It's here!!!  I've only spent maybe 15 minutes flipping through it , but so far I am very impressed.  I'll give a more detailed critique after I spend some quality time with it.

shyguy wrote on 01/05/07 at 17:09:47:


Hi, and sorry for the slight delay in responding - was a bit preoccupied with the final rounds at Hastings.

I agree that the main lines of the Lopez can be absolutely fascinating. But so can many variations in the Worrall. You've heard the expression 'Swings and roundabouts'? Whatever you do in a game of chess, whenever a player makes a choice he is depriving himself of an alternative. By playing 1.e4 we are depriving ourselves of the opportunity to play a really interesting 1.d4 game! I decided to recommend the Worrall in my book because I judged it to be a very interesting line and an effective practical weapon which would suit the needs of a large number of players. But of course it is inevitable that some players may prefer to stick with the main lines...or perhaps to use it as a secondary weapon, as you suggest.

At the end of the day it is a matter of personal taste. Even if the reader decides not to play the Worrall at all, there are, as I already mentioned, still more than 200 pages covering Black's 3rd and 4th move alternatives, which is a good book's worth of material even discounting the section on the Worrall.

Hi shyguy, thanks for your interest in the book. Mentioning the Worrall in the title would have made a certain amount of sense, except that it would imply that the entire book was devoted to the Worrall and nothing else. Although it does form an integral part of the suggested reperetoire, there are also more than 200 pages devoted to the coverage of all of Black's earlier deviations on moves 3 and 4.

I suppose it would have been possible to mention the Worrall as a sub-heading, but I think publishers generally prefer to keep titles short and sweet. Plus, of course, it fits in neatly with the rest of Everyman's 'Play The xxxxx' series.

If you have any other questions then do feel free to ask.

Marno wrote on 01/01/07 at 00:37:53:


Thanks for the positive feedback Marno! Nice to know that the book is finally available (presumably you must be based in the US?)
I hope you will continue to find it interesting and informative.

Keano wrote on 12/21/06 at 09:24:16:


Thanks Keano - yes, I must say I derived a great deal of satisfaction from playing Ba7 in that position - just like Karpov-Unzicker from 197-ty something! The game was far from perfect though; it turns out that there was one key moment when I carelessly allowed him an opportunity to throw a spanner in the works with ...Nb7-a5! when the position would have become very unclear. Other than that one slip-up it was quite a nice game though.

Quote:


Well, ultimately it's the publisher who will benefit most from the publicity (as the author I get a flat fee, but only start to receive royalties for reprints above a certain number of copies) so maybe it would be more appropriate for Everyman to donate something to the site 

Nice to hear that quite a few people seem to like the Worrall idea.

Keano - I was interested in your post, as it sounds like you have in mind a fairly reliable antidote to the Open Variation. Can I ask what it is that you had in mind, as I was not aware of any particularly clear-cut route to an advantage.

Keano wrote on 12/20/06 at 10:52:30:

The Worrall Attack is recommended by Barden and Harding in 'Guide to the Chess Openings' published in 1976.  This was my first chess book (a Christmas present).  I also used to play the Worrall attack as a kid to avoid ...Nxe4.