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My Great Predecessors #4
Garry Kasparov on My Great Predecessors, Part 4:
This book brings together the two greatest names in the history of chess. The author, Garry Kasparov, is the world number one and, by common consent, the greatest player ever. The subject of the book, Bobby Fischer, is the only American to have become world champion and is probably the greatest natural talent the world has ever seen.
In the period between 1955 and 1972 Fischer, more or less single-handedly, took on the might of the Soviet Chess Empire, and won. During this time Fischer scored astonishing successes the like of which had not been seen before. These included 11/11 in the 1963/64 US Championship and match victories (en route to the World Championship) by the score of 6-0 against two of the strongest players in the world, Mark Taimanov and Bent Larsen. The climax of Fischer's campaign was his unforgettable match win in Reykjavik in 1972 against Boris Spassky.
Fischer is almost equally well-known for his temperamental behaviour away from the board, as his play on it. He made extreme demands of all those around him including tournament organisers. When these demands were not met he often refused to play. The 1972 match against Spassky required the intervention of no less than Henry Kissinger to smooth things over. In 1975 when he was due to defend his title against Anatoly Karpov, Fischer was completely unable to agree terms with FIDE (the World Chess Federation) and was defaulted. After this he more or less gave up chess, playing only once, a 'return' match against Spassky in 1992.
In this book, a must for all serious chessplayers, Kasparov analyses deeply Fischer's greatest games and assesses the legacy of this great American genius.
In the period between 1955 and 1972 Fischer, more or less single-handedly, took on the might of the Soviet Chess Empire, and won. During this time Fischer scored astonishing successes the like of which had not been seen before. These included 11/11 in the 1963/64 US Championship and match victories (en route to the World Championship) by the score of 6-0 against two of the strongest players in the world, Mark Taimanov and Bent Larsen. The climax of Fischer's campaign was his unforgettable match win in Reykjavik in 1972 against Boris Spassky.
Fischer is almost equally well-known for his temperamental behaviour away from the board, as his play on it. He made extreme demands of all those around him including tournament organisers. When these demands were not met he often refused to play. The 1972 match against Spassky required the intervention of no less than Henry Kissinger to smooth things over. In 1975 when he was due to defend his title against Anatoly Karpov, Fischer was completely unable to agree terms with FIDE (the World Chess Federation) and was defaulted. After this he more or less gave up chess, playing only once, a 'return' match against Spassky in 1992.
In this book, a must for all serious chessplayers, Kasparov analyses deeply Fischer's greatest games and assesses the legacy of this great American genius.
- GenresChessNonfictionGames
1327 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2005
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About the author
Garry Kasparov
175 books562 followersRussian (formerly Soviet) chess grandmaster, former World Chess Champion, writer, and political activist, whom many consider the greatest chess player of all time.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 13, 2010
The definitive book on Bobby Fischer; what's funny is that Kasparov is simultaneously the best-qualified and the worst-qualified person in the world to write it. Here's the analogy that occurs to me. Suppose Mohammed had written a long, carefully researched book on Jesus. He'd have all these killer insights into the decisions you make when founding a major religion, and what it's like talking to God on a day-to-day basis. It would be amazing to follow his thought processes. And then he'd start criticizing. Well, Jesus is quite good, the Sermon on the Mount is admittedly an excellent piece of work, but he's very uneven. And why didn't he even consider launching a military campaign to conquer the Middle East? He could have established a power base in Galilee, and expanded from there. And really, it would have made a lot more sense to marry the Magdalene woman, plus five or six more to be on the safe side, and establish a dynasty. You'd groan.
Kasparov's rather like that when talking about the other person who has a serious claim to be the greatest chess player ever. His analysis of the games is, needless to say, beyond reproach. Anyway, I'm not silly enough to start picking at it. But then he goes on about how Fischer resigned his title in 1975 because he'd most likely have lost to Karpov. OK, I can see that Kasparov would like it to be that way, but even he can't possibly know. Fischer was completely unpredictable. If he was on form, he'd have killed Karpov the same way he killed everyone else. If he was having a mental crisis, anything could have happened. Kasparov had to work his ass off to beat Karpov, and it's impossible for him to think that someone might have swept him away without apparent effort. To an outsider, this is unfortunately obvious.
It's a fantastic book of course. But don't buy it unless you're serious about chess. Kasparov is talking more to himself than to you, and the analysis is horrendously complicated...
Kasparov's rather like that when talking about the other person who has a serious claim to be the greatest chess player ever. His analysis of the games is, needless to say, beyond reproach. Anyway, I'm not silly enough to start picking at it. But then he goes on about how Fischer resigned his title in 1975 because he'd most likely have lost to Karpov. OK, I can see that Kasparov would like it to be that way, but even he can't possibly know. Fischer was completely unpredictable. If he was on form, he'd have killed Karpov the same way he killed everyone else. If he was having a mental crisis, anything could have happened. Kasparov had to work his ass off to beat Karpov, and it's impossible for him to think that someone might have swept him away without apparent effort. To an outsider, this is unfortunately obvious.
It's a fantastic book of course. But don't buy it unless you're serious about chess. Kasparov is talking more to himself than to you, and the analysis is horrendously complicated...
January 13, 2019
While I have loved all of the volumes thus far in Kasparov's amazing series, this was the one that I was looking forward to the most, seeing as how it was Bobby Fischer who inspired my interest in chess with his world championship match with Boris Spassky. I remember watching the match on a black and white television, with commentary from Shelby Lyman, and was mesmerized by the depth and strategic thought that was going into each move that the players made… I was instantly hooked! Now we have Garry Kasparov's perspective on Fischer's play.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the book is that when it comes to the discussion of the greatest player of all-time, the names Fischer and Kasparov are at the top of the list, so it's fascinating to see how Kasparov balances his ego vs. that of Fischer's brilliance. He does a pretty good job of presenting Fischer, warts and all, but one can't help to see the underlying bias at times from the Soviet player. It should be noted that this is not intrusive and that it actually appears to be somewhat normal knowing the egos of both players. Kasparov knows that Fischer is the only one who could make a claim to the best player of all-time and he seems to dance around that, thus leaving an opening for those who believe that he (Kasparov) is the greatest - and perhaps he is! Both are great players and I would give Fischer and edge due to his results and his work ethic, whereas Kasparov could also deserve the top billing as the strongest player of his generation, a generation that was weened on the games of Fischer and others and played against players who had a deeper understanding of the game. Both are great, it's just interesting to note how Kasparov feels about Fischer from the perspective of his own legacy.
As a bonus, the chapters on Samuel Reshevsky and Bent Larsen were quite fascinating - especially the information on Larsen, as I had not previously read much about him and came away with more respect/interest for him as a player.
As always the analysis is top notch and the anecdotal stories are great! I'm looking forward to the next volume, as it will feature both Victor Korchnoi and long time nemesis, Anatoly Karpov. The musings about Karpov should prove to be very interesting!
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the book is that when it comes to the discussion of the greatest player of all-time, the names Fischer and Kasparov are at the top of the list, so it's fascinating to see how Kasparov balances his ego vs. that of Fischer's brilliance. He does a pretty good job of presenting Fischer, warts and all, but one can't help to see the underlying bias at times from the Soviet player. It should be noted that this is not intrusive and that it actually appears to be somewhat normal knowing the egos of both players. Kasparov knows that Fischer is the only one who could make a claim to the best player of all-time and he seems to dance around that, thus leaving an opening for those who believe that he (Kasparov) is the greatest - and perhaps he is! Both are great players and I would give Fischer and edge due to his results and his work ethic, whereas Kasparov could also deserve the top billing as the strongest player of his generation, a generation that was weened on the games of Fischer and others and played against players who had a deeper understanding of the game. Both are great, it's just interesting to note how Kasparov feels about Fischer from the perspective of his own legacy.
As a bonus, the chapters on Samuel Reshevsky and Bent Larsen were quite fascinating - especially the information on Larsen, as I had not previously read much about him and came away with more respect/interest for him as a player.
As always the analysis is top notch and the anecdotal stories are great! I'm looking forward to the next volume, as it will feature both Victor Korchnoi and long time nemesis, Anatoly Karpov. The musings about Karpov should prove to be very interesting!
March 30, 2017
First the cover is misleading I assumed the entire focus of the book would be on Bobby Fischer's games which is why I bought it but it's not the first part of Kasparov's book looks at Samuel Resheveky Miguel Najdorf and Bent Larsens games Bobby Fischer's games are covered in the second half about 107 games including games from the 1992 rematch against Spassky.
It's a very expensive hardback $54.02 at Chapters for that price I'm disappointed more games weren't included on Fischer the quality of the annotations and instructional value of the book though is superb the second half can compliment older books that already cover Bobby Fischer's best games in detail including Fischer's own My 60 Memorable games.
It's a very expensive hardback $54.02 at Chapters for that price I'm disappointed more games weren't included on Fischer the quality of the annotations and instructional value of the book though is superb the second half can compliment older books that already cover Bobby Fischer's best games in detail including Fischer's own My 60 Memorable games.
October 21, 2017
A book great book within an outstanding series that chronicles and analyzes chess champions throughout the history of the game. An important reference book and resource for chess students and fans.
December 1, 2025
i owe EVERYTHING to this book. the loml in my chess world. quite complex (for 1934 fide me, clearly i'm not a gm), but very rewarding!! it's fischer and kasparov after all
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews