Attacking Manual 2 (Hardcover)

English Chess Federation Book of the Year, 2010

The old masters dealt only with the static features of positional rules. But, these are insufficient to explain the basics of chess. The problem is that chess, like other sciences, has undergone a dynamic revolution, but chess literature does not yet reflect this.

In this major work Aagaard explains the rules of attack (the exploitation of a dynamic advantage), balanced between understandable examples, and deep analysis.

Five years in the making, this book deals with weak kings, sacrifices, various minor attacking themes, intuitive sacrifices, opposite castling, modern king hunts, and enduring initiative.

Foreword by the author: 

"When I decided to write this double-volume book on attack back in 2002, I had very clear ideas for Volume One, such as specific phrases, positions, structures, while all I had for Volume Two was a clear notion of what it should cover, in abstract.

Where Volume One was about the laws of dynamics, the font of all attacks, and to some limited extent an original work, Volume Two was always meant to be a perfection of existing work on the attack.(..)

This volume is intended to cover all of attacking technique, by which I mean what to do once the attack is up and running. Obviously this cannot be done in 464 pages, but a decent attempt can be made, and I think I have managed to do so.

In this book I will discuss such concrete items as Destroying the defensive structure (page 253), The pin (page 148), Overloading (page 78), as well as more abstract concepts such as Creative play (page 355) and Intuitive sacrifices (page 391). (..)
 
My experiences and conversations with some of the best players in the World have strengthened my belief that it is very useful to solve exercises regularly if you want to improve your play. Although a well-written book can affect your play positively, it will do so much more if you are involved, rather than just reading it.

For this reason I have included a diagram preview in this book. I invite you to use up to 10 minutes on each position before reading the subsequent chapter.

For Chapters 1, 3, 4 & 5 I have selected 8 positions I find interesting, while Chapter 2 has 26 positions, as it is a rather big chapter. (..) I have included 50 exercises towards the end of this book and 24 exercises at the end of Chapter 1.

This double-volume work has been seven years in the making; with the publication of the revised and expanded Volume One and this volume, I have fulfilled a major personal ambition. (..)" - Jacob Aagaard

Save 15% on: Attacking Manual 1 & 2 HC Combined

Arne Moll, ChessVibes:
"Published in Quality Chess's usual excellent format... full of lengthy analysis and instructive explanations... a highly nuanced book, full of thoughtful considerations."

GM Daniel King and Ronan Bennett, awarding Attacking Manual 2 the Guardian Book of the Year prize:

"Aagaard delivers opinionated and sometimes biting judgments, and more importantly, he has found some remarkable and original ideas that enrich our understanding of attacking play. This is a case where computer software has been put to good use to bring out the beauty in a game, but he is not a slave to the machine, going his own way when necessary. So congratulations to Aagaard and Quality Chess."