11/27/2023 – Sofia Polgar's new book is instructive and informative. It is also generously illustrated, with acrylic on canvas paintings by the author. It is published by Russell Enterprises, and makes for an ideal Christmas gift. We have known Sofia since she was a very young girl, and tell you about that in part two of our review 0150 which also includes some of the paintings from the book.

11/26/2023 – ChessBase Magazine offers a window to the world of professional chess. The latest issue, CBM 216, is out. Our columnist Nagesh Havanur takes a look. Included are 968 games (34 annotated), decisive encounters from the World Cup deeply annotated, 11 opening surveys, 3 opening videos, 6 demo lectures and several exercises for training. Annotators include Anish Giri, Peter Heine Nielsen, Nijat Abasov, Vidit Gujrathi and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, among others. The icing on the cake is a feature on Hou Yifan with 22 annotated games. She has just won the Julius Baer Women’s Speed Championship for the second consecutive time. | Photo: FIDE / Stev Bonhage

11/26/2023 – Herman Grooten is an International Master, a renowned trainer and the author of several highly acclaimed books on chess training and strategy. In the 153rd episode of his ChessBase show "Understanding before moving" Herman continues his series "Chess history in a nutshell" and takes a look at the play of Mikhail Botvinnik. | Photo: Pascal Simon

11/26/2023 – Levon Aronian became the second player to grab a win in the Sinquefield Cup, as he beat Alireza Firouzja with the white pieces in round 5. This result allowed Wesley So to overtake Firouzja in the live ratings list, while it also reduced the rating gap between Firouzja and Anish Giri. The three players are fighting to get one of the two remaining spots in the 2024 Candidates — one will be granted via the ratings list and the second via the FIDE Circuit. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

11/26/2023 – Carissa Yip (pictured) grabbed her second U.S. women’s title last month — at 20 years of age! The youngster scored an incredible 8½/11, leaving the over-performing Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova a half point behind in the final standings. As ever, GM Karsten Müller followed the games closely, looking for interesting setups to analyse. Find here instructive analyses of six outstanding endgame positions! | Photo: Crystal Fuller

11/26/2023 – After eleven exciting rounds, the World Youth Championships — under 14, 16 and 18 — in the open and girls categories concluded in Montesilvano, Italy. A number of honorary guests delivered awards to the newly crowned world champions and the top-finishers. | Photos: Przemek Nikiel

11/23/2023 – Last week, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) held a charity event in London in aid of the Kids and Art of Ukraine initiative. Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant played a match against FM Miguel Senlle Caride and then gave a simul. | Photo: GM Ketevan starting the simultaneous against the oldest opponent in the room | Photos: EBRD

11/23/2023 – The ChessBase Magazine offers many advantages. When he got hold of the latest issue of the magazine - #216 - Davide Nastasio was happy about the wealth of chess content CBM offers, but he was also happy about the other advantages of the magazine. In his review he reveals why.

11/22/2023 – Balanced, well-played games were seen on all five boards in the first round of the Sinquefield Cup. Leinier Dominguez was the one closest to getting a win on Tuesday, as he put pressure on top seed Fabiano Caruana with the black pieces. In the fight for the Candidates spots still up for grabs, a crucial encounter will be seen in round 2, when Alireza Firouzja will have the white pieces against Anish Giri. | Photo: Crystal Fuller

11/22/2023 – Every now and then, Svitlana talks about a new opening. This time, it is the suspicious Budapest Gambit. To Arne's disappointment - if you play the opening correctly, some variants seem to move to a very calm middle- and endgame, rather than setting the board on fire. It might be interesting to get to know the Gambit a bit better because it is actually quite sound.

11/22/2023 – Occasionally you come across a must-have chess book – here's one that we discovered that makes for an ideal 2023 Christmas present. It is written (and illustrated, with acrylic on canvas paintings!) by Sofia Polgar, the "middle sister" who in 1989 scored 8½ points out of 9 in a GM tournament with a performance rating of 2930 performance. Sofia's book, published by Russell Enterprises, was our pleasure to review.

11/22/2023 – Playing against Fritz is enjoyable because the program incorporates hidden errors. There could always be a tactical strike against it. However, Fritz 19 adds a new exciting dimension to your games: The hunt for "achievements". There's a competition for 136 different chess achievements, testing your tactical and strategic versatility. And there are rewards for it too.