How to Reassess Your Chess - 4th Edition [Paperback]

This review is for the FOURTH AND FINAL EDITION of this book. I do have an older third edition as well, and I will compare the two. There are plenty of reviews written about the quality of this book (older editions included), and I rate the book 5 stars for its content. However, I am not here to go into detail about that, but rather focus on the differences between editions.

The book contents are made up of the following parts: The Concept of Imbalances. Minor Pieces, Rooks, Psychological Meanderings, Target Consciousness, Statics vs. Dynamics, Space, Passed Pawns, and Other Imbalances. Each part is further broken down into specifics and is concluded with a summary and test questions.

The big differences between editions...This is an oversized book, much larger and 250 pages longer than the 3rd edition. The layout and size is just like Silman's Complete Endgame Course: From Beginner To Master. Larger print and more white space - I find this makes it much easier to read. The graphic designer should be commended. The 4th edition goes much more in depth (!!) about the concept of imbalances and guiding you to the correct plan. The main theme is the same as the older editions, but Silman gives it a new feel with updated ideas and ALL NEW examples. Silman writes it himself, he "literally wrote this fourth edition from scratch". Another huge change is the addition of Chess Psychology, 90 pages long! Silman claims many of these ideas have never been seen in any chess book before. The 4th edition does not include a Basic Endgames section like his 3rd edition. I believe it has no place in this book anyway and is covered in more detail in the previously mentioned work! He chopped this section and other parts that "distracted from the book's main purpose: mastering the imbalances". The 4th edition is more humorous! From drunken knights to passed bananas, he will keep you interested with some laughs along the way. Again, similar to his endgame course!

In the rear....
Silman added 33 pages of instructive articles where he takes some important pieces of writing from his Q&A column on chess.com. Some articles are Creating a Study Program, Proper Tournament Diet, Offering a Draw, and Is Chess a Gentleman's Game? This is a little bit odd considering he wanted to cut out any distractions. Unnecessary, but interesting nevertheless. Perhaps Silman wanted to give his column a shout out. On the other hand, the Index of Concepts is a great addition. If one of your games has a Rook for Minor Piece or Isolated Pawn, you can look up this concept in the index and find the listed pages to learn more about it. Bibliography and Index of Players/Games are included as well.

Silman recommends this book for USCF rated 1400-2100. And I agree! Being about 1900 USCF rated, I am reviewing and learning plenty.

I listened to IM John Watson's interview with IM Jeremy Silman on the Internet Chess Club. Great interview! I won't take away too much from it but I will add that Silman says, "If I am going to be known for one book, I wanted something I was really pleased with, and I am pleased with this." I am too! If you don't have a copy of Reassess Your Chess, then this is a great buy. If you have an older edition, there is enough new material and ideas with fresh examples to reassess all over again.

---- I think it would be great if amazon let you read the introduction online. Silman sums up the differences there as well.

I have always enjoyed chess, but always played casually. I always intended to get better and study more to improve my game. Like many chess students with good intentions I found my chess library growing around me but my game staying stagnant. As the chess book pile grew so did my intentions. I would open a book and work through the lessons never quite understanding why none of it would stick. I found some improvement through Mr. Silmans 3rd edition works and began trying to use his "thinking techniques." As I practiced the lessons on imbalances my game moved from move by move chess into the realm of seeing the board more clearly and understanding what was going on in a position. Fast forward to this year... I was asked to help out with a National level High School chess program who had won a championship in 2002, 2004, 2006, and 2007. It was time for me to get serious. I noticed at this time that Mr. Silman had released a 4th edition of his work and saw on the cover that it stated that it was completely rewritten. I purchased the book and decided this was the moment I was going to work as hard as ever learning the game.

Too much intro and too little review, yes I know, I know... *Cough* ok so away we go...

What an amazing book!! Never in all my studies has chess been so clearly presented in a way that any student could find joy and advancement. Mr. Silman has taken his old "techniques" and found a way, not only to teach them, but to stick them solidly in your brain. During my games I can actually hear comments made in this book. Lessons are open in such a wonderful way. This rework is not only an improvement on his old information it is a teacher with years and years of implementing his lessons and over time finding just the way to make a student retain them. Since my studies began this year, I have joined a chess club as an unrated amature and beaten some solid players. Part 4 of the book Psychological Meanderings is worth the cost of this book alone. The week I studied this section I went into chess club with the lessons on stepping beyond fear, mental breakdown, macho chess, etc, fresh on my mind and found myself across the board from a 1927 rated player. Suddenly Mr. Silman was in my head saying, "Rating nothing... This guy is rubbish... Just play the board..." So off we went... I sit here looking down at the score sheet with this unrated amature winning in 25 moves. To hear the 1927 look up red faced and say, "That... That was just too much pressure... I... I just messed up." and to smile up and say, "Not bad for a beginner, huh?" was awesome. Throughout the game Mr. Silman's lessons were always coming to my mind. My mind was working through comments like, "Look if I can stop that pawn I can make that Bishop useless," His Knight would love that square I better take it away now and that would be two very useless pieces," and my favorite, "Wow if I sack that exchange look what it does for my position and look how active my pieces become!"

Some other important aspects of this book are the following... Current examples for every lesson from every rating category, examples have the opening sequence of moves listed up to the important lesson for the position so you can actually see how the players arrived to the moment you are learning from, at the end of every chapter is a set of tests similar to what the workbook was to 3rd edition with answers fully explained in the back of the book (almost like having an additional book within a book), many examples per lesson to help get the material to stick, a well thought out order to the delivery of material. So much more...

I guess the best way to sum this book up is, to me, "this one is it," the chess book every learning chess student should own. Mr. Silman is a fabulous teacher with a wonderful delivery. Thank you, Mr. Silman for taking the time to give us this work. With every good review should come a section of things wrong with the book I suppose, but as I sit here I struggle to find them. It is what it claims to be and nothing more. You will not get an opening repetoire, an endgame diatribe, or a brilliant tactical guide, but what you will get is an understanding of what a position is calling for and where your plan should be centered toward, where the weaknesses are on both sides of the board, a thinking method to know what advantages and disadvantages matter at this very moment, and a clear picture to help you see through what Josh Waitzkin calls the "black and white jungle." Enjoy!

Jeremy Silman is simply the best chess instructional writer I've ever read, and I've read about 70 chess books. Nimzovich's "My System" is the only other book in a class with this one, and this one is better (though it covers different material. Both are great.)

The problem with most chess instruction is that the writer has not taught many students, and so they tend to make statements that seem obvious to them, but are way over our heads. Silman has taught many private students, and he therefore understands what it is we are not "getting." There are several concepts he explains that I've heard before, but never understood until reading him.

Silman's concepts about imbalances in a position are absolute epiphanies to us poor patzers who have been playing chess for years, but never really understood how to analyze a position except to say, "If I go here, and he goes there ..." Silman shows that analysis of specific variations should be the last thing one does, and shows - step by step - the proper way to analyze. His chapters on attaining a superior minor piece are in themselves worth the price of the book.

If you're looking for one book to vastly improve your understanding of chess, I highly recommend this as the first, second and third choice. If this recommendation seems almost too glowing, I assure you, I have no relationship with Silman. I am a writer, who loves chess as a pastime, and have had some of my work published in chess life. I seldom get to play in tournaments, but I recently played a USCF Life Master (rated 2200) for the first time, and I drew with Black. I attribute much of my improved understanding of the game to Silman, and the rest to Nimzovich.