The initial part of this book deals with combinations and tactical techniques, and suggests methods for developing a player's calculating ability. In the second part the author analyses a number of fascinating examples, in which he examines a wide variety of attacking and defensive means. Once again, the reader is encouraged to developing his chess understanding by tackling numerous tests. Join in and become one of Mark Dvoretsky's pupils!

"Compared with the other books in this series, substantially more space is given to the analysis of the opening problems that confront a player in a particular game. The first half of the book is altogether devoted to opening preparation (although, as you will see, not only to this), and also in the second half nearly every game is accompanied by detailed opening information. The main attraction of chess is its thematic content. I hope that this book, like the preceding ones, will provide a guide for you through the rich and diverse world of chess ideas, will help you to perceive the depth and beauty of schemes generated at the board, in tournament or match play, to disclose the causes of mistakes and to be aware of the hidden forces that determine the plans of chess encounters. As a result you will significantly improve your understanding of chess, and your practical playing strength will rise." -- Mark Dvoretsky

Mark Dvoretsky is regarded as the leading chess coach in the world, and in this series of books he reveals the training methods that have transformed so many of his pupils into champions. This first title is devoted to the endgame and examines a wide range of positions, taken mainly from games of the author's pupils. The comments are packed with practical advice and special test positions and frequent questions ensure that the reader's participation in the book is an active one.

The world's top trainer, Mark Dvoretsky, and one of his best-known pupils, grandmaster Artur Yusupov, present a five-volume series based on courses given to talented young players throughout the world. The books contain contributions by other leading trainers and grandmasters, as well as games by pupils who have attended the courses. The final volume of the series deals with various creative aspects, such as the calculation of variations and the development of intuition. It also explores the psychology of taking decisions, both when attacking and when defending.

The second volume explains the basic principles of the opening, discusses how to build an opening repertoire and produce opening novelties, and explores the connection between the opening and the later stages -- the middlegame and the endgame.

This third volume in Mark Dvoretsky's course is devoted to questions of strategy, and is aimed at improving the reader's positional understanding. The author also examines a number of positions that lie on the boundary between the middlegame and endgame. As in the other books of the series, he uses examples from his own games and those of his pupils, together with original analyses of episodes from other player's games. "My books may or may not be liked, but it is unlikely that they could have been any different. I demonstrate examples that are memorable to me in the way that I myself see them, and I describe the chess and psychological mechanisms in the same way that I explain them in lessons to my pupils. I am sure that an attempt to deliberately correct, and artificially simplify the material would have led to a significant lowering of its quality, and a distortion of the chess patterns generated in the mind of the author, and, I hope, subsequently also in the mind of the reader ..." -- Mark Dvoretsky