| Book Reviews May 2002 Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess by Rashid Nezhmetdinov (Caissa Editions - PO Box 151, Yorklyn, DE 19736, 182 pages, 2000, paperback, long algebraic notation, $25) Rashid Nezhmetdinov (1912-74) is not widely known in the West, but two recent books hope to change this situation. Super Nezh by Alex Pishkin was reviewed in a previous column, but will be compared here with Caissa Editions latest offering as many readers will no doubt wonder which is the book to get. Nezhmetdinov�s games have always enjoyed a great reputation among connoisseurs of attacking play. No less a giant than Tal praised the famous little purple book edition of Nezhmetdinov�s games that sold out in the Soviet Union long ago. This is the first time it has been translated into English. Like Super Nezh, Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess contains approximately 100 of the Tartar�s best games, but with the distinction that it contains his own annotations (a few near the end are commented by Voloshin), whereas Super Nezh saw Pishkin base his notes on Nezhmetdinov, but also draw from other sources. Each book , not surprisingly, features many of the same games, with detailed notes. Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess has the great man�s own personal account of his career which is quite fascinating and makes for compelling reading. Super Nezh has more of an overview by Pishkin, but also has a stimulating introduction by IM Rashid Ziatdinov, like Nezhmetdinov, of Tartar descent. Super Nezh has some outstanding photos of Soviet chess personalities of the 1950s and crosstables of important events (the layout of the latter take a little getting use to). Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess doesn�t have either of these attributes, but it appears to be the more accurate of the two books. I�m no Nezhmetdinov scholar, but did notice that the date and event for Langeweg-Nezhmetdinov, is given as Kislovodsk 1972 by Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess and Sochi 1964 by Super Nezh. Chess Informant 14 and ChessBase MegaDatabase 2002 side with Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess as to year and venue. This mix-up may have occurred because Mr. Pishkin died before his book was ready for publication. Both books feature detailed players indexes and career records. Super Nezh adds thumb-nail sketches of Nezhmetdinov�s opponents, but doesn�t go quite far as back or is as accurate in documenting the Tartar�s tournament record ( it does list the Kislovodsk event that Langeweg played in, but for 1970 and not 1972). Nezhmetdinov�s Best Games of Chess benefits from the editing of Russian chess maven Jack O�Keefe, who has made sure that the book reads smoothly and accurately. The inclusion of analysis by Fritz 6 (assisted by Richard Cantwell) is given alongside Nezhmetdinov�s annotations. That computers still can�t fathom some of the Tartar�s famous combinations, will come as a relief to many. Still, this reviewer can�t help but cringe a bit when he sees the games of attacking players like Tal and Nezhmetdinov subjected to the cold objectivity of computer analysis! Lovers of imaginative chess can be very happy that two fine books are now available on one of the greatest attacking geniuses of all time. Neither is perfect, but both will give lovers of high quality chess many hours of pleasure. Solving in Style (Gambit, 2002, 238 pages, paperback, figurine algebraic, $17.95) by John Nunn is an unabridged reprint of the book of the same name published in 1985. This re-issue gives a new generation of readers the chance to become acquainted with chess problems and studies. Probably no one is more qualified to do this than GM Nunn, who is not only one of England�s top players but also of the world�s best solvers. If terms like Novotny, Grimhaw and Plachutta don�t ring a bell, don�t feel bad. Chess problems are a world of their own. Nunn does an excellent job of explaining the special rules of this parallel universe, but where he is likely to gain the most converts is in the field of chess studies. The two chapters on this bridge the gap between competitive play and problems. They cover the gamut of themes from mate and stalemate avoidance to positional draws, domination and underpromotion. Many of these studies look sufficiently "game-like" that the over-the-board player will have no trouble appreciating the beauty and ingenuity involved. One of the featured composers is the Latvian Mattison, who was also a fine tournament player, claiming Alekhine and Rubinstein among his scalps. Today his studies are considered a little simplistic by the giants of study composition, but for tournament players, they make excellent study material. I can still remember sitting down with Belarus GM Yury Shulman and trying to solve some of Mattison�s studies. At Yury�s suggestion, we sat down at the board, taking turns being black and white, with a clock set at five minutes a piece. Try this some time! It makes for very good training. I ended up with about the same batting average as a extremely borderline Major League baseball player (about .200). Highly recommended. |