Books and more: Volume 2!?

Here I continue looking at recent books.
Chess Stars, Everyman, and some less well-known publishing houses have come up with some nice works recently.
Read on for the details.

Everyman

In the photo you may notice that I'm carrying three books. If you find, like me, that having several books to hand can overload one's resources then perhaps you may like to investigate the possibility of getting e-books.

Everyman have just added to their e-mail library with Dangerous Weapons: the French and The Pirc in Black & White.

Otherwise Fighting the Anti-Sicilians by Richard Palliser has been reprinted again (a good sign that people like it!) and Play the Ponziani by Dave Taylor & Keith Hayward is new. I found this book had some original and interesting ideas but a lot of the book, covering obscure lines, wasn't so great. For Ponziani lovers however this would be the bees knees!

Another recent work in the Dangerous Weapons series on the Dutch by the usual suspects (Palliser, Williams and Vigus) is one I'm looking forward to.

Chess Stars

The Bulgarian publishing house has been active again. If you didn't know already, they have put together some high-ranking East European authors to write for them. Their analyses are generally well above average and they have the ability to get their books out more quickly than the competition.

Some new Chess Stars' titles

So for example Alexey Dreev in The Moscow and Anti-Moscow Variations has furnished some cutting-edge analysis and gone well beyond where others have ventured before.

Khalifman's twelfth volume of his Opening for White according to Anand covers the Rauzer and now the thirteenth and final volume (on the Najdorf!) is out. An epic series by another elite player and author.

Barsky's work on the Scotch is geared-up to a slightly lower readership but contains some interesting ideas all the same. The popular 6.Q-f3 variation is covered in detail, but I'm not sure if this would be everyone's cup of tea.

Meeting gambits à la Kiril

Kiril Georgiev is able to demonstrate some nice lines to calm Black's ardour for various gambits such as the Benko, Budapest and Blumenfeld. The title brings to our attention the positional nature of his approach.

Chess Stars' books sometimes can be accused of containing a few grammatical errors, but this is a minor point compared to their excellent chess content.

Mongoose

I don't know very much about this American publishing house, but the Complete Hedgehog by Shipov is a unique look at these cat-and-mouse scenarios. A remarkable work by an author who is well-known in chess circles as an analyst and ideas man as well as a useful player.

The Hedgehog by Mongoose

Wojo's Weapons Winning with White by Hilton and Ippolito is another of their offerings, and it turns out to be original and inspired. Wojtkiewicz was obviously quite popular in the US and his grinding strategic style is brought out in the choice of lines.

For those who like queenless middlegames and positional, rather than tactical, play.

Wojtkiewicz's opening ideas remembered

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