Chess Mazes: A New Kind of Chess Puzzle for Everyone

by Bruce Alberston

A great puzzle book to encourage the development of chess visualization. The planning and visualization skills taught here translate directly to over-the-board chess and have many other applications as well, for players and instructors alike.

Genres: Chess

138 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2004

Reviews

[Michael]

Unique idea. I do believe these exercises are useful for beginners to stop hanging pieces and for all chess players to improve visualization and creativity. Often in endgames it's useful to pursue a
certain configuration of pieces more so than concrete sequences of moves. The puzzles exercise those muscles and provided me with enjoyment. Towards the end of the book in particular the puzzles are challenging, but rarely frustrating. In comparison with more traditional puzzles where I sometimes find myself aimless calculating the same lines, this book is more approachable. I'm around 1700 USCF for the record.

[Robert]

The idea is original - and it's very simple: only White is moving and he is trying with a single piece to put the black king under check, while avoiding all the attacked squares.
From the Forward by GM Karsten Mueller:
"If you are one who often loses games by hanging pieces or missing mates, then this is the book for you. To master Chess Mazes, you have to exert better control and command of the full potential of all the pieces and you have to visualize their movements in your mind's eye. The result? Excellent training to avoid one-move blunders!"
And even if you don't suffer (at least not so often) from making blunders, these exercises are still fun to solve.