EP 240- "Pawn Book Championship" Special Episode with Neal Bruce Perpetual Chess Podcast

This week’s Perpetual Chess is the much anticipated “Pawn Book Championship” with popular adult improver Neal Bruce. Neal learned chess from scratch after the age of 40, and has been consistently studying and using flashcards to improve his skills in the last handful of years. In the past year, Neal has turned his attention to better understanding pawn play and positional chess, and he has read 6 (!) different books in order to facilitate better chess understanding. We Perpetual Chess listeners are very fortunate that Neal has offered to do a podcast crowning the “champion” of the pawn books, and has also agreed to give his honest assessment of the other books. When not working on his chess game, Neal is the Chief Product Officer of a software startup and a father of 3, so we greatly appreciate his taking the time for this large project. Please read on for more details and relevant links. 


0:00- 

The transcript of episode 237 with GM Vladimir Kramnik is here


If you would like to subscribe to the Perpetual Chess Patreon page, you can do so here. 


4:00- Other podcasts to hear Neal Bruce:
Book Recap 6- Woodpecker Method and Rapid Chess Improvement  
Book Recap 11- Winning Chess Strategies 
How to Chess with Neal Bruce 
Dojo Talks #24 with Neal Bruce 

5:00- 
Which books are entrants in Neal’s “Pawn Book Championship,” and how and why did he choose them? 
Small Steps to Giant Improvement by GM Sam Shankland (Most appropriate for those 1700-2400 FIDE)
Small Steps 2 Success by GM Sam Shankland (Most appropriate for those 1800-2400 FIDE)
Pawn Structure Chess by GM Andy Soltis (Most appropriate for those 1500-2200 FIDE)
Chess Structures by GM Mauricio Flores Rios (Most appropriate for those 1500-2200 FIDE)
The Power of Pawns by GM Jorg Hickl’s (Most appropriate for those 1200-2000)
Pawn Power by IM Hans Kmoch (Not recommended for any rating range)


22:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com! Check out their latest offerings here. 
New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com
Also be sure to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast, more info here:
https://howtochess.com/

23:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com 
They offer a huge library of instructive videos. You can hear GM Avetik Grigoryan on Episode 192 of Perpetual Chess. Be sure to subscribe to their YouTube channel here. 

24:00- Hans Kmoch Pawn Power 

30:30- GM Andy Soltis’s Pawn Structure Chess 

34:00-GM Sam Shankland’s Small Steps 2 Success 
https://www.qualitychess.co.uk/products/2/345/small_steps_2_success_by_sam_shankland/
Mentioned: New in Chess Magazine 

38:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check out their site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

39:00- Small Steps to Giant Improvement
Free sample from Quality Chess here:
https://www.qualitychess.co.uk/products/2/316/small_steps_to_giant_improvement_by_sam_shankland/

43:00- The Power of Pawns by Jorg Hickl. 
Link with free sample from New in Chess Books here:
https://www.newinchess.com/en_US/the-power-of-pawns

47:00- Chess Structures
Free sample from Quality Chess here:
https://www.qualitychess.co.uk/products/2/235/chess_structures_-_a_grandmaster_guide_by_mauricio_flores_rios/

51:00- In what order would Neal recommend that you read these books? 
Mentioned: 
Interview with Magnus Carlsen on Wolfgang Wee Uncut-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElHa52f_bC8&t=4725s

58:30- What lessons did Neal learn from these readings? What books are next for him? 
Mentioned: Mastering Chess Strategy, Mastering Positional Sacrifices, Silman’s Reassess Your Chess Workbook, Practical Chess Exercises, Zurich 1953, New York 1924, Judit Polgar’s How I Beat Fischer’s Record, Book Recap #7 with Jen Shahade 

1:04:00- Thanks so much to Neal for undertaking this massive project and sharing his findings with the chess community! You can keep up with Ne