The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal
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- Author：Mikhail Tal
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Summary
Mikhail Tal， the 'magician from Riga' was the greatest attacking World Champion of them all， and this enchanting autobiography chronicles his extraordinary career with charm and humor。
Reviews
Markus
，
This is great， 100 amazing games， great anecdotes， insightful commentary， wit and just everything I want from a collection of games。 Sadly I am not very fast at reading through chess games。
P。E。
，
The Magician from Riga Simulatenous exhibition， Amsterdam （1959）So， what is all the fuss about？ This book is the whimsical chess autobiography of former World champion Mikhail Tal， reknown for a highly creative， even mercurial playstyle， involving sharp tactics， energetic， decisive pawn moves， and last but not least， legendary quality and piece sacrifices， as you can see from the collection of games gathered there :） Mikhail Tal in 1988In the end， I have been equally impressed by the subtl The Magician from Riga Simulatenous exhibition， Amsterdam （1959）So， what is all the fuss about？ This book is the whimsical chess autobiography of former World champion Mikhail Tal， reknown for a highly creative， even mercurial playstyle， involving sharp tactics， energetic， decisive pawn moves， and last but not least， legendary quality and piece sacrifices， as you can see from the collection of games gathered there :） Mikhail Tal in 1988In the end， I have been equally impressed by the subtleties involved by his seemingly quiet moves， by the scale of his tactical fireworks and most of all， by the humility and self-derision evinced by the author-narrator-main character throughout， as he sets the 。 So far among the chess literature I've read （not that much， I'm all too ready to acknowledge）， this one book clearly stands out when it comes to the human qualities of the author， shining through the prose。 Only Chess Breviary by Savielly Tartakower comes close， while the sheer passion radiating from this one is unparalleled！ :） Tal's stareIncidentally， this work is also a highly informative document about the lifestyle of the most distinguished chess competitors from the USSR， always on the move， from one event to another， barely catching up with the scheduled plane to the next place， always on the lookout for the most recent developments in chess opening theory， now working as a team， now as rivals。 In this regard， the games played with Mikhail Botvinnnik， Paul Keres， Viktor Korchnoi， David Bronstein， Tigran Petrosian， Boris Spassky and young Anatoli Karpov are highly illustrative of what it meant to be part of a "stable" of professionnal chess players back then， in the Soviet Union。 Mikhail Tal and Tigran Petrosian----------Here is a link to a page gathering all the games studied in the book （still， if only to read Tal's quirky remarks， asides and personal comments on the games and their context， the book is worth purchasing :）） Mikhail Tal taking part in Wijk an Zee tournament （1976）♔♕♖♗♘♙ Further reading in chess literature:Bréviaire des échecsChess Master vs。 Chess AmateurL'art de faire matHow to Reassess Your Chess: Chess Mastery Through Chess ImbalancesSoundtrack : Reinvention - Gryphon 。。。more
Victor Hugo
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Tal é hipnotizante， não apenas nos matches， mas nas palavras。 Essa é de longe a melhor biografia que já li， que personagem interessante！ O raciocínio dele é simples mas bastante complexo， fiquei muito admirado。 O conhecia apenas pelas partidas que estudei nos últimos anos e agora a sensação é que se abre uma nova camada de compreensão， tanto relativa aos matches， quanto ao xadrez。 Muito inspirador e estranhamente revolucionário。 Não deixa de existir um pesar， pois ele partiu cedo demais。 Recomen Tal é hipnotizante， não apenas nos matches， mas nas palavras。 Essa é de longe a melhor biografia que já li， que personagem interessante！ O raciocínio dele é simples mas bastante complexo， fiquei muito admirado。 O conhecia apenas pelas partidas que estudei nos últimos anos e agora a sensação é que se abre uma nova camada de compreensão， tanto relativa aos matches， quanto ao xadrez。 Muito inspirador e estranhamente revolucionário。 Não deixa de existir um pesar， pois ele partiu cedo demais。 Recomendo muito a leitura para quem tem interesse no mundo do xadrez。 。。。more
Sylvan Clarke
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Now i know why Mikhail was a true genius at the chess enigma， cheers。 Top draw insight into the brilliancy of piece sacrifices。 Even though i played through the games on my chess board， there were more than a few i will never ever get to grips with。。。his mind was definitely not of this planet （Venus or Mars i'm betting :））。 Now i know why Mikhail was a true genius at the chess enigma， cheers。 Top draw insight into the brilliancy of piece sacrifices。 Even though i played through the games on my chess board， there were more than a few i will never ever get to grips with。。。his mind was definitely not of this planet （Venus or Mars i'm betting :））。 。。。more
Peter
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Absolutely brilliant。 Probably the best Chess biography/Games collection ever written。 Tal was a great player and a great writer。 Very humorous too。
Tina Haibodi
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Incredibly interesting and another reason why I adore memoirs。 The novel goes beyond the tactics that Mikhail uses in chess， the psychological warfare and includes the illnesses he suffered after years of drinking/smoking。 The book includes both annotated and unannotated chess games from Tal's career， so I wouldn't recommend if you have absolutely no knowledge of chess。 His thought processes were interesting to learn about， considering his reputation for being one of the most creative and impuls Incredibly interesting and another reason why I adore memoirs。 The novel goes beyond the tactics that Mikhail uses in chess， the psychological warfare and includes the illnesses he suffered after years of drinking/smoking。 The book includes both annotated and unannotated chess games from Tal's career， so I wouldn't recommend if you have absolutely no knowledge of chess。 His thought processes were interesting to learn about， considering his reputation for being one of the most creative and impulsive players。 。。。more
Robert
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Mikhail Tal’s autobiography is in the form of an interview， with a “journalist” interviewer asking probing questions， followed by Tal’s answers。 Some of Tal’s responses are pure narrative， while others involve detailed descriptions of chess matches。 In fact， the book uses hundreds of chess diagrams of his games from 1949 to 1975。 When a life is so immersed in chess， it makes sense that his autobiography would be an even mix of narrative and game diagrams。 There is no other way to illustrate Tal’ Mikhail Tal’s autobiography is in the form of an interview， with a “journalist” interviewer asking probing questions， followed by Tal’s answers。 Some of Tal’s responses are pure narrative， while others involve detailed descriptions of chess matches。 In fact， the book uses hundreds of chess diagrams of his games from 1949 to 1975。 When a life is so immersed in chess， it makes sense that his autobiography would be an even mix of narrative and game diagrams。 There is no other way to illustrate Tal’s life。Tal was born in Riga， Latvia in 1936。 He died in 1992， age 55。 He spent much of his life ill， mostly kidney problems， which interfered with his play at times。 Nevertheless， he defeated a Grandmaster for the first time at the USSR Team Championship at age 18。 He became a Grandmaster in his own right at age 21。 He won the World Chess Championship at age 24 （in 1960）。Tal’s personality shows itself early， at age 19， when he said “To play for a draw， at any rate with white， is to some degree a crime against chess” （28）。 Playing for a draw at the top levels of competition was not at all unusual。The Hippopotamus in the MarshOne anecdote reveals the quintessential Tal personality: the story of the Hippopotamus in the Marsh。 Tal was playing Grandmaster Vasiukov in a USSR Championship。 They reached a very complicated position with a difficult decision about a piece sacrifice。 He was tracing thousands of moves， subtleties， and alternatives， until it became a chaotic pile of moves， known as the ‘tree of variations，’ from which you must cut off the small branches。 In the middle of this struggle， suddenly， Tal remembered a poetry couplet:Oh， what a difficult job it wasTo drag out of the marsh the hippopotamusTal became obsessed with the couplet， and forgot all about the chess board。 Spectators assumed Tal was quietly studying the position。 Instead， Tal was trying to formulate a workable theory on how the hippopotamus could be dragged out of a marsh。 After 40 minutes working out several methods involving levers， helicopters， and rope ladders， he finally concluded to just ‘let it drown。’ Then suddenly the hippopotamus disappeared from his mind。 As he ‘awoke’ from the 40-minute daydream， he became conscious of the chess board in front of him again。 At the same moment， he realized the board was so complex at that point， it was impossible to follow the tree of variations。 It was only possible （and advisable）， to make the move most in tune with his intuition。 It was that simple。 The intuitive move was clear to him， and he made it。 Tal recalls， “The following day， it was with pleasure that I read in the paper how Mikhail Tal， after carefully thinking over the position for 40 minutes， made an accurately calculated piece sacrifice” （65）。 That move proved to be pivotal， and he won the game by giving that pivotal move almost no thought at all。RevengeLeading a life of intense competition inevitably leads to strong feeling in both winning and losing。 Tal learned early to govern his emotions。 As he explains it， “In principle， striving for revenge … is a good intention， but when it becomes an end in itself … you lose your sense of reality and of objectivity in assessing a position” （68）。ArtistesTal loved playing to a crowd， unlike one of his famous adversaries Bobby Fischer， who was hypersensitive to crowd noise。 Tal felt that “When we appear on the stage， we are artistes” （166）。 He enjoyed the noise in the hall， particularly when the noise was a positive reaction to one of his moves on the chess board。Gets Better with AgeEven though Tal was the World Chess Champion at age 24 in 1960， he actually reached his peak rating at age 44 in 1980。 And in the 1970s he had 100-game winning streaks， playing the world’s greatest Chess Champions。 Tal played them all。 He had his share of wins over greats such as Fischer， Spassky， Karpov， Petrosian， Keres， and a host of others who all experienced fear and anxiety when taking their seat across from Tal。When games go long， and must be adjourned for the night， there is feverish analysis into the wee hours to prepare for resumption the next morning。 Often in Tal’s games， where “every hour a cup of coffee was consumed” （405）， Tal’s opponent would resign right away the next morning， or after a very few moves。 The night’s analysis would predict， the morning resumption would bear out， the implacable pattern of Tal’s advantage。Chess in the HospitalDuring Tal’s illnesses， his colleagues would visit him in the hospital， bringing of course a portable chess board， to help him pass the time in bed。 In 1969 there was a false report of Tal’s death。 He quickly contacted his friends and quoted Mark Twain， assuring them that “The rumors about my death are greatly exaggerated！” （393）。 In sickness and in health， Tal played chess and kept his sense of humor。A Bright LightMikhail Tal lived a life of pain and disease。 He endured physical suffering constantly as he faced the most fierce mental challenges almost every day。 He played an absolute minimum of 100 games per year， many of which games lasting all day or two days。 But Tal was known as an upbeat， friendly man with a great sense of humor and generally a pleasure to be around。 He was a classic “absent-minded professor” personality type。 He was not good with everyday practical skills。 But the minute he sat in front of a chess board， he was making history。 If you enjoy fascinating characters， history， and chess， this is probably the best book you could read。 。。。more
Tim Reisner
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Endearing autobiog of the great attacker。 Tal's struggle with illness gives the games and anecdotes a poignant note。 Endearing autobiog of the great attacker。 Tal's struggle with illness gives the games and anecdotes a poignant note。 。。。more
Wade Greiten
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Mikhail Tal is hilarious。 The games are incredible。 As anyone familiar with chess history will know， Mikhail Tal wasn't known for playing the most technically sound games-- obviously he was one of the greatest players of all time， but he was great in large part because of his willingness to make unpredictable， bold moves which plunged the game into chaos。 Modern engines would spurn a lot of his decisions so if one is trying to play optimally， and wants a book to help them achieve that， then they Mikhail Tal is hilarious。 The games are incredible。 As anyone familiar with chess history will know， Mikhail Tal wasn't known for playing the most technically sound games-- obviously he was one of the greatest players of all time， but he was great in large part because of his willingness to make unpredictable， bold moves which plunged the game into chaos。 Modern engines would spurn a lot of his decisions so if one is trying to play optimally， and wants a book to help them achieve that， then they'd probably be better off with something like Chernev's Logical Chess， or some other book like that。 But if you have a solid understanding of chess， and are interested in Tal's life and getting to know his personality， Life and Games is fantastic， and makes a great addition to any chess library。This is far and away the most entertaining chess book I've ever read。 。。。more
John
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Pure gold！ With My Memorable 60 Games， this is a must read for any chess player。
Jovany Agathe
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Mikhail Tal became so quickly popular and famous because he played completely different chess than most of the other Soviet grandmasters who more or less imitated their acknowledged leader， the world champion Mikhail Botvinnik who preferred quiet， calculating， rational if not somewhat boring playing style。 I study strategy everyday
Steven
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What else is there to say？ Talks game described and annotated by the master himself！ Best part is his reflections on the psychological warfare going on in these games， which is an extremely rare insight into the thought process of a master at the peak of his powers。
Aya Hamouda
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One of the best books I've ever read in Chess 。 I rarely give 5 stars ， but this one deserves more than 5 。 It's absolutely a masterpiece。 One of the best books I've ever read in Chess 。 I rarely give 5 stars ， but this one deserves more than 5 。 It's absolutely a masterpiece。 。。。more
Tyronne
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fwqwqffs
Arthur Kyriazis
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Tal to my mind was a greater chess champion even than Fischer。 He and Fischer shared the same styles of play and often played similar lines， and like Fischer Tal was a child prodigy。Tal unlike Fischer had serious health issues which affected his ability to stay at the top。 And， he was from Riga， and therefore was not actually ethnically Russian， which hurt him with the Soviets。 Despite this， Tal defeated Botvinnik in 1960， only to give back the title in the rematch。 Tal would never be champion a Tal to my mind was a greater chess champion even than Fischer。 He and Fischer shared the same styles of play and often played similar lines， and like Fischer Tal was a child prodigy。Tal unlike Fischer had serious health issues which affected his ability to stay at the top。 And， he was from Riga， and therefore was not actually ethnically Russian， which hurt him with the Soviets。 Despite this， Tal defeated Botvinnik in 1960， only to give back the title in the rematch。 Tal would never be champion again， although he would continue to play at an exceedingly high level including at the candidates matches。After the wall came down， Tal was a welcome presence in the West。 He spoke freely and was friendly and giving of his time with younger players。 His health took him from us all too soon。 He had a heart of gold。 The "Wizard of Riga" was one of the greats--this is one of his masterpieces。 Read it and study it。 There is wisdom here。 。。。more
Bhakta Kishor
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Widely regarded as a creative genius and one of the best attacking players of all time， Tal played in a daring， combinatorial style。 His play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability。 Every game， he once said， was as inimitable and invaluable as a poem。 He was often called "Misha"， a diminutive for Mikhail， and "The magician from Riga"。The Mammoth Book of the World's Greatest Chess Games and Modern Chess Brilliancies include more games by Tal than any other player。 In addition， Widely regarded as a creative genius and one of the best attacking players of all time， Tal played in a daring， combinatorial style。 His play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability。 Every game， he once said， was as inimitable and invaluable as a poem。 He was often called "Misha"， a diminutive for Mikhail， and "The magician from Riga"。The Mammoth Book of the World's Greatest Chess Games and Modern Chess Brilliancies include more games by Tal than any other player。 In addition， Tal was a highly regarded chess writer。🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 🎩 。。。more
Rupert Dreyfus
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Mikhail Tal was the most creative chess player of all time。 This books has Tal commentating on some of the most insane tactics in a way that's fun and accessible。 It reads like a mock interview and he comes across like a funny old-school sort of fella。 It's widely speculated that he played while under the influence of drink and drugs， and many of these games probably support this claim。 He sacrificed in ways the average brain can't understand。 Maybe one day I'll read it again absolutely hammered Mikhail Tal was the most creative chess player of all time。 This books has Tal commentating on some of the most insane tactics in a way that's fun and accessible。 It reads like a mock interview and he comes across like a funny old-school sort of fella。 It's widely speculated that he played while under the influence of drink and drugs， and many of these games probably support this claim。 He sacrificed in ways the average brain can't understand。 Maybe one day I'll read it again absolutely hammered and see it all come together。。。Recommended to all chess fans regardless of ability。 。。。more
Melad
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Yes
Clintweathers
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Tal。 This guy was scary smart and ferocious across the board。Just grab a board and set， a copy of this book， and don't make any plans for a few hours because you're going to be amazed at how fast time gooes by trying to figure out just how Mikhail Tall did this stuff。 You can keep Kasparov and all the modern masters， you can keep the positional guys and the old school romantics。Tal was just no quarter given no quarter asked， and brilliant enough to back it all up。 Tal。 This guy was scary smart and ferocious across the board。Just grab a board and set， a copy of this book， and don't make any plans for a few hours because you're going to be amazed at how fast time gooes by trying to figure out just how Mikhail Tall did this stuff。 You can keep Kasparov and all the modern masters， you can keep the positional guys and the old school romantics。Tal was just no quarter given no quarter asked， and brilliant enough to back it all up。 。。。more
Steve
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I own the RHM press copy too， but it is dog eared and falling apart。 I was thrilled they re-released it。 It is fun to see the Wizard of Riga develop and understand what was going on in his life。 Illness finally took its toll， but after a great run through the chess world。 His Botvinik match will be legendary forever。 Wish I could calculate like Tal。。。
Premkumar
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chess is aweosome
Wallace
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This is the best chess biography I've ever read。 Tal was madly in love with chess， and his enthusiasm for the game is apparent in every page of this love story。 You can't help but want to play after reading his infectious game annotations。 You want to sacrifice on knight on e6 as soon as possible。 Like any good teacher， Tal makes you excited about the subject。 When you finish reading， you want to go play。Tal constantly found a way to inject life into stale， technical positions。 He often made the This is the best chess biography I've ever read。 Tal was madly in love with chess， and his enthusiasm for the game is apparent in every page of this love story。 You can't help but want to play after reading his infectious game annotations。 You want to sacrifice on knight on e6 as soon as possible。 Like any good teacher， Tal makes you excited about the subject。 When you finish reading， you want to go play。Tal constantly found a way to inject life into stale， technical positions。 He often made the game so mind-bogglingly complicated that no one knew what was going on。 He was a chaos pilot， heading into the biggest stormclouds on the horizon in search for something new and wonderful。 Most of us like to feel in control， to be safe。 Tal liked to explore， to find adventure。 He always seemed to ask "what happens if I do this？" Consequently， his games featured sacrifices that were intuitive - based on feelings and aesthetics rather than logic and mathematics。His child-like curiosity and enthusiasm was combined with a legendary ability to calculate variations。 He was， in every sense of the word， a genius。 His style was a throwback to the swashbuckling romantics of the 19th century。 During the 1940s and 50s， the Soviets were trying to convince everyone that chess was a science。 It had rules and laws that had to be followed if one wishes to play proper chess。 The world champion， Botvinnik， was in fact a scientist。 He promoted research， hard work， and rigorous intellectual exercise。 To win at chess， you must build up small， positional advantages and then grind out a win in the endgame due to your superior technique。 As Tal says， it sounds like someone saving up his money in order to buy a motorcycle。 Where's the fun in that？ Let's just play！It's easy to cheer for our hero as he rises to the top of the chess world。 He is a smart， funny， and personable young man。 That's what strikes me the most。 He is so down-to-earth。 You can tell he genuinely wants you enjoy the game as much as he does。 It's not just about beating the opponent; it's about creating something new and beautiful for everyone to share in。 His reign as World Champion was short lived， as was the man himself。 But the fearless genius left us with a treasure trove of brilliant games。 He showed that chess can be more than a game， more than science or a mathematical puzzle。 It is a form of art。 It's a way to gain insight into how someone thinks， how they see thing。 It is a glimpse into someone's soul。 This book bares the soul of a man who dedicated his life for celebrating beauty and friendship。 Buy this， along with his book on the 1960 World Championship against Botvinnik。 They are immortal classics。 。。。more
Stian
，
I spent a long time reading this book， making sure I squeezed every drop of pleasure from it， so to say。 And it did not disappoint。 Tal is by far my favourite player （alongside Morozevich， whose style is very similar to Tal， but 'hampered' by modern opening preparation and computers） and it was a pleasure to sit down and play through his games。 About half the games I played through over the board myself， setting up the positions and so on。 I tried to look at a lot of positions as puzzles， and mo I spent a long time reading this book， making sure I squeezed every drop of pleasure from it， so to say。 And it did not disappoint。 Tal is by far my favourite player （alongside Morozevich， whose style is very similar to Tal， but 'hampered' by modern opening preparation and computers） and it was a pleasure to sit down and play through his games。 About half the games I played through over the board myself， setting up the positions and so on。 I tried to look at a lot of positions as puzzles， and most of the time I failed to see the tactical brilliancies that Tal came up with （some sane， most not！）。 The others I simply played through unaided， but Houdini 3 and the ChessBase database was certainly helpful in retrieving and analysing a lot of the games （going through games in my head is one thing; reviewing variations another， and much too challenging sometimes！）。 A wonderful book in any case， spiced with Tal's wit and fascinating and bohemian lifestyle。 A true legend of the game， and this book is a legendary chess book for good reason！ 。。。more
Michael
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One of my all-time favorite reads。 You really feel like you've streamed through living life。 Even for a non-chess player， this book is a riveting tale and of course a classic。 One of my all-time favorite reads。 You really feel like you've streamed through living life。 Even for a non-chess player， this book is a riveting tale and of course a classic。 。。。more
Seth
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One of the best chess books ever written。 The games have the magic of Tal and the writing has his wit。
Sameer Khan
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It's a huge shame he died so young - I still find it crazy when I see how recently some of his contemporaries died only within 5 years （Korchnoi）， or are even still alive （Averbakh）！ If Tal were alive today he'd still only be 84。 We could've had Tal vs。 Carlsen！ Great book anyway - good stories and good games。 It's a huge shame he died so young - I still find it crazy when I see how recently some of his contemporaries died only within 5 years （Korchnoi）， or are even still alive （Averbakh）！ If Tal were alive today he'd still only be 84。 We could've had Tal vs。 Carlsen！ Great book anyway - good stories and good games。 。。。more
Serge Pierro
，
I don't think that there was ever a more exciting chess player than Mikail Tal。 His games were a maelstrom of creativity that would explode with sound （and unsound！） sacrifices that unnerved many of his opponents。 And who could forget "The Gaze"！ Some of the most interesting games ever played are contained in this volume， along with some great stories by Tal himself。 I don't think that there was ever a more exciting chess player than Mikail Tal。 His games were a maelstrom of creativity that would explode with sound （and unsound！） sacrifices that unnerved many of his opponents。 And who could forget "The Gaze"！ Some of the most interesting games ever played are contained in this volume， along with some great stories by Tal himself。 。。。more
Sergei Moska
，
Assigning a number of stars to a given book is tricky， since there are so many dimensions to consider。 Books can be 1）useful2）"important" within their field3）of high quality4）appealing in general5）appealing to the reviewer， even if he knows that it's an idiosyncratic tasteThen you get Life and Games of Mikhail Tal， which solves the problem by being a five-star book in each category。 If going over chess games has any appeal to you whatsoever， you will probably really like this book。 Chess books a Assigning a number of stars to a given book is tricky， since there are so many dimensions to consider。 Books can be 1）useful2）"important" within their field3）of high quality4）appealing in general5）appealing to the reviewer， even if he knows that it's an idiosyncratic tasteThen you get Life and Games of Mikhail Tal， which solves the problem by being a five-star book in each category。 If going over chess games has any appeal to you whatsoever， you will probably really like this book。 Chess books are almost never， ever this readable。 And the subject matter？ Tal is the man。 As Botvinnik once said， "I couldn’t make myself dislike him。" Tal's personality really comes across in this book。 It's hard to imagine someone reading through the whole thing （including the famous Hippo story - google it！） and thinking "Wow， Tal is lame。"Tal is a notoriously creative player， so some might think that only players with similar styles would appreciate the collection。 Not so。 My style is very little like Tal's - I prioritize looking for and precisely calculating short variations， with few intuitive sacrifices - and I still love going through the games and commentary。 What's more， having done so a few times， I realized that some of Tal's style even rubbed off on me a bit。 I expected to give a coherent， detailed review， but I clearly failed。 That's how enthusiastic I am about this book。 It's one of the few universally well-regarded books that really does live up to its hype。 。。。more
Kevin de Ataíde
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Read this a long time ago。 I'll have to dig it up again sometime。 Read this a long time ago。 I'll have to dig it up again sometime。 。。。more
Keith Halbert
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