IDEAS BEHIND MODERN CHESS OPENINGS: BLACK
Author: Gary Lane
192 pages
$21.95
Batsford (2005)

Reviewed by John Donaldson

This book is a follow up to IM Lane’s previous work IDEAS BEHIND MODERN CHESS OPENINGS, which was an opening repertoire book for White. Here he switches the board around and advocates low-maintenance, easy-to-follow openings that can be played from the very first move. Against 1 e4, Lane advocates the 3...Qd6 line of the Scandinavian, while against 1 d4, the Chigorin is analyzed in detail. Systems against other, less common opening moves are also discussed. The only place I can see where IM Lane’s proposed repertoire falls short is against the move order 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4, which seems to have escaped the author’s attention. Of course the reader of this book could follow in the footsteps of Viktor Kortchnoi who plays 2...d4 and claims that Black is already better due to his space advantage, but not everyone would agree. Also amateur players would not likely have the versatility to play Benoni positions in the scheme of the White and Black repertoire Lane advocates. I think a better fit might be meet 2.c4 with 2...dxc4 with the idea of meeting 3.Na3 with 3...e5 (analyzed in Volume 3 of SECRETS OF OPENING SURPRISES (New in Chess 2005) and 3.e3 with 3...Be6, an offbeat line that has been played by GMs of the quality of Paul Keres, Ivan Sokolov and Jaan Ehlvest. This one caveat aside, I think Lane has come up with a very reasonable repertoire. The amount Black needs to learn is not that great, the openings contain some surprise value and they have some punch.

Recommended.

Click to buy:

Click to buy SECRETS OF OPENING SURPRISES 1

Click to buy SECRETS OF OPENING SURPRISES 2

Click to buy SECRETS OF OPENING SURPRISES 3

Click to buy IDEAS BEHIND MODERN CHESS OPENINGS

Click to buy IDEAS BEHIND MODERN CHESS OPENINGS: BLACK