Chess Gateway Book Review
'Winning Quickly at Chess' by GM John Nunn

by John Lee Shaw

When I embark upon the review of a chess book, I always try to do so with great humility and respect. This goes without saying, but when I pick up a book written by John Nunn, I feel this even more strongly. I have had the pleasure of reading a good number of John's books, and studied his games, and it is impossible to miss the fact that he knows his stuff when it comes to our wonderful game, and has contributed much towards its heritage.

I saw John at the Corus Chess Tournament in January, and had the pleasure of talking to him -- the first time actually that I had met him, and I very much enjoyed it. I took the opportunity of mentioning his Winning Quickly at Chess  book, which is an expanded version of his 101 Chess Miniatures. To be honest, I have had this book for quite a while, and I was honest with John: 'I am not actually sure how to review it.'  John gave me an intrigued look, while I searched for the correct way to explain myself, and hopefully avoid being put on the Gambit Books blacklist.

The issue that I had with this book (which I must stress is not a flaw with regard to the book in any way, but is actually a very clever instructional device as will be explained) was that it consists of short Grandmaster games, of 25 moves or less. Nothing wrong there of course (unless you are the loser) but John's way of analysing them upon first glance, seems very skeletorial. He gives comments, obsevations, a few important variations, but there is no lengthy post-mortem of the game like we see in many books, and this, I will be honest gave me some trouble with an approach for a review at first.

However, when talking to John, and when reading and re-reading through the introduction to the book, clarity began to set in. John explained that the purpose of the book was to draw the readers attention to the common causes of quick losses in chess. This is spelled out within the first pages of the book, and as far as I can see, once and once only. "I did not want to say the same thing over and over again," John told me. From there, the short games and note-like style of analysis, are ideal in helping the reader spot such serious errors, and to understand how to capitalise. Rather than bombarding the reader with tonnes of information that he or she does not need, John sticks to the task at hand, and just focusses on the point of the exercise.

And the point is as follows: Once a player can identify and become familiar with such common causes of quick losses/wins in chess, he or she can 1). decrease the likelyhood of committing them; and equally as important, 2). more competantly take advantage should an opponent commit them. Simply put, there is actually no one who can not benefit from reading this book, be it the player who is losing games quickly, the player who is failing to win games even though they know their opponent played badly, or the player who just simply wants to technically improve his or her game and iron out a few wrinkles.

The book is made up of over 250 pages, and contains 125 games, all of which see a Grandmaster committ a serious error and be punished. Tal-Uhlmann, Spassky-Larsen, Timman-Korchnoi, Kasparov-Gelfand, Fischer-Spassky, Adams-Tiviakov, the list of top names goes on. Giving comfort and encouragement to the 'ordinary' player, that such masters can also commit chess ugynesses, Nunn exhibits them and their comeuppance.

As much a master in writing as he is in the game itself, John artfully aims to light a spark in the mind of the reader, that will help improve his or her game, rid him or her of a few bad habits, and help spot a few of the opponent and illustrate the correct way to take advantage. It is a book not just to buy and flick through, but to buy with the intention to read from cover to cover. As with any literary gem, to skip any page is to do an injustice not only to the author, but also to oneself for having had the good sense of buying it in the first place.

Chess Gateway Rating:  Queen -- snap it up fast!

Guide to Ratings:  Pawn=if you've cash to spare... ; Knight=Worth a Try; Bishop=Good Buy; Rook=Recommended; Queen=Highly Recommended

Title: Winning Quickly at Chess
Author: GM John Nunn
Published by: Gambit Books -- http://www.gambitbooks.com/index.html
Price: £15.99/$29.95/€24.95

Synopsis: In this tremendously instructive and entertaining work, John Nunn selects 125 of the finest short decisive grandmaster games of the modern era. For a grandmaster to lose a game in 25 moves or fewer takes something special, and club players can learn a great deal from studying these miniatures. Each of these games is a true battle, with the result often in doubt until near the very end of the struggle.

Nunn identifies the most common causes of the errors that lead to the loser's demise, and how one can seek to take dramatic advantage of the opponent's risky or faulty play. In his thought-provoking extended introduction, he explains that in many cases, the problem was of a psychological nature: often the loser fails to accept that events have not unfolded according to plan, and as a consequence steers into the reefs when there was still time to head for safer waters.


About the Author: John Nunn is a grandmaster from England. He has won four individual gold medals and three team silver medals at Chess Olympiads. He is arguably the most highly acclaimed chess writer in the world - he has twice won the prestigious British Chess Federation Book of the Year Award. In 2004 he won the World Chess Solving Championship, and repeated the feat in October 2007 with a record winning score of 89/90. He has written numerous books for Gambit, including Learn Chess Tactics and the best-selling Understanding Chess Move by Move.