Book1847
The Chess-Player's Handbook
Howard Staunton
Systematised the openings and rudiments of chess into one teachable method, and set the template every opening manual since has followed.
link checked 17 Sept 2026FreeEntry
Chess
The most studied game in history.
10 topics · 12 curated works
Topics
- 01Foundations & Overviews1
- 02Opening Principles1
- 03Chess Tactics1
- 04Positional Play2
- 05Endgame Technique1
- 06Chess Strategy1
- 07Calculation & Visualisation1
- 08Chess History & Champions2
- 09Computer Chess & Engines1
- 10Chess Improvement Methods1
Reading in Chess
12A way in
Start here
No prior grounding assumed.
The Chess-Player's Handbook
Howard Staunton · 1847
Systematised the openings and rudiments of chess into one teachable method, and set the template every opening manual since has followed.
+3 more at this level
Then
Assumes you know the vocabulary.
Chess Strategy
Edward Lasker · 1915
Teaches that a sound strategic plan follows from evaluating pawn structure and piece activity, not from memorising set combinations.
+1 more at this level
Go deeper
Primary sources and full treatments.
My System
Aron Nimzowitsch · 1925
Systematises positional chess — blockade, overprotection, prophylaxis — and reshaped how the game is taught.
+5 more at this level
12 works
Book1859
The Exploits and Triumphs, in Europe, of Paul Morphy, the Chess Champion
Frederick Milnes Edge
An eyewitness account arguing Morphy's dominance came from rapid, intuitive calculation rather than the accumulated opening theory his European rivals relied on.
about 3.5 hours to readlink checked 17 Sept 2026FreeEntry
Book1896
Common Sense in Chess
Emanuel Lasker
Argues that a chess combination is not brilliant improvisation but the mechanical exploitation of an advantage that already exists, teachable as a method of valuation rather than a collection of set patterns.
link checked 17 Sept 2026FreeEntry
Book1921
Chess Fundamentals
José Raúl Capablanca
Argues that the endgame teaches chess principles more clearly than the opening or middlegame, and should be the beginner's starting point rather than the last thing studied.
about 3 hours to readlink checked 17 Sept 2026FreeEntry
Book1915
Chess Strategy
Edward Lasker
Teaches that a sound strategic plan follows from evaluating pawn structure and piece activity, not from memorising set combinations.
about 5.5 hours to readlink checked 17 Sept 2026FreeIntermediate
Book1922
Chess and Checkers: The Way to Mastership
Edward Lasker
Argues that mastery in chess or checkers comes from systematic analysis of one's own losses, not from studying the games of champions.
about 3.5 hours to readlink checked 17 Sept 2026FreeIntermediate
Book1925
My System
Aron Nimzowitsch
Systematises positional chess — blockade, overprotection, prophylaxis — and reshaped how the game is taught.
link checked 17 Sept 2026FreeAdvanced
Book1851
Chess Studies; or, Endings of Games
Joseph Kling & Bernard Horwitz
A collection of composed endgame studies arguing that endgame skill rests on recognising a small set of recurring positions exactly, not on general principles alone.
link failing as of 17 Sept 2026FreeAdvanced
Book1889
The Modern Chess Instructor
Wilhelm Steinitz
Argues that a sound position cannot be broken by direct attack until the defender has already accumulated small, identifiable weaknesses, founding positional theory on the systematic evaluation of an advantage rather than on tactical inspiration.
247 pageslink checked 17 Sept 2026FreeAdvanced
Book1913
A History of Chess
H. J. R. Murray
Traces chess from its origins in sixth-century India through Persian, Arab and European transmission, arguing the rules were rewritten each time the game crossed a cultural border.
link checked 17 Sept 2026FreeAdvanced
Paper1973
Skill in Chess
Herbert A. Simon & William G. Chase
A decade of chess experiments and a computer simulation (MATER) show that a severe short-term memory limit is bypassed by long-term perceptual 'chunks' built up only through years of practice, not by faster raw calculation.
link checked 17 Sept 2026FreeAdvanced
Paper2017
Mastering Chess and Shogi by Self-Play with a General Reinforcement Learning Algorithm
Silver et al.
One algorithm, given only the rules, reaches superhuman strength at chess and shogi within 24 hours of self-play, showing a hand-tuned evaluation function is not necessary for mastery.
link checked 17 Sept 2026FreeAdvanced
In order written
1847 – 2017- 1847The Chess-Player's HandbookHoward Staunton
- 1851Chess Studies; or, Endings of GamesJoseph Kling & Bernard Horwitz
- 1859The Exploits and Triumphs, in Europe, of Paul Morphy, the Chess ChampionFrederick Milnes Edge
- 1889The Modern Chess InstructorWilhelm Steinitz
- 1896Common Sense in ChessEmanuel Lasker
- 1913A History of ChessH. J. R. Murray
- 1915Chess StrategyEdward Lasker
- 1921Chess FundamentalsJosé Raúl Capablanca
- 1922Chess and Checkers: The Way to MastershipEdward Lasker
- 1925My SystemAron Nimzowitsch
- 1973Skill in ChessHerbert A. Simon & William G. Chase