VICTOR BOLOGAN: SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004
Author: Victor Bologan (Foreword by Garry Kasparov)
Russell Enterprises, Inc. (2007)
236 pages
$28.95

Reviewed by Jeremy Silman

There have been many autobiographical game collections in the last hundred years. The first great autobiographical game collection was MY BEST GAMES OF CHESS (two volumes covering 1908-1937) by Alekhine. His comments and notes transcended anything that had ever been seen at that time and are now viewed as must own classics.

CHESS PRAXIS by Nimzowitsch was a bit different than Alekhine's books. Yes, it featured nicely annotated games by the legendary master himself, but he used these games to show how his principles operated in actual practice. Of course, this also became a must own classic.

MARSHALL'S BEST GAMES OF CHESS (originally titled MY FIFTY YEARS OF CHESS) offered a more personal look at the mind and games of a great player, and this "vulnerable" style wasn't seen again until Keres' epic works a couple decades later.

Botvinnik gave us the next great collection. Though he wrote a monumental three book series, by far the most palatable (and affordable!) is BOTVINNIK'S 100 SELECTED GAMES. And yes, we got yet another must own classic.

Not to be outdone, Smyslov published his MY BEST GAMES OF CHESS 1935-1957. This isn't as well known as Botvinnik's work, but it's wonderful stuff and should be in every chess library.

Keres gave the genre a major reworking by making the biographical material and notes far more detailed and far more personal. GRANDMASTER OF CHESS by Keres (originally in three hardcover volumes: THE EARLY GAMES, THE MIDDLE YEARS, THE LATER YEARS. A paperback abridged version was later published, and John Nunn put together an edited two volume redo titled PAUL KERES: THE ROAD TO THE TOP and PAUL KERES: THE QUEST FOR PERFECTION) still stands tall as one of finest examples of the autobiographical game collection.

THE LIFE AND GAMES OF MIKHAIL TAL carried on Keres' vision of how these kinds of books should be. In fact, many believe it to be the greatest chess book ever written. CLICK TO SEE SILMAN'S REVIEW OF THIS BOOK.

MY 60 MEMORABLE GAMES by Fischer was a major blockbuster, though I've always felt that BENT LARSEN MASTER OF COUNTER-ATTACK [CLICK TO SEE SILMAN'S REVIEW] is superior. In any case, the floodgates were now opened and solid titles like AVERBAKH'S SELECTED GAMES (SEE SILMAN'S REVIEW), TAIMANOV'S SELECTED GAMES [SEE SILMAN'S REVIEW], UNCOMPROMISING CHESS by Belyavsky [SEE SILMAN'S REVIEW], I PLAY AGAINST PIECES by Gligoric [SEE DONALDSON'S REVIEW], MY MOST MEMORABLE GAMES by Boris Gelfand [SEE WATSON'S REVIEW], JON SPEELMAN'S BEST GAMES [SEE WATSON'S REVIEW], MY ONE HUNDRED BEST GAMES by Alexey Dreev [SEE DONALDSON'S REVIEW], and many others made their way to bookshelves everywhere.

In the opinion of most reviewers, two autobiographical game collections stood out above the rest in recent years: VISHY ANAND: MY BEST GAMES OF CHESS [SEE WATSON'S REVIEW] and Shirov's FIRE ON BOARD and FIRE ON BOARD II: 1997 – 2004 [SEE WATSON'S REVIEW].

These were indeed excellent books, but I don't see them as being that exceptional since they didn't blaze new trails. In fact I prefer VICTOR KORCHNOI MY BEST GAMES WITH WHITE & BLACK (two volumes) by Korchnoi [SEE WATSON'S REVIEW] and PAL BENKO MY LIFE, GAMES AND COMPOSITIONS [SEE WATSON'S REVIEW]. The latter stands out since it took the autobiographical material and production values to a whole new level.

So how does the subject of this review, VICTOR BOLOGAN: SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004, fare when compared to all that's come before it? The answer, somewhat surprisingly, is very, very well!

Though he doesn't have the name recognition that Anand and Shirov have, Bologan is one of the best players in the world and has many victories over most of the chess elite. This means his games are of very high quality. But so what? The same can be said for all the other books previously mentioned too. What makes it a book that every real chess fan MUST buy?

There are two answers to this query. One is the enormous amount of biographical material. Bologan takes us through birth (literally!) to his childhood, from tournament to tournament, and into his home. Many photos and crosstables enrich the book as a whole, and his notes are both detailed and honest. The second answer though, takes the genre in a new direction: he discusses his chess teachers, what made him a strong player, AND he gives us a detailed lesson summery at the end of every game. This makes VICTOR BOLOGAN: SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004 not only fun and informative reading, but also highly instructive. His desire to teach is highlighted in an index titled: INDEX OF STRATEGIC, TACTICAL and PSYCHOLOGICAL TECHNIQUES. What a great idea! In fact, I'll undoubtedly steal this idea in my next book (actually, every book should incorporate this kind of index).

Of course, everything wasn't to my taste. For example, the following paragraph could have been dispensed with (though others might disagree):

"At eight months old, the baby already looked to be a year, and was led by the hand to his crib. Russian cribs are my first conscious memory of childhood. But for some reason, I always remember being on the pot."

Okay, Mr. Bologan doesn't have the snappy writing skills of Tal or Larsen, and at times his prose is a tad dry. Nevertheless, he unveils his story in a commendable manner, allowing us to not only see how famed chess trainer Dvoretsky characterized his weaknesses, but also teaching us about the "Yak-40", showing us how his naked form looks draped in a bed-sheet with a beer in his hand, what and where "Fiolente" is, and indoctrinating us into many more cultural tidbits that, before I read this book, had eluded me.

All in all, VICTOR BOLOGAN: SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004 is one of the best autobiographical game collections ever. His tales are fascinating, the games are sharp and full of beautiful ideas, his notes are top notch, and his desire to share his understanding of chess with the reader is moving and heartfelt.

Congratulations to the author and to Russell Enterprises for bringing this masterpiece to English speaking audiences.

Click to buy or get more information about:

VICTOR BOLOGAN SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004

BOTVINNIK'S BEST GAMES VOLUME 1 ($51.99)

BOTVINNIK'S BEST GAMES VOLUME 2 ($51.99)

BOTVINNIK'S BEST GAMES VOLUME 3 ($51.99)
 
BORIS GELFAND: MY MOST MEMORABLE GAMES ($35.00)

MY BEST GAMES OF CHESS by Vishy Anand ($22.95)

FIRE ON BOARD: SHIROV'S BEST GAMES ($19.95)

FIRE ON BOARD II: 1997-2004 ($24.95)

I PLAY AGAINST PIECES by Gligoric ($23.95)

PAL BENKO: MY LIFE, GAMES and COMPOSITIONS ($45.00)

KORCHNOI BEST GAMES VOL.1 ($30.00)

KORCHNOI BEST GAMES VOL.2 ($30.00)

MY ONE HUNDRED BEST GAMES by Dreev ($28.95)

MY BEST GAMES OF CHESS 1905-1930 by Tartakower ($29.95)

MY BEST GAMES OF CHESS 1931-1954 by Tartakower ($23.95)

MY FIFTY YEARS OF CHESS by Frank Marshall ($29.95)

BENT LARSEN'S BEST GAMES OF CHESS ($25.00)

LIFE & GAMES OF MIKHAIL TAL ($33.95)

AVERBAKH'S SELECTED GAMES ($31.95)

UNCOMPROMISING CHESS by Beliavsky ($27.95)

TAIMANOV'S SELECTED GAMES ($24.95)

SOKOLOV'S BEST GAMES ($24.95)