Mastering the chess openings

"...promises to unlock the mysteries of modern opening play and as usual Watson is great in explaining the fundamentals and the basic ideas." - GM Lubomir Kavalek, Washington PostFor many chess-players, opening study is sheer hard work. It is difficult to know what is important and what is not, and when specific knowledge is vital, or when a more general understanding is sufficient. Tragically often, once the opening is over, a player won't know what plan to follow, or even understand why his pieces are on the squares on which they sit.John Watson seeks to help chess-players achieve a more holistic and insightful view of the openings. In his previous books on chess strategy, "Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy" and "Chess Strategy in Action", he explained vital concepts that characterize modern chess. Moreover, he did so in ways that have enabled these ideas to be understood by club players. Here he does likewise for the openings, proceeding from the fundamental ideas that apply to all o