Enough time has passed since the first edition of The Mammoth Book of Chess that I have now had the experience of players telling me that it was their first book, and even their favourite book, before sitting down at the board – and defeating me. Naturally, I have mixed feelings about this, but I am pleased that this book has made such an impact.
This third edition features a completely new chapter on computer and Internet chess, given how drastically these aspects of chess have changed in the intervening time. I have also added an extra chapter of 60 puzzles which I hope readers will have many hours of pleasure attempting to solve. If they prove too difficult (always an author’s main fear when setting puzzle positions), then please view them as additional examples to complement those in the earlier chapters of the book. Naturally, I have also taken the opportunity to update the book in a number of other respects (particularly the opening coverage), but most of the other material remains largely unaltered.
Finally, I would like to thank the staff at Constable & Robinson for their enthusiasm for this project, their generous allocation of an extra 32 pages, and for their patience when some unexpected developments in my personal life led to a delay in delivering the new text.
Graham Burgess
Woodbury, Minnesota 2009