Pawn Sacrifice Winning At Chess the Adventurous Way

PAWN SACRIFICE! WINNING AT CHESS THE ADVENTUROUS WAY
Author: Tim Taylor
Everyman Chess (2008)
239 pages
$23.95

Reviewed by John Donaldson

PAWN SACRIFICE! WINNING AT CHESS THE ADVENTUROUS WAY by IM Tim Taylor is the first book devoted to the topic of pawn sacrifices, which he places in 12 categories:
King Attack
Line Opening
Development
Deflecting
Pawn Cracker
Obstructive
Preventive
Two Bishops
Vacating
Charge Up
Endings
Confusion

Taylor uses 67 well-annotated games to illustrate his points with an emphasis on the play of two World Champions. That he selected Mikhail Tal will come as no surprise but many might be shocked to see that Tigran Petrosian is the other selection. “Iron Tigran” was noted for his trademark Exchange sacrifices but as Taylor shows he was equally adept making pawn sacrifices, in particular he was fond of doing this in the endgame to establish dominating positions for his king and other pieces.

One of the strengths of PAWN SACRIFICE! WINNING AT CHESS THE ADVENTUROUS WAY is Taylor’s objectivity. He makes no bones about his marked preference for the initiative, but this doesn’t prevent him from pointing out resources for the defender. His notes to the classic encounter Petrosian-Bertok, Zagreb 1965, illustrate that things were never completely clear, even after White’s pawn sacrifice e4-e5 and placing his Knight on e4. Choosing an example like this, in preference to a one-sided encounter with the same theme (for example Botvinnik-Pomar, Varna (ol) 1962) gives the student a much more realistic view of the pros and cons of this type of pawn sacrifice.

PAWN SACRIFICE! WINNING AT CHESS THE ADVENTUROUS WAY can be recommended for those interested in spicing up their play and increasing their creativity. Those who find this book useful will also enjoy another Everyman offering – UNDERSTANDING THE SACRIFICE by IM Angus Dunnington – which deals in part with the topic of pawn sacrifices.

Click to buy (or get more information about) PAWN SACRIFICE! WINNING AT CHESS THE ADVENTUROUS WAY

Also recommended by Mr. Donaldson: UNDERSTANDING THE SACRIFICE by Dunnington ($19.95)