At the U.S. Championship in 1989, Stuart Rachels seemed bound for the cellar. Ranked last and holding no IM norms, the 20-year-old amateur from Alabama was expected to get waxed by the American top GMs of the day that included Seirawan, Gulko, Dzindzichashvili, deFirmian, Benjamin and Browne.
Instead, Rachels pulled off a gigantic upset and became the youngest U.S. Champion since Bobby Fischer. Three years later he retired from competitive chess, but he never stopped following the game.
In this wide-ranging, elegantly written, and highly personal memoir, Stuart Rachels passes on his knowledge of chess. Included are his duels against legends such as Kasparov, Anand, Spassky, Ivanchuk, Gelfand and Miles, but the heart of the book is the explanation of chess ideas interwoven with his captivating stories.
There are chapters on tactics, endings, blunders, middlegames, cheating incidents, and even on how to combat that rotten opening, the Réti. Rachels offers a complete and entertaining course in chess strategy. At the back are listed 110 principles of play—bits of wisdom that arise naturally in the book’s 24 chapters.
Every chess player will find it difficult to put this sparkling book down. As a bonus, it will make you a better player.
"This book was a blast to read. It is fresh, entertaining, and has funny stories and anecdotes about Kasparov, Kortchnoi, Anand, Seirawan and many others. But it also offers a lot of serious, deep chess analysis, and it is a pleasure to look at plenty of interesting games."
"A really wonderful book."
"Stuart Rachels manages to combine great stories with serious instructions into one absorbing book."
"The most enjoyable book I've read in a decade. This is what an autobiographical chess book should be: entertaining, honest and instructive."
