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Sacrifice and Initiative in Chess: Seize the Moment to Get the Advantage
lThe sacrifice is one of the most beautiful, rewarding and complex aspects of chess. During a game the decision to give up material in order to get an advantage is probably the most difficult one a player has to take. Often, you have to burn your bridges without being able to fully calculate the consequences. Risks and rewards are racing through your mind, fighting for precedence while the clock keeps ticking. Now is the moment, because after the next move the window for this opportunity may be closed. In this book Ivan Sokolov presents a set of practical tools that will help you to master the art of sacrifice. By concentrating on the aim you are trying to achieve, rather than on the opening you are playing or the piece you might be going to sack, he teaches you how to come to a reasonable risk assessment and how to trust your intuition. There is a separate part on seizing the initiative without actually giving up material. Ivan Sokolov has written an entertaining and instructive guide, packed with useful advice and lots of practical examples.
240 pages, Paperback
First published September 16, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 12, 2022
Similar in nature to ‘The Art of Attack”, Ivan Sokolov’s “Sacrifice and Initiative in Chess” presents various methods of each during a game.
The first part of the book is devoted to the Initiative. There are seven chapters, with titles such as “Ignoring the Threat”, “Sensing the Moment” and more. Each of these subjects hones in on a specific aspect of the Initiative and presents top level Grandmaster games with emphasis on the middle game. (Although the moves of the opening and endgame are included, they are not annotated.). Sokolov does a decent job of explaining all the various mechanisms, although you will find yourself wanting more examples to really hone in on the subject matter.
Part two is similar in scope and range as the previous one on Initiative. This time nine chapters are presented on Sacrifices and there’s lots of interesting games, including of course, those by Mikhal Tal. Some of the topics covered are: “King in the Center”, “Sacrifice for Development”, etc. It is this section that displays many of the beautiful moves seen in top level chess games.
Overall, Sokolov does a good job of explaining the topic on hand, however, although there is a decent amount of games presented, I found myself looking for more examples. The books does contain some of Sokolov’s games and it gives him the opportunity to explain what he was thinking at the time of the game. It should also be noted how much respect Sokolov has for his peers, as he was not shy to heap praise upon those who were worthy.
The inclusion of the section on Initiative is what sets this book apart from others that focus primarily on Sacrifices. Although not a classic like Vukovic’s “The Art of Attack”, it does present a nice overview on two topics that are worth studying for serious chess players.
The first part of the book is devoted to the Initiative. There are seven chapters, with titles such as “Ignoring the Threat”, “Sensing the Moment” and more. Each of these subjects hones in on a specific aspect of the Initiative and presents top level Grandmaster games with emphasis on the middle game. (Although the moves of the opening and endgame are included, they are not annotated.). Sokolov does a decent job of explaining all the various mechanisms, although you will find yourself wanting more examples to really hone in on the subject matter.
Part two is similar in scope and range as the previous one on Initiative. This time nine chapters are presented on Sacrifices and there’s lots of interesting games, including of course, those by Mikhal Tal. Some of the topics covered are: “King in the Center”, “Sacrifice for Development”, etc. It is this section that displays many of the beautiful moves seen in top level chess games.
Overall, Sokolov does a good job of explaining the topic on hand, however, although there is a decent amount of games presented, I found myself looking for more examples. The books does contain some of Sokolov’s games and it gives him the opportunity to explain what he was thinking at the time of the game. It should also be noted how much respect Sokolov has for his peers, as he was not shy to heap praise upon those who were worthy.
The inclusion of the section on Initiative is what sets this book apart from others that focus primarily on Sacrifices. Although not a classic like Vukovic’s “The Art of Attack”, it does present a nice overview on two topics that are worth studying for serious chess players.
November 23, 2025
The games were nice but the prose was uninspiring.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews