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Usually ships in 1 business days | | | | | | Why is it that the human brain so often refuses to consider winning chess tactics? Every chess fan marvels at the wonderful combinations with which famous masters win games. How do they find those fantastic moves? Do they have a special vision? And why do computers outwit us tactically?
This rich book on chess tactics proposes a revolutionary method for finding winning moves. Charles Hertan has made an astonishing discovery: the failure to consider key moves is often due to human bias. Your brain tends to disregard many winning moves because they are counter-intuitive or look unnatural.
We can no longer deny it, computers outdo us humans when it comes to tactical vision and brute force calculation. So why not learn from them? Charles Hertan’s radically different approach is: use COMPUTER EYES and always look for the most forcing move first!
By studying forcing sequences according to Hertan’s method you will: develop analytical precision improve your tactical vision overcome human bias and staleness enjoy the calculation of difficult positions
Charles Hertan is a FIDE master from Massachusetts with several decades of experience as a chess coach. Instead of rehashing the usual classic examples he has unearthed hundreds of instructive combinations which appear here for the first time in print.
Win more games by recognizing moves that matter!
With a foreword by three-time US chess champion Joel Benjamin, a member of the Deep Blue Computer team that defeated world champion Garry Kasparov in 1997. | | | |
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| | Product Details | | Author: | Charles Hertan | | Paperback: | 320 pages | | Publisher: | New In Chess | | Publication Date: | April 07, 2008 | | Language: | English | | ISBN: | 9056912437 | | Package Length: | 9.21 inches | | Package Width: | 6.69 inches | | Package Height: | 1.1 inches | | Package Weight: | 1.85 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 14 reviews |
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| | Features | ISBN13: 9789056912437Condition: NEWNotes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review:
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1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Your guide to TACTICAL EXCELLENCE Jan 26, 2010
American GM Marice Ashley said the most direct way to improve your game is to study tactics and endgames. This book more than satisfies those needs. It is NOT a beginners tactical manual but for the seasoned player. The aim of this work is to help you FIND those moves that your mind AUTOMATICALLY rules out because they simply look impossible to the untrained eye by looking at the most FORCING move first. And this is one of the secrets to success in practical chess. Many times we are too concerned with learning the general principles of play and content with our knowledge that we know how to take advantage of a tactical situation. But what if you are against equal or stronger opposition who may be more versed tactically than you are? Many times even THEY (not to mention some GM's) won't consider every possibility and forcing reply. What if you do? Then you have a chance to turn the tables.
Even though the main aim of the book is to overcome your bias for discounting the "impossible" moves, but as a side effect, you will notice an essential skill developing as your laboriously work through this book: YOUR ANALYTICAL AND CALCULATION skills will notably improve. A "welcome" side effect to say the least. The examples introduced are complex and require an investment of time and energy. You will be thrown examples from the highest standard of play which include MULTIPLE tactical motifs. This is NOT a book for the faint of heart, but for those serious about improving their tactical abilities.
This is easily the best book on tactics since you get more than 600 examples/exercises all with high quality explanation. And if you understand why moves are played, you are close to playing those very moves in your own games. I give it my highest recommendation.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
COMPUTER EYES! is not a gimmick Jun 04, 2009
Throughout this book the author constantly makes references to 'COMPUTER EYES', always in all caps. While this repetition seemed to get on the nerves of one reviewer, to me it makes good pedagogical sense. The whole point of the book is to try to get players to calculate all forcing moves, even odd looking ones, and to develop better 'brute force calculation' abilities. That's what the author means by looking at a position with 'computer eyes'. Thus the whole premise of the book is encapsulated in the term, and so the repetition is very useful to drive home the point that to be a good tactician we must cultivate this skill.
Getting past the whole 'computer eyes' thing (since it's mostly a matter of taste), the chapters are full of tactical examples of a given theme. I found the chapters very useful for priming me to solve the problems given at the end. The themes will be familiar to most experienced players, but the examples are almost all new, from real games (a huge issue for me with many puzzle books), and often contain a surprising element of some sort that raises them above the category of stock tactical themes (even though that is the title of one chapter). For example, the author would not have a simple bishop sacrifice on h7 followed by mate, but rather a sac on h7 followed by a deflection sac leading to a gain of material.
That brings me to another strong point of this book. Many of the tactics are not directed at checkmate, but rather at the winning of material. Ignoring material winning combinations in favor of mating sequences is a huge problem with most tactics books. I think it's fair to say that in my own games, 90% of the tactics I've had involve winning material rather than delivering checkmate. This book addresses that disparity.
You can probably tell that I really like this book. One caveat: the problems range from moderately difficult to extremely hard. They are all from games, which for me at least makes them easier, but if you're under 1800, then beware. It wouldn't hurt you to read through the chapters, but don't expect to get the problems right. That said, it wouldn't hurt you to try.
8 of 9 found the following review helpful:
puzzles for the more advance May 21, 2009
I love chess puzzle books but have found that many are basically the same and once you get a grasp of them your stuck not learnign any new. EG there are so many books on basic tactics skewer, deflection, etc, but they are very basic, and once you have work with several book your not learning anything new. What I really liked about this book is that the puzzles are more complicated. I have been searching for a book that was more difficult and this one did the trick. Many of the puzzles have longer line which at least forced me to think even further ahead. It gave me a different perscpective about the chess board. I am not a master but before working on puzzles I was 1200. After doing many puzzle books I made to 1500, but have been stuck there for a long time. After completing this book. I started beating stronger players and now am hovering around the 1800 mark. So if your a master or stronger then you may not like this book, but is your like me who was stuck at 1500, this will take you to the next level.
I recommend this book highly
8 of 10 found the following review helpful:
A novel Approach to Tactics, but can be better Jan 21, 2009
I like when an author give me a novel approach( with empasis on the thinking process and not the overcooked pattern recognition-tactical motif approach), a new tool to improve my chess.
Why five stars;
1.Novel Approach.
2.Complete References so you can look the whole games, online or in any database.
3.Nemotecnics; You can see a title in each problem, it makes easier to remember the idea at a later time.
4.Userfriendly, great layout.
5.Cost/Benefit this book will help your chess , yes more than the new glossy opening book available in pre-order , this book is worth every hard earned penny I spend.
To improve in the Next Edition.
1.Typo in page 15: 6...kxg7 wins the Ng6 (this is a bishop endgame)
2. After a material advantage the author put a 1-0, but sometimes, like in page 128 Ex 3.4 Benjamin-Seirawan seattle 2000 the game last 70 more moves!!, in my opinion ( I am a 1860 player so I have a lot to learn ) it is not that simple to cash in the material advantage as the authors implies with the 1-0, If Seirawan a world class player keeps fighting Benjamin after the "winning combo" is because a draw can be possible. My point is that if a GM keeps playing that position I am not sure if a Club Level player will be able to win after the 'winning combo". Just play the game in your database and draw your own conclusions.
3.The author wrote a Chapter in The chess Instructor 2009 published by New in Chess page 154-167. I believe this chapter belongs to Forcing chess Moves, this chapter in my opininon is critical to increase the benefit that the reader of Forcing Moves can get from the book. Just an opinion.
In summary, 5 Starts, the 'cons" I founded on this book are subjective, they do not decrease, in general, the Quality of the Book or the benefit a club player (the target audience)can get by WORKING on this book.
2 of 8 found the following review helpful:
Forcing Moves Jan 01, 2009
I wish I could work with this book more often than I do. It is structured very well for a player of my strenght. My rating is currently 1359.
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