Review #1 : Chess Exam and Training Guide

Chess Exam And Training Guide: Rate Yourself And Learn How To Improve (Chess Exams) is great to help you build your training plan.


This book helps you identify your weak areas. The areas tested are :

• Attack
• Counterattack
• Defense
• Openings
• Middlegame
• Endgame
• Tactics
• Strategy
• Calculation
• Standard positions
• Recognizing threats
• Sacrifice

It is divided in 3 parts :

1. The first part tests you with a total of 100 positions. You have to evaluate them and give the best move. The answer immediately follows the problem. Each answer is detailed and explains the position, it also gives you points for your answers. Incomplete answers give you a portion of the points and a blunder gives you a negative score.


2. The second part contains the tables where you can write your score and translate it in an estimated rating. This is useful because you can compare your overall rating with your rating for each area of the game. Here are my results (the overall rating doesn't reflect my real rating, but I think that the ratings for the different areas reflect accurately my strengths and weaknesses): 

   

   I don't like to write on my books so here is a photo of my chess notebook



3. The last section is the training tips and recommendations for each area tested. Here the author provides examples of books and softwares to help us improve a particular area. The resoures are different for beginners and for more advanced players.

 This book is like having a chess coach with you! Your game is assessed, you know what you need to work on and how to work on your weaknesses. You also learn a lot about the positions in the test. The drawbacks are that the rating is an estimation and depending how you take the test (looking at the propositions or thinking about the position for yourself, taking more time to solve the positions, ...) it can vary greatly. However, I think Chess Exam And Training Guide: Rate Yourself And Learn How To Improve (Chess Exams) is one of the most useful books for self-taught chess players.


Disclosure: Please note that links mentioned within this post are using an affiliate link which means that - at zero cost to you - I will earn a commission if you buy through that affiliate link. That said, I never recommend anything I don’t personally use and find to be valuable.