by Victor Bologan, 236pp. (2007 Russell Enterprises)

Foreword by Garry Kasparov

Power Chess at Its Best!

Moldovian Grandmaster Victor Bologan is among the world's strongest and most dynamic grandmasters. You are invited to join him on a highly personal, autobiographical journey, as he presents 52 of his games, deeply annotated. These games are highlighted against a background of his life experiences and development, resulting in one of the most splendid game collections available today. The text and games are nicely complemented by over thirty photographs, and indexes of players, openings, tournament results and even strategic, tactical and psychological techniques.

"This is a book that ought to be read by every chessplayer who is serious about continuing to mature as a player ... This book contains games with many different types of plans, beginning with the most varied kinds of openings. Today, it's the fashion to expand ones opening repertoire, incorporating different sometimes structurally contradictory openings; this book will give you advice, usually from the author's perspective, on how to choose an opening. The author talks about the method he used to make his choices, and about the concrete philosophy standing behind each decision. These could be elements of chess psychology relating to a specific opponent, or perhaps changes in creative attitudes stemming from work with different trainers. Or it could be just following the current fashion in chess for every chessplayer, even the most creative, is obliged to study the development of chess thinking, and try to keep up, to stay always on the cutting edge of contemporary chess developments. And here too, in practically every game, one may find general recommendations, 'fine-tuned' to the concrete particulars of each position. I find this sort of advice to be the most valuable, because general advice that is not illustrated by a concrete example loses the greater part of its practical value." From the Foreword by Garry Kasparov

"This book gives us a rare insight into the develomental process of a player who was born with talent rather than genius, and highlights what can be achieved with self-belief and application. In this sense the book is an inspiration, and probably one of the finest games collections ever produced." Jonathan Rowson, New In Chess

"[The book] is filled with great games, lightly annotated, through which the author's great talent and warm personality shines...I recommend it to more or less anyone who finds chess enjoyable." Jacob Aagaard, ChessCafe.com


"What makes it a book that every real chess fan MUST buy? There are two answers to this query. One is the enormous amount of biographical material. Bologan takes us through birth (literally!) to his childhood, from tournament to tournament, and into his home. Many photos and crosstables enrich the book as a whole, and his notes are both detailed and honest. The second answer though, takes the genre in a new direction: he discusses his chess teachers, what made him a strong player, AND he gives us a detailed lesson summery at the end of every game. This makes VICTOR BOLOGAN: SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004 not only fun and informative reading, but also highly instructive. His desire to teach is highlighted in an index titled: INDEX OF STRATEGIC, TACTICAL and PSYCHOLOGICAL TECHNIQUES. What a great idea! In fact, I'll undoubtedly steal this idea in my next book (actually, every book should incorporate this kind of index)...All in all, VICTOR BOLOGAN: SELECTED GAMES 1985-2004 is one of the best autobiographical game collections ever. His tales are fascinating, the games are sharp and full of beautiful ideas, his notes are top notch, and his desire to share his understanding of chess with the reader is moving and heartfelt. Congratulations to the author and to Russell Enterprises for bringing this masterpiece to English speaking audiences." Jeremy Silman, JeremySilman.com

"A good game collection not only has well-annotated games using words as well as variations, but also offers biographical material that gives some insight into what sort of person the player and how he developed. Pictures, crosstables and indexes complete the picture and Bologan's book has it all plus a foreword by Garry Kasparov who notes how rare it is to see such a book in this day of 'Informant style notes.' To add to the total package Bologan has included valuable lessons at the end of each game. Highly Recommended"  -- John Donaldson