"Checkmate! Ideas for Students" by John A. Bain
Reviewed by NM Dan Heisman
PA Scholastic Chess Coordinator
Checkmate! Ideas for Students, An instructional workbook designed for beginning students, by John A. Bain, P.O. Box 398, Philomath, OR, 97370. Paperback, 71pp., $3.95 (bulk discounts available).
There are many beginner books, which contain detailed information on checkmate, and many advanced books that solely cover checkmate, but there are very few beginner books that only contain detailed information on checkmate. John Bain's Checkmate! Ideas for Students is a book aimed at beginners (the only required knowledge is movement of the pieces) that specifically and only covers checkmate ideas in great detail.
One of the strengths of Checkmate! is that it covers the mechanics of the checkmating process in great detail, not only with explanations, but also with diagrams with arrows and circles to pinpoint the key features. Unlike many other basic checkmate books, Checkmate! categorizes the checkmate by the tactical motif used to force the mate (like attraction, double check, or removal of the guard) rather than the pattern of the checkmate itself. This approach provides a fresh view on the concept, and thus would work well in conjunction with another checkmate book, should the student desire more examples or wish to use Checkmate! as a second workbook.
And workbook it is. Like Bain's other books, Checkmate! is full of examples followed by problems. There is either one example and three problems or four problems on a page. Checkmate! contains 55 pages of discussion and problems plus 12 pages of answer key at the back. As a bonus Bain reviews algebraic notation and recording moves at the front and opening, middlegame, and endgame principles in the back.
One improvement that Bain makes over his recommended Chess Tactics for Students book is that the hints are not next to the problem statement. For example, if he says "White to play and Mate in Two" then the hint "Use a Rook to …" is not in the same paragraph, but off to the side. This makes it easier to hide the hint if you don't want to use it (I would have preferred a separate hint section before the answer key, but this is still an improvement). Since I use Chess Tactics for Students as a primer for both young students and adults and always tell them to first try the problems without reading the hint, putting the hint to the side makes it easier for them to do this.
Although there are many simple checkmates included, I would like to have seen more since the ones presented are so well explained. Also, I think Checkmate! could be improved by including a section on the basic, common checkmate processes of King and Queen vs. King, King and Rook versus King, and King and two Rooks versus King. The end patterns of these mates are covered, but not how to force them from a general position. Since these processes are by far the most common form of checkmate (along with the included back rank mate), maybe they can be included the second edition!
Unlike his tactics book, Checkmate! is inexpensively bound, but the incredibly reasonable price of $3.95 makes this understandable and enables the book to be a real bargain. Just this reason would be enough to strongly recommend Checkmate! for beginners of all ages.
Dan can be found at http://mywebpages.comcast.net/danheisman/chess.htm and teaches on the ICC as Phillytutor
