Product reviews for Chess Improvement

With its thought-provoking and fresh approach, Chess Improvement successfully splices the worlds of chess and academia to offer the reader a challenge - with a strong emphasis on personal growth. And instead of attempting to fine-tune the pure chess element of a player's operating system, Barry Hymer and Peter Wells prefer to address the inner struggle, digging down very deeply into highly significant and important subjects which are more often than not completely absent from chess literature. The authors continually challenge our established beliefs across a whole range of subjects, going beyond simply scratching the surface. For example, when discussing the impact of failure, they are keen to investigate -˜Why it's needed and how to deal with it' rather than ignore the recurring factor altogether.

One especially noteworthy aspect is the inclusion of quotes and advice from a whole host of British chess greats - namely, Tim Kett, Michael Adams, David Howell, Harriet Hunt, Gawain Jones, Luke McShane, Matthew Sadler and Nigel Short. We don't hear enough from these chess players, yet their combined experience of playing at a very high level (in the case of both Short and Adams, all the way to the final of the world championship) and the amount of work they had to put into the game on the way up all makes for very instructive reading.

The experts referred to within the book are not confined to the world of chess either. Most notable amongst those from a step beyond the 64 squares is Professor Carol Dweck, a psychologist and leading world expert in the field of mindset theory. The book presents a plethora of information and analysis on the contrast between fixed and growth mindset, and it is extremely interesting to see examples of the two applied to specific aspects of chess - such as the impact of praise and criticism, choice of openings and the age-old -˜problem' of playing against up-and-coming juniors.

Chess Improvement will no doubt be a significant addition to chess literature, offering full accessibility to players, tutors and parents.