Compiled by afabian

"There are more adventures on a chessboard than on all the seas of the world." ― Pierre Mac Orlan

"When your house is on fire, you cannot be bothered with the neighbors. Or, as we say in chess, if your King is under attack, do not worry about losing a pawn on the queenside." ― Garry Kasparov

"His name was Rambo, and he was just some nothing kid for all anybody knew, standing by the pump of a gas station at the outskirts of Madison, Kentucky." ― David Morrell, First Blood

"One more dance along the razor's edge finished. Almost dead yesterday, maybe dead tomorrow, but alive, gloriously alive, today." ― Robert Jordan, Lord of Chaos

* Glossary: Wikipedia article: Glossary of chess

* Katar's Repertoire: Game Collection: An Opium Repertoire for White

* C53s: Game Collection: rajat21's italian game

* RL Minis: Game Collection: Ruy Lopez Miniatures

* Del's: Game Collection: Del's hidden gems

* GK: Game Collection: Kasparov - The Sicilian Sheveningen

* Bit Collection: Game Collection: Special Gambit Collection

* Blowing Away the Castled King: Game Collection: Attack The King's Pocket

* Sacs on f7/f2: Game Collection: Demolition of Pawn Structure: Sac on f7 (f2)

* Extinguish the Dragon: Game Collection: 1.e4 explorations

"There is no jewel in the world comparable to learning; no learning so excellent both for Prince and subject, as knowledge of laws; and no knowledge of any laws so necessary for all estates and for all causes, concerning goods, lands or life, as the common laws of England." ― Sir Edward Coke

"Without integrity and honor, having everything means nothing." ― Robin Sharma

"I am no longer cursed by poverty because I took possession of my own mind, and that mind has yielded me every material thing I want, and much more than I need. But this power of mind is a universal one, available to the humblest person as it is to the greatest." ― Andrew Carnegie

""Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic, be enthusiastic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

"We sleep safely at night because rough men stand ready to visit violence on those who would harm us." ― Winston S. Churchill

InkHarted wrote:

Checkmate.
I started off as an equal
I have everything that they do
my life was one and the same as my foe
childish battles of lesser
I won baring cost of a little
but as time outgrew my conscience
I found that the pieces were moving against me
with time my company reduced
they left one by one
all in time forgetting me
my castles collapsed
my religion dissuaded
my protectors in hiding
I could not run anymore
I have been cornered to a wall
as the queen left silently
without saying goodbye
I could not live any longer
she was most precious to me
I could not win without her by my side
so the king knelt down and died.

"Chess is a war over the board. The object is to crush the opponent's mind." ― Bobby Fischer

"Chess does not drive people mad, it keeps mad people sane." ― Bill Hartston

"Friend, you don't have to earn God's love or try harder. You're precious in His sight, covered by the priceless blood of Jesus, and indwelt by His Holy Spirit. Don't hide your heart or fear you're not good enough for Him to care for you. Accept His love, obey Him, and allow Him to keep you in His wonderful freedom." — Charles F. Stanley

There are distinct situations where a bishop is preferred (over a knight). For example, two bishops are better than two knights or one of each. Steven Mayer, the author of Bishop Versus Knight, contends, "A pair of bishops is usually considered to be worth six points, but common sense suggests that a pair of active bishops (that are very involved in the formation) must be accorded a value of almost nine under some circumstances." This is especially true if the player can plant the bishops in the center of the board, as two bishops working in tandem can span up to 26 squares and have the capacity to touch every square.

Bishops are also preferable to knights when queens have been exchanged because, Grandmaster Sergey Erenburg, who is ranked 11th in the U.S., explains, "Bishops and rooks complement each other, and when well-coordinated, act as a queen." Conversely, a knight is the preferred minor piece when the queen survives until the late-middlegame or the endgame. Mayer explains, "The queen and knight are able to work together smoothly and create a greater number of threats than the queen and bishop."

When forced to say one is better than the other, most anoint the bishop. Mayer concludes, "I think it's true that the bishops are better than the knights in a wider variety of positions than the knights are better than the bishops."

He continues, "Of course, I'm not sure this does us much good, as we only get to play one position at a time."

* Crafty Endgame Trainer: https://www.chessvideos.tv/endgame-...

The Sun and the Frogs

Rejoicing on their tyrant's wedding-day,
The people drowned their care in drink;
While from the general joy did Aesop shrink,
And showed its folly in this way.
"The sun," said he, "once took it in his head
To have a partner for his bed.
From swamps, and ponds, and marshy bogs,
Up rose the wailings of the frogs.
"What shall we do, should he have progeny?"
Said they to Destiny;
"One sun we scarcely can endure,
And half-a-dozen, we are sure,
Will dry the very sea.
Adieu to marsh and fen!
Our race will perish then,
Or be obliged to fix
Their dwelling in the Styx!"
For such an humble animal,
The frog, I take it, reasoned well."

"We do not remember days, we remember moments." ― Cesare Pavese

"Many have become chess masters, no one has become the master of chess." ― Siegbert Tarrasch

Dover publishers have downsized their chess book offerings as decades have passed, but many of the all-time classics written in English descriptive notation remain available at affordable prices: https://doverpublications.ecomm-sea... Those who pitch their tent on the Rogoff page having no use for classic chess books can find adult coloring books at Dover publishers. It's a great, versatile publishing company!

For club players, I would recommend "Chess Master vs. Chess Amateur" by Max Euwe and Walter Meiden (as well as Max Euwe's "The Logical Approach to Chess," "Strategy & Tactics in Chess," and "The Road to Chess Mastery" from other book dealers, likely used) before reading James Mason's "The Art of Chess" which is 340 pages! Mason does not spoon-feed the reader as much as Euwe does IMHO.

Those readers demanding an algebraic notation offering from Dover Publishers would do well to buy any book by Tim Harding. Also, if memory serves correctly, there are two tournament books published in algebraic notation: Carlsbad International Chess Tournament 1929 by Aron Nimzovich, translated by Jim Marfia (30 games) and Zurich International Chess Tournament, 1953 by David Bronstein (210 games).

The sign says "free shipping" on orders over $25.00. Several chess offerings are available as e-books. You can bundle -- get both versions and save a bunch. For those wondering about adult coloring e-books, well... I'll have to get back to you on that one, the pace of new technology being what it is.

"You can only get good at chess if you love the game." ― Bobby Fischer