As a general guide The Everyman Starting Out series is usually aimed at players below 2200, but GM Joe Gallagher's recent effort on the STARING OUT: THE PIRC/MODERN is a cut above this. Perhaps, because he has recently started playing this opening again, the book is filled with more theoretical material, but not so much as to overwhelm the reader. This book doesn't only cover 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 but also looks at Black's options after 1.e4 g6. Gallagher, a long-time King's Indian player, feels that Black should meet 1.d4 g6 2.c4 Bg7 3.Nc3 d6 4.e4 with 4...Nf6, not finding 4...e5, 4...Nd7 or 4...Nc6 leading to either equality or positions offering winning possibilities. Click to see Bauer's review of this book.

STARTING OUT: THE ENGLISH by GM Neil McDonald is a good overview of the possibilities arising from 1.c4. McDonald follows the Everyman "Starting Out" series format with illustrative games backed by plenty of prose with light notes. This book is best used by players below Master. Click to see Bauer's review of this book.

There aren't too many all-purpose opening systems that are both theoretically manageable and still pack some punch. I always cringe when I see non-Masters using the King's Indian Attack as their opening of choice, the positional niceties usually being butchered. A better all-purpose weapon is 1.b3 or 1.b4, better yet the Torre Attack or even possibly the Stonewall. The Veresov isn't often thought of these days, but GM Nigel Davies has done a first rate job of making a case for 1.d4 followed by 2.Nc3 in THE VERESOV. Davies covers all the transpositions that can arise from this tricky opening including the French (he advocates Bxf6 with Nf3 against the Classical), the Caro move-order (1.d4 d5 2.Nc3 c6 3.Bg5), the Dutch (1.d4 f5 2.Nc3) and the Benoni move-order (1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 c5 3.Bg5). The only thing missing here is move one departures like 1.d4 g6 or 1.d4 c5. The key positions in the Veresov arise after 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bg5 Nbd7 when Davies frowns on the popular 4.f3, preferring the far more solid 4.Nf3 or 4.e3. THE VERESOV is good reading for non-Masters looking for a one-stop opening system. Click to see Silman's review of this book.

THE FOUR KNIGHTS by Polish IM Jan Pinski is a slightly misleading title. When you think of the Four Knights the sequence 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5 Bb4 or 4...Nd4 usually comes to mind, but Pinski also covers the Scotch Four Knights (4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4) and its branches (4...Bb4) plus the Belgrade Gambit (4.d4 exd4 4.Nd5), not to mention the first ever book treatment of the Glek variation (4.g3) - 49 pages! Pinski is very objective and he concludes that White is having trouble gaining an advantage against 4.Bb5 Nd4, in the main lines of the Scotch Four Knights and the Glek with either 4...Bc5 or 4...d5. THE FOUR KNIGHTS is more likely to be of interest for those who answer 1.e4 with 1...e5. Those who play 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 with White may not be so optimistic about their chances after reading this book.  Click to see Bauer's review of this book.

Openings that are popular at the top level often don't find their way to the club level, but the Marshall Attack is an exception. THE MARSHALL ATTACK by Bogdan Lalic covers not only Frank Marshall's brainchild (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.c3 d5 9.exd5 Nxd5 10.Nxe5 Nxe5 11.Rxe5) but also 9...e4, as well as anti-Marshall systems like 8.h3, 8.a4 and 8.d4. You will need another book for earlier departures like 4.Bxc6 or 5.d4. THE MARSHALL ATTACK is well researched and up to date, as one might expect since Lalic is a respected theoretician. If this book has any drawbacks for lower players, below 2000, it is that they seldom get a chance to play the Marshall, their opponents usually avoiding it. Click to see Silman's review of this book.

PLAY THE NAJDORF: SCHEVENINGEN STYLE by GM Jon Emms is a repertoire book devoted to playing the Najdorf, with a preference for setups with ...e6, as opposed to ...e5. Author Emms had his work cut out for him when writing a book on the Najdorf. 300-plus page books have dealt with just 6.Bg5, and here he has only 192 pages to cover the entire opening. He has managed to do this quite judiciously, emphasizing lines that are currently more popular. A book like this could have easily turned into a data dump, but Emms' influence is felt throughout with plenty of prose to guide the reader. The Najdorf is not for everyone. It is a demanding opening, but also one of the best weapons around. It is no accident that it a life long favorite of Garry Kasparov. If you want to take up this opening, this book is a first rate guide. Click to see Bauer's review of this book.