Bobby Fischer: His Approach

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Summary: A nice study of Bobby Fischer's style
Review: The autor, Elie Agur, went to deep lengths to understand the style and unique contributions to the game. Hundreds of diagrams and games.

Rating:
Summary: A must for Fischer fans
Review: This book contains over 300 diagrammed middle game positions taken from Fischer's games up until 1972. There are no complete game scores. Instead the positions are organized into different chapters based upon various strategic themes. The bibliography contains hundreds of source materials on Fischer and this book brings much of this scattered material together. What you have is a complete work on Fischer's middle game technique. Another good point is that the diagrams are labelled with the side to move (White or Black), so you can study the positions before reading the text, unlike other books from this publisher that leave you guessing who's move it is in the diagrams.

Rating:
Summary: A must for Fischer fans
Review: This book contains over 300 diagrammed middle game positions taken from Fischer's games up until 1972. There are no complete game scores. Instead the positions are organized into different chapters based upon various strategic themes. The bibliography contains hundreds of source materials on Fischer and this book brings much of this scattered material together. What you have is a complete work on Fischer's middle game technique. Another good point is that the diagrams are labelled with the side to move (White or Black), so you can study the positions before reading the text, unlike other books from this publisher that leave you guessing who's move it is in the diagrams.

Rating:
Summary: Unique amoung chess books
Review: This book delivers as the title says. Discussed are Fischer's decisions across various motifs (pawn structure, piece placement, strategy,...) from a diagrammed position. Much of the book can be read without a board depending on your strength. I think this book is more for advanced players, you just need to know things to get the most out of this book. Really the book is about style -- the style of a genius, so no chess player should be without it.

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Summary: Excellent book to synthesize elements of chess
Review: This book will change the way you approach chess regardless of your playing level. As noted by previous readers, Elie Agur has done a nice job of systematically analyzing Fischer's approach to chess into clear parts (e.g., pawn structures, traps, typical manuevores) clearly for the reader to grasp. The usefulness of this catagorization goes beyond having to fill up a content page. What has not been said is that reading this book actually helps you to integrate almost all the chess concepts you learnt (e.g., tactics, positional chess, etc.) but never know how to go about applying them.

For the more advanced player, I would recommend you taking a look at how Agur, given a chess position with a variety of candidate moves, manage to compare and contrast Fischer's style with other schools of playing chess (e.g., Karpov and Capablanca). This is interesting in itself as this is one clear evidence of chess style at work, and that no particular style is necessarily the best (although Fischer's style has been known to be the most accurate and straightforward in selection of candidate moves).

Rating:
Summary: Should Be A Classic
Review: This work is absolutely brilliant. Elie Agur observes much that had previously gone unnoticed in the play of this great genius. However, you will learn much more than simply how Fischer played. From the study of Fischer's "Approach to Chess," you will learn much about the nature of the middle game. This book contains many deep observations about the game of chess: If this same book had been written by a more famous player, it would already be a classic. Buy this book! I would also recommend Raymond Keene's Nimzowitch: A Reappraisal---the second, updated edition of Nimzowitch: Master of Planning.

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Summary: Methodical study of Fischer's play - a new dimension!
Review: While not a grandmaster himself, Elie Agur has obviously made a deep study of Bobby Fischer's games. In this fascinating and highly instructive book, he analyzes the elements of Fischer's style with reference to specific games. As Agur says, "Besides being a study on Fischer, it is a treatise on the middlegame at large". Over 300 diagram positions are taken apart, with a page or more sometimes devoted to a single move, its implications and alternatives.

Topics include pawn structure, piece placement, material, timing, strategy (e.g. plans, seizing the initiative, liquidation, and playing for space), clarity, straightforwardness, alertness, reducing the opponent's options, playing to win, practical chances, tactics, technical aspects and overall vision. Fischer's weaknesses are not allowed to pass unmentioned, either. Agur devotes whole chapters to suprficiality, misplaying won positions, and typical blunders and oversights.

You can learn all sorts of fascinating details about the great man and his opponents. For instance, Fischer's decision to play Alekhine's Defence against Ciocaltea in the 1965 Capablance Memorial tournament amazed fans. Agur explains what really happened. Fischer was participating by cable, as the State Department denied him a visa to go to Fidel Castro's Cuba in the aftermath of the 1962 missile crisis. Ciocaltea's first move was received as 1. d4 and so played on the board, and Fischer replied 1...Nf6 as usual. Only when the second move, 2. e5 came through was the mistake discovered. Characteristically, Fischer refused to change his first move and achieved a hard-fought draw after a long struggle against an opponent he would often have expected to beat.

For my money, this is a superb book. If I had to choose between it and any other book on Fischer - even his own "60 Memorable Games" - I think I would have to pick this one. It strikes a perfect balance between quantity and quality. Reading it carefully should increase anyone's playing strength, and is sure to afford hours of pleasure. Just one warning - chess theory has made huge strides since Fischer was playing, so don't take any of the opening analysis on trust without checking in a modern reference book.

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Summary: A Brilliant Effort! A Truly Inspired Middle Game Treatise
Review: You will not regret buying this book. It is the best middle game text published in the last ten years with the obvious exception of Watson's "Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy." This book attempts to use Fischer's games as a means of discovering not only how Fischer played the middle game but also how one ought to play it. It is a truly inspired work. I think it one of the best chess books published within the last couple of years. The only better ones published recently are the game collections of people like Shirov, Anand, and Karpov (I have already mentioned Watson's book). Buy this book, esp if you are under 2200! Look for Silman's review at New In Chess, by the way.