Many players could benefit from shelving the latest “trendy” variations and concentrating on opening systems that allow a normal white edge without constant attention to chess theory. It's no surprise that many strong players regularly rely on 1.Nf3 and a subsequent c2-c4 to provide them this opportunity, and THE DYNAMIC RETI does a very nice job of explaining why. In fact, even a player like Kasparov, in a must-win situation with the world championship on the line against his archrival Karpov chose this exact method – and emerged victorious.

Grandmaster Nigel Davies is a well-regarded player, trainer, and author. He is a regular practitioner of 1.Nf3, and his understanding of the nuances of the Reti are evident, particularly as it relates to optimal move orders. For example, the author believes that white (in positions where c4 has been played in response to ….d5) should take care in playing b2-b3, because black can often get a good version of the Benoni reversed, especially if the bishop is committed to b2. As a consequence, Davies argues that white should instead deal with …dxc4 issues by playing Qc2, which leaves open the flexibility of recapturing the pawn on c4 with a knight after Na3 or Ne5. At the same time, it (depending on circumstances) does not require white to burn bridges by sacrificing the c4 pawn.

THE DYNAMIC RETI presents a suggested white repertoire after 1.Nf3, and it's hard to argue with the choices. For one thing, I was happy to see a repertoire that didn't toss out the over-used King's Indian Attack where white plays Nf3, g3, Bg2, 0-0, d3, and, after preparation, e4. While this is perfectly viable, there are few black players that are unprepared for dealing with this setup, and white's choices are somewhat limited.

In contrast, the setups with white playing an early c2-c4 are fresher, even though this was the original way that Reti and other proponents played as white. The author is also willing to spice things up with some fairly unbalanced lines, such as 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.b4.

This series of books by Everyman relies on the illustrative game method. While I've generally preferred the tree variation approach to books, there are some decisions made by Davies that make this more acceptable. For one, the author has “doctored” the move orders in games to keep them consistent. I enjoyed Davies comment to justify this, noting that “the purist may argue that I'm defacing works of art, my argument is that the Reti is difficult to understand without having to decipher the many different move orders.” I also think the author has worked to organize and name material to be user friendly for the average player.

Besides lines with 1.Nf3 d5 2.c4, Davies provides useful coverage against other first moves by black. Against 1.Nf3 c5, he recommends transposing intro English lines with 2.c4 followed by a quick d2-d4. This is a popular line that has been used over the years by world-class players like Uhlmann and Portisch. He also provides lines against moves like 1…f5, 1…g6 and 1..Nc6.

I think that many players might find this an interesting book. For starters, Davies has sought to develop a repertoire that leads to strategically complex positions, and I think he does a good job of this. I actually grew up playing this stuff, and it does provide plenty of opportunities for white to work for a dynamic strategic sort of game.

As noted previously, Davies understands these lines, and he does a nice job of keeping the reader focused on ideas that may come up on practice.

In conclusion, players who are looking for a less theory-bound approach to a white repertoire will find this a very valuable book. GM Davies provides a useful repertoire that could benefit many players.