Which chess books should you read?

Current rating?
Current rating? Any Below 800 800 - 1000 1000 - 1200 1200 - 1400 1400 - 1600 1600 - 1800 1800 - 2000 2000 - 2200 Above 2200
Playing style?
Playing style? any positional dynamic tactical theoretical
Biggest weakness?
Biggest weakness? any openings strategy tactics and calculation endgames
Target rating?
Target rating? Any 800 - 1000 1000 - 1200 1200 - 1400 1400 - 1600 1600 - 1800 1800 - 2000 2000 - 2200 Above 2200

Table of Contents

  • Elo: -800
  • -
  • 2200+
Chessbook is the fastest way to build a bulletproof repertoire.
  • Chessbook
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  • ELO: 1400
  • -
  • 1800
0 reviews
Chess book review, Games and Goals, Atle Grønn
  • Games and Goals
  • Atle Grønn
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 2000
1 review
Book cover of Panov Attack in Chess by Eric Schiller, chess book review
  • Panov Attack in Chess
  • Eric Schiller
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 2000
  • -
  • 2200+
0 reviews
Book cover of Grandmaster Repertoire 2: 1.d4 Volume Two by Boris Avrukh, chess book review
  • Grandmaster Repertoire 2: 1.d4 Volume Two
  • Boris Avrukh
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  • ELO: 2000
  • -
  • 2200+
0 reviews
Book cover of Grandmaster Repertoire: The French Defence, Volume 2 by Emanuel Berg, chess book review
  • Grandmaster Repertoire: The French Defence, Volume 2
  • Emanuel Berg
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1400
  • -
  • 1800
0 reviews
Book cover of Attack and Counterattack in Chess by Fred Reinfeld, chess book review
  • Attack and Counterattack in Chess
  • Fred Reinfeld
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  • ELO: 1800
  • -
  • 2000
0 reviews
Chess book review, Sveshnikov vs. the Anti-Sicilians, Evgeny Sveshnikov
  • Sveshnikov vs. the Anti-Sicilians
  • Evgeny Sveshnikov
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  • Elo: -800
  • -
  • 2200+
  • Promoted
600 of the world's most realistc chess bots
  • 600 Chess Bots
  • IM John Bartholomew
Play for free
  • ELO: 1800
  • -
  • 2000
0 reviews
Chess book review, Comprehensive Chess Endings Volume 3, Queen and Pawn Endings, Queen Against Rook Endings, Queen against Minor Piece Endings, Yuri Averbakh
  • Comprehensive Chess Endings Volume 3, Queen and Pawn Endings, Queen Against Rook Endings, Queen against Minor Piece Endings
  • Viktor Henkin, Vitaly Chekhover, Yuri Averbakh
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 1800
0 reviews
Book cover of The world Chess Crown Challenge: Kasparov vs Karpov, Seville 87 by David Bronstein, chess book review
  • The world Chess Crown Challenge: Kasparov vs Karpov, Seville 87
  • David Bronstein
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 2000
0 reviews
Book cover of Seven Ways to Smash the Sicilian by Nick Conticello, chess book review
  • Seven Ways to Smash the Sicilian
  • Nick Conticello
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1800
  • -
  • 2200
1 review
Chess book review, Tournament Battleplan, Daniel Gormally
  • Tournament Battleplan
  • Daniel Gormally
Read Reviews
  • Elo: 800
  • -
  • 2200
chessmind grid image 1
  • Mauricio Flores Rios
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  • ELO: 2000
  • -
  • 2200
1 review
Chess book review, Think Like a Super-GM, Michael Adams
  • Think Like a Super-GM
  • Michael Adams, Philip Hurtado
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  • ELO: 1800
  • -
  • 2200+
1 review
Chess book review, The Ruy Lopez Revisited, Ivan Sokolov
  • The Ruy Lopez Revisited
  • Ivan Sokolov
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1800
  • -
  • 2200
1 review
Chess book review, The How to Study Chess on Your Own Workbook - Volume 1, Davorin Kuljasevic
  • The How to Study Chess on Your Own Workbook – Volume 1
  • Davorin Kuljasevic
Read Reviews

Latest reviews

  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 2200
0 reviews
Book cover of The 3...Qd8 Scandinavian: Simple and Strong by Daniel Lowinger, chess book review
  • The 3…Qd8 Scandinavian: Simple and Strong
  • Daniel Lowinger
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 2200+
0 reviews
Book cover of The Modern Scandinavian by Matthias Wahls, chess book review
  • The Modern Scandinavian
  • Matthias Wahls
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 2000
  • -
  • 2200+
2 reviews
Chess book review, The Zaitsev System, Alexey Kuzmin
  • The Zaitsev System
  • Alexey Kuzmin
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1400
  • -
  • 1800
1 review
Chess book review, Chess Fundamentals, Jose Capablanca
  • Chess Fundamentals
  • Jose Capablanca
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 2000
0 reviews
Book cover of The Original Arkhangelsk by Tibor Karolyi, chess book review
  • The Original Arkhangelsk
  • Tibor Karolyi
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1600
  • -
  • 2000
0 reviews
Book cover of Archangel and New Archangel by Krzysztof Panczyk and John Emms, chess book review
  • Archangel and New Archangel
  • John Emms, Krzysztof Panczyk
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 2000
  • -
  • 2200
2 reviews
Book cover of Bobby Fischer's Endgame Technique by Alex Colovic, chess book review
  • Bobby Fischer’s Endgame Technique
  • Alex Colovic
Read Reviews
  • ELO: 1000
  • -
  • 1200
1 review
Book cover of Starting Out: The Ruy Lopez by John Shaw, chess book review
  • Starting Out: The Ruy Lopez
  • John Shaw
Read Reviews

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Browse Reviews

Openings
Strategy
Tactics and Calculation
Positional Play
Puzzle Books
Complex Endgames
Theoretical Endgames
Puzzles and Studies
Thinking Processes
Game Collections
Textbooks
Novels and Miscellaneous
Children's Books
Biographies and Players
Book Authors
Reviews in Alphabetical Order
All reviews
Rating: Below 800
Rating: 800-1000
Rating: 1000-1200
Rating: 1200-1400
Rating: 1400-1600
Rating: 1600-1800
Rating: 1800-2000
Rating: 2000-2200
Rating: Above 2200
Articles
Everything You Need to Know About Reading Chess Books
Christmas Gifts for Chess Players
Best Chess Books of 2025
Books for Ambitious Beginners

Chessreads is a collection of chess book reviews written by chess players of varying strength, from beginner to master. Our goal is to help every chess player find out which books they should read based on their rating, weaknesses and ambition.

Chessreads is accompanied by a YouTube channel where we post reviews in video format, interviewing authors, and recommending reading lists for players of different ratings.

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