Irving Chernev's 10 Best Books?

Since the more I study and read, the more I seem to be of the same mind as this man ....
on so many different topics; I thought it would be appropriate to provide a list of Chernev's all-time best, favorite, and best written chess books. Chernev is also maybe the finest chess writer who ever lived. NOT the best player, not the most notable champ - just the best at what he did. (Teach and write.)

He also might have loved chess more than just about any other person who ever lived.
(And he shared this love with anyone who would listen to him.)

The list of the twelve finest chess books - ever.
By the one and only IRVING CHERNEV.
(Source: "Chess Lists," 2nd Edition. By GM A. Soltis. Page # 226)

"My Best Games of Chess, 1908 - 1923;" by GM Alexander Alekhine.
"A collection of games of dazzling beauty," ... "by the most brilliant player who ever
lived," ... by "one of the greatest annotators who ever lived."
"Masters of The Chessboard," by GM Richard Reti.
"Lucid and comprehensive." Maybe "the finest manual ever written."
"My 60 Memorable Games," by (GM) Bobby Fischer.
   "An outstanding collection of games." "A totally absorbing book," ...
     Fischer is "refreshingly objective." His annotations go into "great detail,"
     says Chernev, sometime to ... "an unbelievable extent." "A masterpiece."
"My Chess Career," by (the incomparable) (GM) Jose R. Capablanca.
   A really good book by perhaps the greatest player who ever lived.
    ... "flights of genius," says Chernev.
"One Hundred Selected Games,"   by GM Mikhail Botvinnik.
   <100 Strategic Masterpieces,> by "a connisseur of chess," says Chernev.
    (I agree, I think this is easily a great book, and one that is often overlooked.)
"My System," by GM Aaron Nimzowitsch.
"He added a great deal to our knowledge," ... "a pivotal book," says Chernev.
"The Book of The International Chess Tournament, (New York) 1924,"
by GM Alexander Alekhine. "One of the best books," ... written by Alekhine
with extremely "profound notes," he points out stuff everyone else missed.
"Das Internationale Schachmeisterturnier in Karlsbad 1907," by Georg Marco
and Carl Schlechter. The authors ... "get to the heart of things," says Chernev.
"IV Internationales Schachmeisterturnier - Karlsbad, 1929." (By six authors.)
   Nimzovich, Spielmann, Becker, Tartakower, Kmoch and Brinkmann ...
   "surprised themselves in the quality of their notes." (So says Irving Chernev.)
"Manual of Chess," by (GM) Emanuel Lasker.
   Seemingly a very mediocre book by today's standards, Lasker - with "his own charm,"
   says Chernev ... explains things ... "that no other Master had ever attempted before."

Note: The book (by GM Soltis) clearly says 12 books ... there were only 10 in the list. (A misprint?)

Click HERE To go, or return to, my page on the "Best Chess Books of All Time."

I created this page in March of 2003, but I did not really do any real work on it until September of 2004. (A little thing ... like a hurricane ... disrupted my normal schedule!) I was not able to post this game - on the Internet, on this website - until Thursday, October 21st, 2004. (Too many delays.)

Irving Chernev's 10 Finest Chess Books