Yuri Lvovich Averbakh (Russian: Ю́рий Льво́вич Аверба́х; born February 8, 1922) is a Russian chess player and author. He is the oldest living chess grandmaster. He was chairman of the USSR Chess Federation from 1973 to 1978.
When I started to work as a coach (I was only 18 years old), this was my first textbook upon which I was relying. I remember how surprised I was when I discovered that it is possible to checkmate with the rook faster than I previously thought. The value of solving 2-3 moves checkmate problems was also something new for me. Compared to the original Russian edition, this one has some additional material (on Kramnik, Anand & Carlsen plus an afterword by Peter Zhdanov on computer chess). However, it's a pity that the book is not printed in color, like the original edition. Kids love colors and without it this book loses a part of its magic. Still, at least the English translation is now (finally!) available.