|
I have Pedersen's, Beim's and Kindermann's books on the Leningrad. I think both Pedersen's book and Beim's book are good introductions to the Leningrad, with Beim's book probably the better value since it is more recent. Kindermann's book is, as noted in other replies, a repertoire book which concentrates on the 7...Qe8 lines, which is not really a disadvantage as Qe8 is probably the most theoretically respectable of Black's 7th moves anyway. This is a serious theoretical work, and generally covers variations in more depth and suggests many interesting ideas that have not yet appeared in master games. Kindermann writes excellent opening books (see, e.g., John Watson's review of Kindermann's book on the 7. Qg4 0-0 variation in the French Winawer, which I also have and think very highly of) and provides a repertoire that you could use against masters with confidence. Moreover, I don't read German but I have had little difficulty following Kindermann's analysis because (i) he uses Informant symbols in evaluating virtually every line he covers; (ii) he provides a lot of complete games with thorough analysis; and (iii) by learning the meanings of a few German chess terms (see the German-English dictionary on the Kaissiber site noted above, which is excellent and which can be printed from the site) you can usually get a general idea about what Kindermann is saying, although probably some fine points will be missed. If you want to buy two books, I would recommend buying Beim's and Kindermann's. Although you could wait for an English edition of the Kindermann book, I personally don't think that the relatively small amount of information you might miss because the text is in German (if you do a minimal amount of work on translation) necessarily justifies the wait. If you want to buy a single book, you should probably choose between Beim's and Kindermann's: which one is better for you depends on your playing strength, the level of your ambition, and the amount of time you have to devote to opening study. From my perspective, (I am currently inactive, but have old ratings of 2360 FIDE, 2378 USCF), Kindermann's book is superior because it is more detailed and complete theory-wise, although Beim's book is also very useful. For someone rated below 2000 USCF and who has a limited amount of time to study openings, the Beim book would probably be superior especially if you are taking up the Leningrad for the first time. For someone in the 2000-2200 USCF range (or an ambitious lower-rated player) both books have their advantages and disadvantages. For a player rated above 2200 USCF, I think that the Kindermann book is definitely the way to go. Hope this is helpful, and good luck! - Geof
|