Bluffer’s guide to chess

Product Description



A snappy little book containing facts, jargon, and inside information--all that readers need to know to hold their own among the experts.




Review



The Bluffer's Guide to Chess will enable anyone who thinks Nigel Short is a racing driver to get an immediate handle on the game that's experiencing an upsurge in national interest.
--
Books Magazine




From the Back Cover



Let us be quite clear that it is not necessary for the chess bluffer actually to know how to play the game. Indeed, die-hard bluffers of the old school would argue vehemently that to learn to play would be tantamount to cheating, and anyone caught doing it should be asked to resign.
Whether you play or not, it is vital that you avoid getting all fouled up in the mere mechanics of play. Concentrate on chess's rich, colorful vocabulary and its impoverished, colorful players.
Bluffer's Guides is a series of snappy little books containing facts, jargon, and all you need to know for instant expertise.




About the Author



B. W. Malpass was taught to play chess at the age of four by his father, who left home to join the Royal Navy shortly afterwards. His first steps in bluffing took place on the bus on the way home from school. He and a chess-playing friend would try to impress their fellow passengers by playing convincing but spurious games of blindfold chess. They would call out the moves loudly to make sure everyone got the message, and there was a great deal of brow knitting and head scratching to illustrate the intensity of the mental effort involved in playing without the aid of board or men.

It came to an abrupt end during a particularly realistic demonstration, when a miner on his way home from his shift paused as he left the bus and addressed the pair: "Tha' last three moves were illegal, lad. And 'yon's" - (nodding to the friend who was already going beet-red) - "yon's were bloody impossible. If you two are chess players, I'm Greta Garbo." It was game, set and match to the horny-handed son of toil, who exited whistling.

Mercifully, B.W. Malpass retired from competitive chess many years ago and greets all questions about his Elo rating with hysterical laughter, so his playing strength remains a mystery. He did perfect the defensive role of the domestic cat in chess. His chess computer, like him, could use new batteries.




Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.



Post mortem
It is a sobering thought that no matter how brilliantly one side plays, he can only win if his opponent makes an error. The same applies to other games, of course, but chess differs in that it can take several years' exhaustive post-game analysis to establish what the mistake was.

Weight loss
A lengthy tournament is draining not only mentally but physically. It is common for players to lose a stone in weight in the course of one. Top players train hard to get fit beforehand. Sadly it doesn't work the other way round. You get fit to play chess, not by playing it.

Piece of mind
'J'adoube' are two little words you must say before adjusting the position on the board of any men whose misalignment on their squares might be annoying your tidy mind. Please note that this only works in chess and not in the real world.