Understanding Minor Piece Endgames, Karsten Muller & Yakov Konoval, Russell Enterprises, 2018

Knowing the abilities and limitations of the minor pieces is very valuable for mastering the secrets of the royal game, and this can be studied best in the endgame. It is essential to understand the management of the long-range bishop, albeit confined to one color, as well as the short-range, ubiquitous knight.

This book is the second volume in the authors’ acclaimed Understanding Endgames series. It follows a dual philosophy, like their previous work, Understanding Rook Endgames. It deals with seven-piece minor-piece endings in some detail. These endgames are often so deep that pre-tablebase analysis almost always contained errors.

Many new discoveries are revealed here. In addition, the authors emphasize the important five- and six-piece endings every club player should know. But to really understand minor piece endings, these theoretical positions are of course not enough. Sub-chapters on the principles of each material configuration have therefore been added.

Understanding Minor Piece Endgames will take you a long way to mastering these important endings.

“Having had the pleasure to preview this book, I can tell you that you are in for a treat. Careful study of this book will benefit your chess immensely...” From the Foreword by GM Jacob Aagaard