Sudbury Chess Club

A few years back I wanted to improve my endgame knowledge so I bought Dvoretsky’s Endgame Manual. This was a go to recommendation from a GM as the definitive guide to the endgame.

He was right but it still sits on my bookshelf with only the first chapter read. It’s way too complex for a player at my level.

This is the problem that Jeremy Silman smashes in his Silman’s Complete Endgame Course. I can’t put it down!

His premise is that players only need to understand everything they need to know at their rating levels, in preparation for them advancing to the next level.

He has created 8 rating sections ranging from:

"Endgames for Beginners" - Unrated to 999
"Class E" - 1000 to 1199
"Class D" - 1200 to 1399
"Class C" - 1400 to 1599
"Class B" - 1600 to 1799
"Class A" - 1800 to 1999
"Experts" - 2000 to 2199
"Masters" - 2200 to 2399

There are then tests set at the end of each section to check your understanding.

Also as a bonus there is a "just for pleasure" section to be enjoyed by everyone.

Silman is an extraordinary teacher of the game. With this book you will only need to focus on the exercises set for your current level. You will get techniques for positions that you are more likely to come across in your own games. You won’t be put off by complicated theory that you are unlikely to need at your current stage of development.

You may find the section below your rating useful, and you may want to take a peek at the next section, but you won’t need to study the whole book.

This is an expensive book at around £20, depending on where you buy it from, but as it will be used by the amateur player as a permanent source of reference over many years it is tremendous value for money. I am sure that the local library can get it for you if you are prepared to wait but once you have borrowed it, I know you will then buy your own copy.

The only drawback for a UK player is that the rating categories are all US Chess Federation (USCF) ratings. These can be converted to English Chess Federation (ECF) ratings but it is complicated as the USCF needs to be converted to FIDE and then converted again to ECF.

To help those of you who get the book I have had a little “chat” with my digital helper who provided a rough rule of thumb. As a guide, the ECF rating is about 50 to 100 points lower than the USCF equivalent. My advice is reduce the book ratings by 100 to focus on the sections for you. Of course you can enjoy the whole lot if you want.

I hope you enjoy the book - but not too much! I want to improve my position in the next club championship!