My System - Nimzovich


jts

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This entire book is in pdf form. You don't need to get it from Amazon.

http://www.taflfelag.is/assets/files/Nimzowitsch,.Aron.My.System.%2821st.century.ed%29.pdf

It is said that 'My System' made masters out of amateurs, grandmasters out of masters. I don't believe it but it has been said.

Chernev describes Nimzovich as the most original chess player of all time. Words that have been used to describe Nimzovich:

-- heathen and beautiful

-- bizarre

-- boroque

-- fabulous original

Hans Kmoch composed and annotated (pretending to be Nimzovich) a fiction game between Nimzovich and a fiction opponent, making fun of Nimzovich's style. Nimzovich himself thought this parody was funny.

http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1334664

http://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-openings/the-immortal-overprotection-game

2. h4! My very oldest and latest thought in this opening. To the chess addict nurtured on spineless convention, this move comes like a slap in the face - but calm down, dear reader; after all, you cannot be expected to understand such moves. (Forgive me - it is not your fault, until now no one has opened your eyes and ears.) Wait just a little while, and there will pass before you a miracle of overprotection of more than earthly beauty.

3. e5! A move of elemental delicacy. (We detest, as a matter of principle, such words as "power" and "strength"; in the first place, such banal expressions make us uncomfortable; and, in the second place, we like even less the brutalizing tendency which such words imply.) Wherein lies the beauty of 3.e5? Why is this move so strong? The answer is as simple as it is astonishing. The move is strong because it is weak! Weak, that is, only in the traditional sense! In reality, that is to say, it is not the move but the Pawn on e5 that is weak - a tremendous difference! In former times, it is true, - a tremendous difference! In former times, it is true, it was customary to reject any move which created a weakness. Today, thanks to me, this view is obsolete. For, look, my dear reader, ....

Sprinkled thruout My System are bits of humor. Nimzovich disagrees with the view that some authors have that they would sacrifice their dignity if they let out some humor in a serious book.

In 1929 Nimzovich won first prize in a tournament that included all the great chess players in the world except world champion Alekhine. As a result of this success, Nimzovich figured he should get a world title match with Alekhine, but that never happened.

It is said that Petrosian, wc 1963-1969, based his style on My System but developed the ideas beyond Nimzovich.

Alekhine did not think highly of the book, saying the part of it that is true is not original and the part of it that is original is not true. Alekhine was thumbs down on the 'Jewish' style of playing chess; that included Nimzovich.

http://anusha.com/alekhine.htm

Alekhine was thumbs down on Jews.

Nimzovich: When you say Slav you say slave.

Alekhine: When you say Jew you don't need to say anything else.

Some of the ideas in the book that were controversial at the time are common sense now. But at least one modern grandmaster advises to not read the book.

Anyway this famous and somewhat controversial book is in pdf form for free.

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