Smyslov_Fan wrote on 08/07/06 at 15:35:56:

Not really. Of course there are lines which Anand never played or where he uses another move. Anyway there are always these common problems:
-Top players usually dont have a single repertoire (possibly only Karpov to some extent)
-Anand never played that position, eg I doubt he ever met a Damiano
-Anand played the position but doesnt choose the line considered best or most critical
-Anand's line doesnt fit with the repertoire idea. Eg the lines vs the Pirc/Modern feature a quick f4, meaning that similar lines need to be treated the same way as they can transpose such as Caro-offshoots with d6.
-Khalif doesnt like an Anand line (eg the line would fit with the repertoire and is decent enough but he simply doesnt like it) and therefore chooses another, which is what happened with the Pirc.

The last of these can be criticised, though in most of these cases you get a line which is quite similar to the feel of the rest and thus in the "style" of Anand with some excellent analysis.

Plus I think you are getting a feel of how good some of the lines are in the books, judging from the game you're playing

It seems that once again, Khalifman has written an excellent repertoire book, but forgotten that it's supposed to reflect the repertoire of a certain world-class player.  He had that problem with his Kramnik repertoire book, and now in the Anand book.  It makes me wonder why he does this.

I recall Anand playing (e.g. at the Olympiad) 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. f4 c5 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. Ne2 to be followed by 8. c3, transposing to a line of the Tarrasch.  I wonder if this is discussed in the Khalifman book?

Pederssen and Psakhis are also probably must-haves, too.

I remember thinking that Pederssen's book was clear and easy to follow.  For descriptive instruction, Neil McDonald's older book on the French is pretty valuable if you can find a copy...

Which are the best books on the Steinitz variation?
I want to play the variation from the white side. My playing strength is about 1950.
Perhaps there are older books which are explaining the ideas better than the new books? Thanks for answers.

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Line

Tom