Book 24 of 50 – Primii Pasi in Sah

Posted on

Primii Pasi in Sah (The First Steps in Chess) by Elisabeta Polihroniade would help any Romanian child learn how to play chess. We used to own this book and I remember reading the first few chapters.

Primii Pasi in Sah

My copy of “Primii Pasi in Sah”

When my sister came to visit a few months ago, I asked her to procure a copy from a used book store, if at all possible. Well, she found it and a couple other titles by Polihroniade, the best woman chess player of Romania. Continue reading »


Book 21 of 50 – Learn Chess

Posted on

Learn Chess by John Nunn gave me great insight into the game of chess. Written for absolute beginners, the book provides the rules and all the strategies needed to become proficient in chess and go to the next level.

Learn Chess by John Nunn

This book will take you from absolute beginner to worthy opponent

I thought I knew how to play chess and taught my children the way the pieces moved when they were very little. My father had taught me how to play when I was a child. We even had a book about it (Primii Pasi in Sah by Elisabeta Polihroniade). I never finished that book as a child though. Continue reading »


Learning Chess

Posted on

Chess is a game I learned from my father. Chess was very common in Romania. Maybe you recall that the two best chess players in the world in the 80s were two Russians. Romania was never one of the Soviet Republics, but we were influenced by Russian culture to some extent, seeing that we had a long border with them.

Chess board with check mate position

My son check mated me for the first time.

And so lots of children learned chess from their parents. It was part of family time – a board game like any other. There were TV shows about it, too. One lady in particular, Elisabeta Polihroniade, appeared on the chess TV show and taught different moves and strategies. We thought she was cool.  Continue reading »