ChessCafe.com Weekly Newsletter, October 7 - 13, 2009

PO Box 1201 Harwich, MA 02645 1-877-91-CHESS (1-877-912-4377) Issue #25 October 7 - 13 Welcome to the ChessCafe.com weekly newsletter. You can keep up-to-date with new product releases, read reviews of selected products, and follow the latest postings at ChessCafe.com. Plus, try your hand at solving our weekly puzzle. Enjoy! Here & There Ben 10 You might expect teenagers to spend all their time watching the latest movies or cartoons, but some are also dreaming up new ideas in chess openings. Petrosian's Proverbs World Champion Tigran Petrosian made two statements about the openings that are pertinent to the titles reviewed this month. Tarrasch Defense ChessCafe.com is pleased to introduce a new column, The Openings Explained, in which contemporary opening variations are explained move-by-move. Nostalgia at its Best During his career, Vlastimil Hort met no less than eight world champions over-the-board. On this DVD he entertainingly looks back at these encounters. Caf� Commercial Luis Fernando Torino Caballero sits down and talks about the Caf� Commercial chess club in Madrid, Spain. Book Notes In The Most Valuable Skills in Chess, Maurice Ashley guides you on an inspirational journey through the world of chess tactics. He brings the pieces to life by examining their fundamental characteristics, and shows how their powers can be put to use to win pieces or give checkmate - the building-blocks upon which all chess skills are based. On GM Daniel King’s tenth Power Play DVD he helps you assess how good you are at calculation and give you tips on how to improve. In all there are forty-eight video segments for a running time of four and a half hours. Celebrate the release of Fritz 12 by saving 10% on all ChessBase products throughout the month! You will see the discount applied once you add the item to your cart. Weekly Puzzle   Quote of the Week White to Move/Solution Below   A rage to succeed is the most essential attribute of the champion. The Independent Tuesday, 23 June 2009 Reviews in Brief Facing the World Champions by Vlastimil Hort Vlastimil Hort was born in Prague in 1944 and became a grandmaster in 1965. He won the Czech and German championships on several occasions, qualified for the World Champion Candidates tournament of 1977, and played in Olympiads from 1960 to 1992. During his career, Hort has met eight world champions in over-the-board play, and on this DVD he entertainingly looks back at these games. One decidedly gets the impression of a grandfatherly figure, who is sharing his experiences with a younger generation. He refers to chess as a diabolical game and existentially questions whether it is a drug or a form of entertainment. He asks if you take it seriously enough or if you have ambitions or whether it is an escape from reality or a means to have some company. Hort expresses concern that viewers may be familiar with such stories, but the average modern viewer likely is not. This gives you all the more reason to listen to his stories and take in the wisdom of his tales. Hort is so captivating that one gets nearly forty minutes into the DVD and does not even notice that he has not yet touched the chessboard. His introduction is up to ten times longer than some other DVDs and it is all conversation. This is nostalgia at its best! Read the full review here.     New Catalog Additions 10/5 The Most Valuable Skills in Chess (Ashley) 10/4 B33 - Sicilian Defence 10/3 Chess Informant #105 ((Book) 10/3 Chess Informant #105 ((CD) 10/3 Chess Informant #105 ((Book + CD) 10/1 Fritz 12 (Pre-order) 9/26 Understanding Chess Endgames (Nunn) 9/25 New In Chess Magazine 2009/6 8/17 Shirov: The Sicilian with 3.Bb5 (DVD) 8/16 Davies: The f4 Sicilian (DVD) 8/15 Bologan: The Caro-Kann (DVD) Puzzle Answer: 17.Nxc6 Nxd3+ 18.Kd2 1-0 Hort - Byrne, Varna 1962 (Source: Anthology of Chess Combinations) Newsletter subscribers can save an extra ten percent beyond our already low price on the Anthology of Chess Combinations book by typing in the coupon code "champion10" (without the quotes) at checkout! This offer is valid through 10/13/2009 and is not being made available to non-subscribers. Copyright 2009 BrainGamz, Inc. All Rights Reserved.