Adams Bill. Michael Adams: Development of a Grandmaster

Pergamon Press, 1991. — 150 p. — ISBN13: 978-0080378022.A wonderful and unique chess journey through Michael Adams career, as told by his father, with all the games annotated by Michael. Many of his first competitive games are here, and you see him make typical mistakes that we all make, when he was 8 and 9 years old. Then you see him improve steadily. It is a marvelous thing to see this type of progression in a book. Most game collections by GMS just have them destroying other GMs. This is the only book I can think of that shows a GMs early games, played when he was a mere mortal. This is not ony very instructive, but somewhere in the book is the transition in play from an intermediate club player to a GM. The lessons are there for you to absorb. It is a beautifully written and annotated book. I think it belongs on everyone's shelf, and that it, along with its sequel, Chess in the Fast Lane, have been seriously overlooked by the masses of chess players. Because of this, you can get each of them cheap used, and I suggest that you snatch them up while this book can still be found. Adams comes across very much as a normal guy, and this book, in addition to its inherent strengths, also gives hope to the aspiring player that with hard work, he can improve! Highly recommended.