How to use your pawns to fight for the initiative and central controlHow should pawns be used to fight for the centre? How does the central pawn-formation affect planning for both sides? These questions are central to understanding chess, and are the primary subject-matter of this book.
Following on from his successful book
Understanding Pawn Play in Chess, Drazen Marovic now moves on to dscuss more complex central pawn-structures and their impact on play both in the centre and on the wings. He begins by surveying how the pawn's role in controlling the centre has been developed over the last 150 years, and how this has led to the refinement of concepts such as the 'dynamic' backward pawn and the positional exchange sacrifice. The bulk of the book is devoted to discussions of the main types of centre:
- Open Centre
- Closed/Blocked Centre
- Fixed Centre
- Mobile/Dynamic Centre
In each case, the reader is helped towards a deeper understanding of the key strategic ideas by the author's use of carefully chosen instructive examples from practice.
Drazen Marovic is a grandmaster from Croatia, who has won medals as both player and trainer for various national teams. His pupils include Bojan Kurajica, World Under-20 Champion in 1965, and Al Modiahki of Qatar, the first Arabian grandmaster. Marovic has a wealth of experience as a writer, editor and television commentator on chess. He is currently the trainer of the Croation national team.
"Marovic has obviously been in the company of some of the greatest players and listened carefully to what they had to say ... this book is excellent value and is sure to improve your chess" - Chris Rice,
Weekend Chess"A thoughtful study of an important aspect of the game, which can also be enjoyed merely as a collection of well-annotated games. Good value for money. Highly recommended" - Phil Adams,
The Manchester Chess Scene"Lovers of Romantic play will enjoy the chapter on the open center, when central pawns disappear and other pieces show their might on open files and diagonals." - GM Lubosh Kavalek,
Washington Post"If you play the King's Indian and Sicilian, like myself, the book is a veritable Aladdin's cave of ideas and information" - John Pugh,
Chess Post"For a further fabulous feast of energetic examples illustrating the irresistible power of pawns, I can highly recommend
Dynamic Pawn Play in Chess, an excellent new 256-page Gambit book by Croatian GM Drazen Marovic, who very helpfully elucidates his material via complete well-annotated games" - GM Paul Motwani,
The Scotsman
