Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation (2nd edition) by Jacob Aagaard (Paperback)

This Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation (2nd edition) by Jacob Aagaard is an English-language chess training book for ambitious players who want to calculate more accurately and make better decisions at the board. This second edition from the Grandmaster Preparation series focuses on practical thinking and structured calculation.

Rather than treating analysis as a matter of simply looking deeper, the book shows how to organise your thought process more effectively. It explains how to choose the right lines to examine, avoid wasting time on variations that add little value and keep your calculation disciplined during a game.

What the book covers

Jacob Aagaard works through the methods that help players structure calculation more clearly during play. The main topics include:

• candidates, or choosing candidate moves
• combinations
• prophylaxis
• comparison
• elimination
• intermediate moves
• imagination
• traps

The book is supported by a structured set of exercises, so the ideas are not just theoretical. That makes it useful for turning study into practical training and applying the same thinking in tournament games.

Who it is for

The Grandmaster Preparation series is aimed at ambitious players. This title will suit chess players who want to work deliberately on calculation, improve the quality of their analysis and train in a way that reflects higher-level preparation.

About the author

Jacob Aagaard is a grandmaster who won the British Championship on his first and only appearance in the event. He is also a FIDE Senior Trainer and the recipient of awards including ACP Book of the Year 2013. His training material is used by both club players and grandmasters.

The book was also recognised as Association of Chess Professionals (ACP) Book of the Year 2013.

Recommendation

From the foreword by Boris Gelfand: “There is no shortcut to the grandmaster title, but there is a well-known route that many people have walked over the years. Jacob offers to guide you on part of this journey and I hope you will take him up on the offer.”

Key details

• Product type: chess training book
• Language: English
• Edition: second edition
• Author: Jacob Aagaard
• Series: Grandmaster Preparation
• Focus: calculation and structured thinking at the board
• Binding: paperback
• Award: ACP Book of the Year 2013