Opening

I'm kind of glad this went out of print; it makes the vast amount of information on the French I learned from it all the rarer. Actually, I have used it to play from either white or black's side, and this is the book from which I learned to play the French seriously. A few omissions (like nothing on the obscure Alapin Variation) can be forgiven, in light of the numerous suggestions for beyond-the-book-move play. If you only had one book on the French and this were it, you would be pretty tough to take down.

Have been waiting for this to come out ever since I got the first volume, and it does not disappoint. Timely and topical, for example, devoting a chapter to Kasparov's favored 6. Be3 Ng4 line which was so effective at Linares 1999. This book was primarily authored by Gallagher, and I like his work very much.

Published in 1992, this almost 300 page volume includes 12 seperate chapters. In this variation, the Queen's Bishop is fianchetto'd instead of the King's Bishop. 1.d4 Nf6, 2.c4 e6, 3.Nf3 b6 is the starting order. If White chooses 3.Nc3 then you need to give the Nimzo-Indian defence a look (3...Bb4). The only problem is that White has the choice of which Knight to bring out on Move 3, so you really need to learn both the Queen's Indian and the Nimzo-Indian defences if you aren't going to be using the King's Indian, Grunfeld or Benoni defences or the Benko Gambit. Transpositions are very common in these lines. This is definately one of the best books on the subject of the Queen's Indian.

The title of this book alone provides the two categories in the Korean world-view, Korean Confucianists and barbarians. This history dissertation ably isolates the important decade from 1875 to 1885, when Choson negotiated treaties with Japan, China, Russia, the United States, and France. Also, Pusan, Inchon, and Wonsan would become international trade centers. And, domestic crises, such as the Confucian protests and return of the Taewongun in 1882, Kim Ok-kyun's 1884 coup attempt, and Sino-Japanese hostilities, are sketched and analyzed.

The author portrays King Kojong as an ineffectual, but enlightened monarch constrained by Choson's economic weakness and bureaucratic and aristocratic conservatism. Kojong's father, the Taewongun, and his wife's family, the Yohung Min, are also criticized for self-serving machinations that China and Japan exploit. Choson, weakened by aristocrats and Confucianism, was unable to modernize, as had Meiji Japan, and fell prey to its geographical neighbors.

The book has valuable appendices and elucidates the various treaties as negotiated and finalized. Although the author does not delve deeply into the various personalities involved, major players, including foreign diplomats, like Li Hung-chang, Yuan Shih-kai, Paul Georg von Moellendorff, Takezoe Shinichiro, are introduced. The strength of the book is its organization and clarity.

I was moved to write a review on this most unusual and beautiful book. I found this book quite by accident. When I finished reading it, I thought it was the most important book I have ever read. For me, this book was about love, what love means, how we hold love in our hearts, and the depth of love in our souls. The book is interwoven with the most beautiful poetry. I found myself weeping at times, suddenly and unexpectedly. I believe I was weeping because the ideas expressed in this book were consistent with what I have always believed and held to be true, about the meaning of love, God, my spiritual path, and most especially, about my belief in soul-mates. I don't know how Paul Ferrini knew what was in my heart, but he did. I shared this book with my best friend apprehensively, wondering if she would feel as I did. When she finished the book, she told me that she thought it was one of the most important books she had ever read. I was happy to have her agreement, but knew it really would not have mattered how the book touched her. I would still have my own true experience. I read two other books by Paul Ferrini after reading this one. But I have shared about my experience of this book with at least 20 people, since reading it last month. Finding this book was an act of divine intervention, I am convinced.

As someone interested in that region of our country, I found this book compelling . . . and it gave me a new understanding of the Mormons' struggle to find their homeland. I would recommend it to anyone even remotely interested in Mormons or in that area of that country. The story is page-turning, not a dry history at all.

For several years I have been looking for a simple text to use with students to examine issues of diversity. This is it! Bucher presents in 7 short chapters an overview that includes a broad range of issues, balanced theory with practical application, useful and challenging activities. I plan to use this not only with my sociology students but also with human resource personnel who are trying to be more effective managers of diversity. Good work!

After buying MCO 13 I found it hard to find my specific opening or a specific line...it just had opening names...but with ECO B...I could just go to the ECO code and see more of white's replies...I am a Sicilian player and the ECO B20-B99 was very important to have as I could basically find any respone white would have...I recommend this much more than MCO...you will never fear 1.e4 again!

I have been stunned by how beautiful these two books by Bagirov are. I have become used to the cranked out works you see nowadays. These works, although fairly recent (1994 and 1995) hearken back to days of Polugayevsky, when books were written as labors of love, with tremedous care and depth. These books on the English are very special, and should be sought and bought. They go into tremedous depth, but also have constant explanatory textual comments.

Quintessential book by Chess Grandmaster Raymond Keene, who answers many queries on the game of chess and its openings. Ever wondered the secret of chess genius Garry Kasparov's successful openings or why some openings are favoured more than others? Then this is the book for you. With fresh discussions of some highly analyzed moves in chess history, the collection is a great one. Published by Hardinge and Simpole.