I am 59. My father taught me chess back in the 1950s, and I played maybe 20 games in 50 years. Recently I became persuaded that “use it or lose it” applies to the mind as well as the body, so in December I decided to get reasonalby serious about chess. One book said I needed to get involved in local events, even though I would lose lots. Too true, I report sadly. Still, it’s a hoot, and I intend to continue to work at it. So far I have scrambled my rating up to a lofty 1144, how about that.
I look at some of the better players in the Portland Chess Club and think, Jerry, not in this lifetime. Still, I think it is reasonable to aim for the 1600s over time, why not. So that’s where I am, and I am seeking recommendations for books to help me achieve this goal. And also books that might be more advanced, should I show some potential for this chew-toy for the mind. So far I have been recommended Sharpen Your Tactics and How To Reassess Your Chess.
Also websites. My slow brain doesn’t handle very well that rapid chess found on most sites. Several people have told me I need to do some of that, so I will. But are there any websites where one can settle into a game for a while, maybe 30-50 minutes for each player?
Thanks for any suggestions.
Skip the rapid stuff until you are comfortable with slow chess. If you don’t know what’s going on in a slow game, playing faster isn’t going to help.
Definitely I would echo the recommendation for How To Reassess Your Chess.
I also like this oldie but goodie: Judgement and Planning in Chess.
For slower online games, try Slow Time Control Bunch. They play at FICS and other site$.
Or even slower at Its Your Turn.Com
Get a book of Korchnoi’s games…not so much for what you can learn, but for sheer inspiration. The guy’s still playing top-notch chess at an age when lots of people are six feet under.
Books:
I think the book “Logical Chess: Move by Move” by Irving Chervev is one of the best books for someone at your level. Not only do you get an explanation of every move but a somewhat overall “Big Picture” of what your trying to accomplish and lots of general advice.
Once you get “CLOSE” to 1600, I would recommend “Chess Training for Budding Champions” by Jesper Hall if it can still be found. This book will give you more specialized instruction on the specific parts of the game. EG, Openings, Middlegame, Endings, Strategy, Tactics, How to Calculate, etc. He also gives
specific reading(other books) for further improvement in those areas.
Another excellent and enjoyable book for the overall picture of Chess is “The Idiots Guide to Chess” by Patrick Wolff. This book contains info on history, culture, websites, top players, general improvement, books, etc. Also some basic instruction on the different phases of the game. This is the first book that I would read if I wanted to become familiar with the world of organized chess.
Of the books that have been recommended to you, I think they are very specific and may be too difficult for you at this stage and you may become overwhelmed and bored.
And what happens very often: The book goes back on the shelf.
I like Silman’s books, but the one to read before “How To Reassess Your Chess”
is the “Amateur’s Mind”. This could be another consideration after “Logical Chess”. Instead of the author just explaining the moves, it is the amateur player explaning why they made the move(erroneous thinking) with the author offering advice to correct.
Good Luck !!
You may also want to checkout “Chess Master at any age” by Rolf Wetzell. Rolf decided to work hard on his chess at a rather late age and succeeded in getting his master rating in his 50s. Mind you he a weak class A player when he started his quest. But he does provide a methodology on how to improve. His method is actually quite similar to the now famous 300 position theory of Russian teachers. If you are not familiar with that, it is methodolgy of becoming acquainted with 300 positions and knowing them cold. But there is more.
BTW, the STC bunch is a good group to join. They also also run tournaments on ICC. Don’t forget about correspondence chess. It is a great way to develop one’s opening repertoire without worry as much about the clock. Don’t play to may at one time or you will have the same problem in time management.
As for tactics, it is good to use those tactical drills book and use them when ever you have time, such as commuting (if you use public transportation) or bathroom breaks 
You may want to take a look a “Chess Exam and Training Guide: TACTICS” from Igor Khmelnitsky or his other book “Chess Exam and Training Guide”. The is a quiz type, but it will give you an assessment of where you are weak as well as suggestion on how to improve your weak spots. The first one listed deals only with tactics while the second covers all chess topics.
Since you obviously have a computer (to write to the forum and play online) you want to also check out CT-ART 3.0 by ChessAssistant. It is a computer program with timed tactical drills which is very effective.
I hope this helps.
Where can I find a reference for these 300 positions? Sounds interesting.
WCL also (free for 6 months for USCF members). If it’s not too late for you, they have a G/25 tournament 15 minutes after midnight (eastern time) each day.
I like CT-ART, but I like personalchesstrainer.com even better. They both really helped shake the rust off after I had quit playing chess for several years.
I would hope that it’s proper for me to mention my own online training site, chessmagnetschool.com, as it very much oriented towards what Jerrold describes.
Basically, our web site provides - via a “learning by doing” (or “active learning”) method - a review of everything the student may already know, and then a path forward through a curriculum developed over more than two decades by an educator who is also a USCF rated senior master who is also a career educator with multiple graduate degrees, and numerous successful students. Both adults and children have reported finding it useful from beginner up through somewhere between 1600 and 1800 (this varies from player to player, and some stronger players reviewing it have expressed getting value, too). For the most part, the problems are untimed, with the emphasis being on learning, not on reflex.
Our system is adaptive, and anyone can use it freely for up to thirty days before needing to consider the subscription fees, which are roughly equivalent to the price of one good chess book for an entire year. It will track the student’s history and provide breakdowns on areas of strengths and weaknesses. There is an “advance placement test” available to skip past the most basic beginner material, a “rating test” option to perform self-assessments at any time, and direct access to each area via the curriculum “topics” list, as well. The adaptive algorithms have been developed by a mathematician who has programmed a world champion PC chess algorithm (MChessPro, world microcomputer champion in 1995), and who won awards at NASA for his work there, as well.
I have just returned from Nashville, where I got a lot of great feedback from coaches, parents and teachers. I’d appreciate hearing feedback - pro or con - here, as well.We have been refining and extending the system steadily since introduction in 2005, and user feedback is of great value in this regard.
Jerrold,
If as you say you have very little play (50 games in your lifetime) the best way to start is to play when ever you can. The STC bunchhttp://www.stcbunch.net , who are on most servers can get you into games where the time control is comfortable to you.
Most educators say that beginners (with 50 games that makes you a beginner) that ratio of 80% play time to 20% study is best.
If you have the time, go over you games to see what you (and your opponents) missed. You can use this information to figure where you need work. Timed tactical drills can improve the speed of your tactical engine by remembering patterns that help you spot future opportunities quicker.
In an initial rating of 1144 is actually a very good thing, just remember no matter how old you are, there is going to be some growing pains, just take heart that growing pains is just a sign of growing.
Also don’t get too comfortable with time controls, winning (or losing percentages) and always try to improve by taking on more difficult opponents to keep on growing.
Tastaafl,
The 300 position is mentioned and practiced is a few books, such as “Chess Training Pocket Book” by Lev Alburt, where he presents his offering of 300 positions and “GM-RAM” by Ziyatdinov, who only presents his set without solution:
.