Murray ChandlerHow to Beat Your Dad at Chess (Chess for Schools)

The but refers to the title...I learnt to play as a teenager. Aged 15 to 17, for a couple of years I had a mate I played against regularly. We played different styles , but about the same standard. We would have both loved this book then. I have recently returned to chess, and although I can develop a good position find In some situations I am lost for ideas for an effective attacking plan and I get frustrated when I get stung by an aggressive player. This book looks to be very promising for me now. It is not a suitable book to teach a child to play. It is suitable for someone who has mastered basic end game techniques maybe has two or three basic openings they use and has learnt how to develop a defensive position but now wants to be a more effective attacking player and also wants to be more effective at avoiding falling into checkmate traps. This book deserves 5 stars because if that is what you are after this book does it very well. No long sequences of moves, no big paragraphs of text. It has clear ideas, with the right number of examples to see each idea in action in real games. Also a bonus that the ideas are tested at the end of the book in a really effective way. I am determined not to cheat and look back. I feel this book is not heavy on theory, but will make me a better chess thinker and a more effective aggressive player.

Humans have an innate capacity to spot visual patterns, eg peoples' faces, trees and a clock face. Try covering up a traditional watch with your other hand, ask an adult to to look at the back of your hand and move it quickly away and back over the watch, giving him or her the merest glimpse of the watch, then ask the person what time it said. 9 out of 10 will get it right. The point is that this sort of mental activity is automatic, extremely quick and unthinking (see "Thinking, fast and slow" by D Kahneman for a very readable account of a lifetime of study in this field.). These instant reactions can also be wrong, but they can be practised and trained. Strong chess players spot patterns very quickly then get their thinking caps on and calculate whether their first impression is workable. "How to beat your Dad at chess" is one of few books to consciously harness this approach. It classifies mates by pattern and accompanies each with lively, readable text to confirm the "get your thinking cap on" part.Don't be put off by the title, this excellent book is neither condescending nor patronising.Worth every penny.

I bought my son this book so he can learn to beat me at chess... he hasn't beaten me so far....

This book has proved its worth with so many children - it is pitched at the chess player who has mastered the basics (it is not a beginner's book) understands the need for strategy, but is a little lost in how to move that forward. This book gives them a number of scenarios / pictures they can learn and be confident in moving to checkmate. There are many opportunities for the light bulb to switch on - especially enjoyed is smothered mate - the idea of a checkmate with just a knight seems to give the child more respect for that piece and opens their eyes to the fact that checkmate is not all about throwing in lots of queens and rooks! Subtlety can work well - and most young chess players enjoy the feeling of deviousness in sneaking up with a knight and catching the king unawares... I have bought several copies as presents.

At my level (around 1200-1300 elo) this is a little marvel! For starters the price is good and it's a quality hardback which is rare for chess books. Unlike the majority of chess manuals this is a doddle to read and doesn't require a photographic memory or multiple chess sets to work through!The title is a little misleading though. This is basically 50 checkmating patterns, 1 per page. I would suggest reading and re-reading this book until those patterns are burned into your memory. You'll be suprised at how often the opportunity to use these checkmate motifs will appear in your games.

Got this for son who is 7 years old is starting to go to chess competitions. I am not a chess player and I find it too verbose and dry for me. Son is too little to really comprehend and use it on his own. So husband (who is a chess player) has to read and explain and practice with son, which is not what I had in mind.

I love this book. It is in no way for beginners but would suit an 'intermediate' player who already understands the fundamentals but is not ready for the more advanced game. It starts to help recognising common patterns and themes that crop up in games and is written with children in mind so the language is straight forward and easy to understand. Lots of diagrams to show variations that the child can set up and play. Highly recommend.

This book is decent for learning some simple mating patterns for beginners. It was also very cheap when I bought it (£3 for a hardcover) so it was really a steal.Adults can definitely learn from this too. It is probably a bit too easy for intermediate/advanced players but you might still get some utility out of some of the patterns and can help you with finding mates.