is a grandmaster, Olympic gold medallist, three-time Dutch Champion and European Champion.
Yulia Gökbulut is a FIDE Women's Master, chess author and sports writer from Turkey.

251 pages

During the opening stages of the game the players stake out positions and more or less divide the board. Normally each player wants to win and take just over 50% of the board. This usually involves a balance between safety and risk; that is, making a safe and non-invadable extension or an extension that is slightly farther and limits the opponent’s territory. The drawback of the latter is that the position now becomes invadable. This usually means that when an invasion takes place, the invading stones do not have enough space to make an extension that guarantees life. That, in turn, means the invader has to run away. However, running away is not always the best strategy as it is one-sided — that is, it allows your opponent to harass the run-away stones while securing territory and building influence. Often it is far better to make the beginnings of eye-shape — to breathe life into the invading stones — before running away. In other words, ‘to make sabaki.’ The numerous examples and 122 problems taken from professional games, will introduce the readers to all the techniques that may be required to achieve sabaki in almost any position that might arise in their games. 201 pages

Version française d'un ouvrage déjà présenté en anglais. Rappelons qu'il s'agit d'un manuel sur les finales élémentaires destiné principalement à ceux qui n'ont jamais étudié le sujet (l'auteur part du b-a-ba) et qui se singularise par son approche didactique : plutôt que le traditionnel plan-par-matériel (finales de pions, de tours, etc.), le MI américain a préféré une approche par niveau : finales pour débutants (le b-a-ba évoqué plus haut), joueurs moyens, confirmés, maîtres, par tranches (approximatives, forcément) de 200 points elo. Très progressif donc, le livre peut être recommandé à tous ceux qui débutent dans ce domaine - mais que les joueurs plus confirmés sachent qu'ils ne trouveront pas forcément beaucoup de matériel inconnu à se mettre sous le dent...

It is not really in doubt that Bobby Fischer is one of the greatest (if not the greatest) chess players of all-time. His name is one that it is recognized immediately by almost anyone with even a passing interest in chess. His numerous brilliant games are very well known and have been seen in numerous anthologies.

However, Fischer also played many games that have generally escaped public attention. These include early games before he was well known, simultaneous games, blitz games as well as many classical games that have simply fallen under the radar. There is also a match of ten games played against Svetozar Gligoric in Sveti Stefan before his famous “re-match” with Boris Spassky.

Prolific author Cyrus Lakdawala has tracked down many of these games. They provide fresh material for die hard Fischer fans and provide numerous examples of Fischer’s extraordinary chess talent. Thanks to his remarkable ability to find clear cut plans and strategies in any position, Fischer somehow managed to make chess look easy. This is a very instructive anthology.   384 pages

Bicycle and America's Got Talent Winner, Shin Lim, make some magic together in this exclusive, co-designed deck. Bicycle Shin Lim is a completely playable deck of cards with an air-cushion finish for easy handling and shuffling. This specialty deck features a faded 10 of hearts card that will help magicians perform a trick that Shin Lim will teach you how to do via a​ QR code on the card tuck! Whether you're playing your favorite card game or showing off a magic trick, the intricate red foil and embossing selected by Shin Lim himself is sure to impress your friends and family!