Masterly Mess

"Mastering the Bishop Pair" by GM Ekaterina Borulia, IM Jaroslav
Srkovsky and Wit Braslawksi, 1999 International Chess
Enterprises, Softcover, Figurine Algebraic Notation, 220pp.,
$19.95

Earlier this year, International Chess Enterprises released the first
two volumes of a six-volume series entitled the "ICE Middlegame
Series". The first entry was "Hanging Pawns" by GM Adrian
Mikhalchishin and the second was "Mastering Rook versus Minor
Pieces" by GM Andrei Maximenko. They were both reviewed at
The Chess Cafe and these reviews may be found in The Chess Cafe
Archives. These books were found to be disorganized, hard to
follow, and less than instructive. The third book in the series
carries the standard of its predecessors well.

As noted in the prior reviews, there seemed to be no organization
to the material. There is one notable difference with "Mastering the
Bishop". This time, in the "Editor's Introduction", Braslawski
confirms that this was the intention! Crowing as if it were a badge
of honor, he states "I do not claim any order in the presentation of
the material. On the contrary, order has been spurned... So the
examples are in a moderately random order."

Braslawski should not be so modest. The book's material is not in
moderately random order - it is chaotic. One only has a hard-to-use
"Theme Index" to attempt to sort things out.

It appears that the authors have confused a book intended to
instruct with a puzzle or test book. Once again, in the introduction,
Braslawski urges the reader to work out the solution. Contrast that
to the blurb on the back cover touting that this book will instruct
the reader, as the reader "discover[s] the master[s] the secrets of
the bishop pair, and how to combat it."

The book has almost 700 diagrams, a huge number for a book this
size. The authors have invited the readers "to use the diagrams
instead of a board, and to fill in the gaps mentally." Unfortunately,
in most instances, this will be quite a chore. A dozen moves or
more are routinely given without diagrams, and in complicated
positions. Experts and masters will have difficulty following many
lines, let alone less gifted players.

A typical example from the book - with diagrams as they appear in
the book (See Diagram):

White: Kh1, Ra1, Rd1, Nc3, Ng3; pawns - a2, b2, e5, f4, g2, h2
Black: Kg8, Rd8, Rf8, Bc5, Bd3; pawns - a7, b7, e6, f7, g7, h7

Miles-Portisch, Buenos Aires 1978 

Black enjoys the advantage because of his strong bishops which
control all the board. White's knights lack support points (the d6
point is easily liquidated after f7-f6) so they are helpless against
Black's bishops.

1 Nge4 Be3 

Weakening White's position considerably after g2-g3 in response.
The inducement of new weaknesses is an important way to realize
the advantage of the two bishops. 

2 g3 (See Diagram)

2...f6! 3 Nd6 Bg6 4 Nc4 

4 Nxb7 Rb8 5 Rd7 Be8 6 Re7 Rxb7 -+.

4...Bd4 5 Kg2 Be8 

The bishop transfers to the strong diagonal.

6 exf6 gxf6 7 Rac1 Bc6+ 8 Kf1 Bc5 9 Ke2 

9 Na5 Bf3 -+

9...a6 10 Nd2 

10 Na5 Bg2

10...Kf7 11 Nce4 Bd4 12 Nc3 Ke7 13 Nf3 Ba7 14 Ne1 (See
Diagram) 

14...Rxd1 

This is a typical way - the exchange of major pieces usually
enables the player who has the bishops to eliminate counterplay
(dynamics). But for the time being Black preserves his second
rook, to create weaknesses in the enemy camp.

15 Rxd1 Be8 16 Kf3 Rg8 (See Diagram)

17 Rc1?

White tries to defend without weakening his position, but he loses
a pawn. The same fate befalls 17 Rd3? Bg6 18 Rd2 (18 Ne4 Rc8!
19 b3 Rc1 20 Ng2 f5 followed by Bh5) 18...Bh5+ followed by Be3.

17...Bh5+ 18 Kg2 Be3 19 Rc2 Bxf4 -+ 20 Ne4 Bb8 21 Nc5 Rc8 

White resigned. 22 Nxb7 Rxc2 23 Nxc2 Bg6 24 Na5 Bxc2 25
Nc6+ Kd6 26 Nxb8 Be4+ 27 Kf2 Bb7 -+.    

As with the previous volumes, the authors have taken a good idea
and executed it poorly. Someone at the publishing house should be
assuming more control over these projects. The book as released
will not be much help to most players.