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Rating: 
Summary: Short for the money, but still useful
Review: This book surprised me. It's really a pretty good book. It consists of 100 pieces of advice, each with at least 1 chess position for amplification.At least, that was Pandolfini's intent. However, I think that the pages with just words (which accounts for half the total) are TOO wordy and unnecessary. And the headline (the "ailment") for each one makes the solution to the diagrammed position a bit less challenging than it otherwise would be. But these are minor quibbles. It's easy enough to skip the text. The puzzles are quite interesting if they are at your level. What level? Well, I estimate about 1250-1350, and you absolutely must have read a simple endgame book first. (Pandolfini's Endgame Course is perfect preparation, but anything that covers King + Pawn v. King will do.) And be comfortable with simple tactics as well. With just that much preparation, you can get a lot out of this book. It will build on your knowledge. For example, if you understand a few fundamental endgame positions, then you'll see why it makes sense to aim for, or avoid, such an ending via trades. I suggest that you read this book out of order. Start with Section 2, continue through 3 and 4, and finally return to Section 1 on Openings, easily the most advanced part of the book with the longest analyses and most subtle explanations. On the whole, the book is worth reading. Unfortunately, the price is rather high for only 100 simple puzzles. So look for it used. It's not a bad gift though.
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