32 Chess Books now, all cherry-picked. All bought with the intention to read and/or study them.
I love Chess books! I like to own them, I like to read them, I like to hold them. I like the way they feel, the way they smell. I like to look at them on my book shelf.
The thrill is, also, in the hunt. I like to search for new books. I like to buy and order new books.
“Physical Chess Books are the only thing worth collecting.” — PYGOD, Chess Scholar
Nothing screams “smart” more than a bookshelf full of Chess books.
Nonetheless, I’m not looking for rare editions, and fn expensive books. Au contraire, I’m searching for useful books at reasonable prices. I have no problem buying second-hand books.
Blindfold Chess:
- BLINDFOLD CHESS: History, Psychology, Techniques, Champions, World Records, and Important Games by Eliot Hearst and John Knott. In my view (pun intended), it is THE Blindfold Chess book by excellence. Really instructive if you wanna know more about Chess history.
- Cognitive Chess: Improving Visualization and Calculation Skills by Konstantin Chernyshov.
- Train Yourself on Blindfold Chess: Make yourself a mental athlete by Sourav Sahay.
- Chess Visualization by Rodolfo Pardi.
Correspondence Chess / Centaur Chess:
- Kasparov Against the World by Garry Kasparov. Very good book. Read it cover to cover. Kasparov is a great writer and a genius.
- Modern Chess Analysis by Robin Smith.
General Improvement:
- Rapid Chess Improvement by Michael de la Maza. Liked it. Read it cover to cover but skipped the Chess exercises.
- by Ben Johnson. Liked it. Read it cover to cover.
- How to Study Chess on Your Own: Creating a Plan that Works… and Sticking to it! by Davorin Kuljasevic. Liked it. Read it cover to cover while skipping the Chess exercises.
General Strategy:
- How to Win at Chess: The Ultimate Guide for Beginners and Beyond by Levy Rozman aka Gotham Chess. My first ever Chess book. Read it cover to cover and liked it. Beginner-friendly.
- How to Win at Chess, Next Level: The Ultimate Guide for Intermediate Play by Levy Rozman.
- A First Book of Morphy by Frisco Del Rosario. Could have been in the Game Collections category too. Simple and fun book. One of my favorites.
- The Amateur’s Mind by Jeremy Silman.
- The Soviet Chess Primer (Chess Classics) by Ilya Maizelis. In my antilibrary list. Not yet ready for it!
- Best Play A New Method For Discovering The Strongest Move by Alexander Shashin.
Tactics:
- Chess: 5334 Problems, Combinations and Games by László Polgár. The Polgar Bible is THE Puzzle book.
- Everyone’s First Chess Workbook: Fundamental Tactics and Checkmates for Improvers – 738 Practical Exercises by Peter Giannatos.
Game Collections:
Openings:
- MCO Modern Chess Openings, 15th Edition by Nick de Firmian. THE Chess Openings book. A great reference book.
- Winning Chess Openings by Yasser Seirawan. An easy and fun way to initiate yourself to Chess openings.
- Become a Chess Assassin!: Learn to play the best chess opening attacks by Dr Michael Tam
- 50+2 Chess Quick Wins: Tactical ideas for exciting chess for beginner players by Dr Michael Tam
MiddleGame:
- The Art of the Middle Game by Paul Keres. THE Chess MiddleGame book. I was glad to learn descriptive notation.
Endgames:
- Silman’s Complete Endgame Course: From Beginner to Master by Jeremy Silman. THE Chess Endgame book.
History:
Novels:
- The Queen’s Gambit (Television Tie-in) by Walter Tevis.
- The Royal Game: A Chess Story by Stefan Zweig. Excellent short book that I’ve read twice. Could have been in the Blindfold Chess section too.
- The Defense aka The Luzhin Defense by Vladimir Nabokov. Overrated.
- The Luneburg Variation by Paolo Maurensig. Excellent thrilling book! Thanks to this book, I’ve learned the power of ATTENTION.
- Lisa: A Chess Novel by Jesse Kraai.
First Book Purchased: June 27, 2025
Total Books: 32
Total Purchase Cost: CAD $895.94 (including shipping and taxes)
You need 1000 books to be considered an official Library. I’ve still a long way to go..
PYGOD, Chess Scholar