Properly Played

Any player who prefers to rely on main lines will be well acquainted with the problem of the sheer masses of opening theory. And as they do not stop growing, there's always the risk that sooner or later they will grow over one's head.
Therefore, the wish for a simpler approach is understandable. The wish for an opening that does not necessarily aim for the earliest possible advantage. The wish for general conditions which ensure that the beginning of the game can be carried out without great risks and that the actual combat action begins in the middle game.
And, indeed, such an opening does exist - the so-called 'King's Indian Attack'. It offers a strategically interesting approach to the treatment of the opening which allows one to avoid all elaborate lines. In a simplified way one might call it: a lid that fits every pot. White initially only puts the king's pawn in the center. Then he turns it into a very solid central bridgehead and develops his forces in the spirit of the 'King's Indian Defence'. And what happens next depends on the defence that Black is going to choose.
And far from being 'second-rate stuff', this opening must be taken very seriously. This becomes clear after a look at which top players have or had it in their repertoire. We only want to mention (representative of many others) the reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen and the former World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik right now. Hear about others in the book.

The 'Réti Opening' 1.¤g1-f3 d7-d5 2.c2-c4 is quiet and solid and usually leads to the middle game without greater tactical complications. Therefore, the arising positions require more positional understanding than tactical skills.

The book is primarily intended for amateurs looking for an opening with the following advantages.

1. Easy to learn because the readers can orient themselves on key ideas and general set-up plans – that meens without the need to memorize vast amounts of 'theory'.

2. However, they can still focus on certain continuations and increase their specific knowledge.

3. The opening should enable them to master the passage from the opening to the middle game with mainly solid positional play – i.e. without the risk of running into sharp tactical surprises.

4. It should offer much room for research and experimentation.
In addition to the theoretical explanations, the readers find many games from tournament practice to show the 'Réti Opening' in action. By studying these games, they can not only enrich their knowledge with many typical and subtle motifs and ideas – but also become familiar with what one might call the 'natural development' in the different lines and set-ups.
However, the authors have made sure that the selected games, apart from the required work, are also enjoyable and entertaining.

The French Defense (1.e4 e6) caught the attention of the chess world in the first half of the 19th century, and has developed to be one of the most important and popular openings. The author of this book, the German Grandmaster Wolfgang Uhlmann, is a world-renowned expert who has tested this opening and enriched its theory over his entire career. 76 selected games (mostly his own) document the considerable success he has achieved with his favorite opening, often against the strongest opponents. The theoretical remarks integrated into the annotations provide the reader with well founded instructions for the treatment of this opening.
It was not the author's goal to present a complete survey of all the systems and lines that build the French Defense but instead to put the positional evaluation and the creation of a plan in the foreground. At the same time this compilation traces the career path that the author has taken with his favorite French lines. Uhlmann's work is now available in the 4th updated and amended edition. In particular, the author has added five more recent games by other French specialists to the collection.

Grandmaster Wolfgang Uhlmann (born in Dresden in 1935) was the strongest player of the GDR from 1958 to 1989 and participated in 11 chess Olympiads (10 times at the top board). At his peak, he belonged to the world's top players and celebrated outstanding successes in many national and international tournaments. And last but not least, he was active for many years in the German top league (Bundesliga) and has made a name as the author of numerous publications.