Queen's Gambit Declined

Rating:
Summary: QGD with Be7
Review: Hi, Sadlers book revolves around systems that play Be7. You should know this before purchasing the book. That said, it is top notch work again by Sadler. The question and answer format is a pearl unto itself, found only in Sadler's books. The format is intelligent. To play an opening correctly you "should" know the mainline as well as any possible traps. Sadler scores well here, detailing both. His personal comments at the end of each chapter reflect his likes & dislikes of the presented mainline. All in all, if your wanting to know the Be7 systems inside and out, I can fully recomend this book. On the downside, like all books from Everyman press, they are without algebraic notation. In my mind this hinders any chess book from becoming more that it is. Multiple systems are given in each chapter, concerning your opponets move orders. Sadler does make it clear that move orders are very important, stating that you must know them. examples are given for each and evey case.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book if you play the QGD as BLACK
Review: I emphasize that this is an extremely good book, with clear explanations, and provides everything you must know to play the QGD as Black. For those of you that play it as White (I play the QGD from both sides, but luckily, I play the Exchange as White, and lines with 4...Be7 as Black, which are both covered in this book), this book is not complete, and you will have to find other sources for lines in which Black delays or avoids the bishop development to e7 (i.e. The Cambridge Springs variation, just to name one). Other than the omissions of the 4...Nbd7 lines, it's an excellent book.

Rating:
Summary: QGD with Be7
Review: I have read many chess opening books. These are easily 2 of the best opening books I have ever read. The author selects a few relevant games and explains them in some detail. They have a question and answer style that gives much information in a few pages. He doesn't try to analyse every sub variation. They are well organized, and well written. I have had the books for a few months, and still go back to refresh my memory. They are permanent additions in my chess library.

I recommend them highly to anyone from beginner to expert level.
(My current USCF level is A - 1990)

I would also buy any book GM Sadler writes on openings.

Rating:
Summary: Both Slav and Queen's Gambit Declined books - great!
Review: I have read many chess opening books. These are easily 2 of the best opening books I have ever read. The author selects a few relevant games and explains them in some detail. They have a question and answer style that gives much information in a few pages. He doesn't try to analyse every sub variation. They are well organized, and well written. I have had the books for a few months, and still go back to refresh my memory. They are permanent additions in my chess library.

I recommend them highly to anyone from beginner to expert level.
(My current USCF level is A - 1990)

I would also buy any book GM Sadler writes on openings.

Rating:
Summary: Seriously flawed in scope
Review: It is well established that the main QGD branches are the Orthodox Defence, Tartakover Variation, Lasker's Defence, Cambridge Springs Defence, Exchange Variation, Tarrasch Defence and Semi-Tarrasch Defence. Most of the standard chess opening manuals (MCO,NCO) adhere to this classification. It is therefore incomprehensible to me how a book bearing the title "Queen's Gambit Declined" could omit the Cambridge Springs, the Tarrasch and the Semi-Tarrasch and still merit five stars from so many readers. Likewise, I could not imagine a book entitled "Sicilian Defence" that would not cover the Dragon and the Richter-Rauzer. True, the author does an excellent job in covering the remaining branches, but the title is simply misleading. Perhaps "Queen's Gambit Declined from Black Perspective" would be more appropriate? This could have been a five-star book; Sadler's style is engaging (a conversation between a grandmaster and a novice) and ideas behind moves are clearly expounded. However, you'll need to buy additional books to cover Cambridge Springs , Tarrasch and the semi-Tarrasch.

Rating:
Summary: The Best
Review: Matthew Sadler is a great author, with a tremendous sens of humour and fantastic ability for teaching. His books are full of useful comments, well strucured with only the top players games to illustrate the principles. You cannot regret this buy.

Rating:
Summary: Beyond memorization
Review: Sadler does a great job explaining the ideas and strategies behind the moves which is important if your rating is below 2000 USCF (mine's about 1920). Class players (2000 and below) too frequently make the mistake of trying to memorize reams of variations without much understanding. This can lead to quick losses when an opponent doesn't comply and plays something "out of book."

Rating:
Summary: I tip my hat to GM Sadler.
Review: When you first pick this book up, you are struck by its quality. Nice binding, sturdy and beautiful flex-cover, clear typesetting, white pages that are opaque and have almost no bleedthrough. (Hold one of the pages up to a strong light and you can barely see the print on the opposite side of the page!) I have spent many hours in this book preparing this review, (somewhere between 20-50); and the book shows almost no wear-and-tear at all! The publisher obviously went through great pains to produce a quality product. Begin to read inside and you see the author has produced an atypical opening book also. The first part of the book is an introduction where the author explains some of the basic ideas of the QGD in a very instructive question and answer format. The author even delves into things not usually covered by an opening book, such as various possible move orders and how they affect what you have to learn in the Opening as White and Black. I went through the book with a fine-toothed comb looking for errors of the type that chess books usually contain dozens, if not hundreds, of. I found no typo's, no diagrams with an incorrect position, no games with move pairs left out, no mistakes in analysis, etc. Obviously, the PC and chess programs are having a huge impact on the market of chess books. The publisher must also have a first-rate proofreader, someone who obviously must play chess!! (A plus over convention!)

The author covers virtually every line one could conceive of facing in the Queen's Gambit Declined, with one notable exception. (The Cambridge Spring's Defense for some reason is left out.) The author continues his highly instructive question and answer format. He often delves into questions of strategy and many other topics not usually covered by a chess opening's book. He uses complete games for a model, and the student always gets the entire game - from move one to the resignation! (An improvement over the norm for chess books.)

Chapter One covers the Lasker's variation, an early ...Ne4 in the QGD. Chap. Two covers the Orthodox variation with 6...Nbd7, (Old Main Line), and the various systems after 7. Rc1, c6. (He covers Capablanca's freeing maneuver, [early ...dxc4; and/or ...Nd5;]; without crediting the originator.) Chap. Three covers the Orthodox variation and even covers the ultra-modern 7. Rc1, a6!? Chap. Four covers White's 7th move alternatives in the Orthodox variation. Chapters Five and Six covers the Tartakower Variation in complete and up-to-date fashion. Part Two, [Chapters 7 & 8]; covers The Exchange Variation. (An early cxd5 by White.) The final section of the book [Part Three], deals with such lines as an early BxN/f6 by White, and 5. Bf4.

The coverage in this book is very modern; you will find very few "old/classic" games in here. (Necessary for a modern chess opening's book. The average game dates from 1985 to the present.) The coverage is fairly balanced, with both White and Black on the winning side. The author has obviously strived to make this a quality book and has even turned it into an outstanding teaching vehicle! I can find only a few minor faults with this book. I am puzzled how one could write a book on the "Classical" QGD and omit coverage of the Cambridge Spring's Defense. (A modern player can certainly count on seeing this line even today. It is certainly as likely a variation as any of the others in this book.) Some of the games that I thought were key to opening theory, (See any Informant, NCO, or MCO-14.); are not necessarily covered here. I am not sure what the criterion was for choosing the games, and the author does not explain that in this book. And the author often lets 25 moves of a game, (or more) transpire with virtually no comment. (BUT! ... the games are ALL complete; again, this is a plus over "the norm.") But again, for the most part, these concerns are trivial. I will conclude my critique by noting that the Table of Contents serves as an outstanding index of the variations, and there is a first-rate index of complete games.

If I were grading this book as a teacher might, I would give an "A+." On a scale of 1-10, I would give it an 8.5, which is as high a mark as I would be willing to give any opening book. (A pity. Had all of my concerns mentioned here [above] been addressed, I might have awarded it a perfect 10!!) This book sets a very high mark for a book on the openings, and all the others that come after this one will be judged by this new standard. The bottom line? If you currently play the White or Black side of the QGD in either postal or over-the-board chess, then you MUST buy this book! If you are below 1800 USCF and spend just a little time with this book, then you will probably learn as much as you have ever learned from any chess book, period. This is the highest praise you will ever see this reviewer giving an opening book.

Rating:
Summary: A great introduction to queen pawn openings
Review: While this is primarily an opening book, it does a wonderful job of explaining typical middlegame strategies such as the minority attack, the isolated pawn and hanging pawns. Sadler uses a question and answer approach that facilitates understanding.