Top Chess Books for Beginners
When you’re just starting out at chess, the number of books can be overwhelming. Some go deep into theory you’re not ready for. Others are so simple you might finish them without really improving. These five books strike a good balance — clear teaching, helpful exercises, enough guidance to level up without too much fluff or jargon. If you’re new or just getting serious about improving, these are some of the best.
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1. How to Win at Chess by Levy Rozman
What it offers:
This book is built for players roughly from 0 to ~1200 Elo — total beginners through low-intermediate. There are two main parts: Part I for beginners (0-800), Part II for intermediate (800-1200). It covers everything from rules and piece movement to basic openings, simple endgames, tactics, and strategy. It also includes lots of diagrams, some color, and QR codes that link out to online content.
What it does well:
- The writing is very approachable — not assuming you know much, it explains in plain language.
- Good structure: the chapters are ordered from very basic up through more advanced concepts. That helps build confidence.
- The tactics section (especially the heuristic “CCA” — Checks, Captures, Attacks) is strong; many reviewers say that part shines.
Best for: players who want a solid foundation, someone who knows little or nothing of chess, or someone who’s played casually and wants to get serious up to ~1200 Elo.
2. Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess
What it offers:
This one is a classic. It uses a programmed learning method, meaning you get a puzzle or question, you try to answer, if wrong the book explains why, then you try again. The focus is very much on basic tactics/checkmating ideas rather than the full spectrum of chess theory. It doesn’t require knowing standard chess notation: many diagrams and simple descriptions do the job.
What it does well:
- It’s excellent for absolute beginners who don’t even know forks, skewers, pins, etc. It builds pattern recognition in a very hands-on, immediate way.
- Because of the immediate feedback loop (try, check, learn), it helps keep up motivation: you see success quickly.
Best for: someone who is brand new, or a young learner, or someone who wants a gentle first exposure to what makes you win games tactically.
3. Winning Chess Exercises for Kids by Viktoria Ni
What it offers:
This is a workbook targetted mainly at children aged ~8-12, but actually useful for adults who like visual, exercise-based learning. It includes over 350 exercises, annotated diagrams, step-by-step instructions, growing difficulty, and explanations of what tactics and strategies look like in practice.
What it does well:
- Diagrams and visual explanations are strong. That’s especially helpful if you struggle with moving pieces in your head.
- Exercises are fun, not dry: the puzzles are engaging and are structured so that they reinforce what you just learned.
- The book doesn’t talk down to the reader. Even though for kids, many reviewers say an adult with basic knowledge still learns something.
Best for: kids, teens, or adult beginners who prefer doing puzzles/exercises rather than reading dense explanations. Also good as a supplementary book.
4. The Chess Blueprint by Daniel Redford
What I found & what seems to be promised:
This one presents itself as a step-by-step system to transform how you think about chess: from mindset to analysis, to a more complete approach. It claims to help with everything from practical openings to tactical mastery.
What it does well:
- Good if you want a framework: not just “move this, then that,” but “why you move this” — more about thinking, planning, not just tactics.
- Could be valuable for somebody who’s moved past just knowing the rules and wants to understand how to decide what to play.
Best for: beginners who want something more than “just tactics” — someone wanting to think like a chess player, not only “what piece moves where.”
5. How to Play Chess for Beginners
What it offers:
This is one of the more basic guides, meant for people who are starting completely from scratch. It tends to cover the fundamentals: how pieces move, basic rules (castling, en passant, pawn promotion, check, checkmate), simple tactics, maybe some ideas about openings and basic strategy.
What it does well:
- Very clear, simple explanations. Good for people who don’t want any confusion about the foundations.
- Probably more affordable and less intimidating than big thick chess theory tomes.
Best for: someone brand new, maybe a child, someone whose first goal is understand how the game works rather than play tournaments.
How to Choose Which One for You
Here are some tips, in the style of “what to look for in a set”, but for books:
| If you… | You should probably pick… |
|---|---|
| Are totally new, maybe a child, want something gentle | How to Play Chess for Beginners or Winning Chess Exercises for Kids |
| Prefer learning by doing puzzles / exercises | Winning Chess Exercises for Kids, Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess |
| Like explanations, want to understand strategy and not just tactics | How to Win at Chess by Rozman, The Chess Blueprint |
| Already know some basics and want to solidify up to ~1000-1200 Elo | How to Win at Chess or The Chess Blueprint |
| Want to avoid confusion, dense notation, too much theory | Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess, How to Play Chess |
Chess is Hard 