The Russian Endgame Handbook
An old Soviet quip has it that Western amateurs “play the opening like grandmasters, the middlegame like experts, and the endgame like beginners.” Soviet-trained players would fearlessly steer the game toward the final phase, confident of their superior endgame skill. Ilya Rabinovich’s Russian Endgame Manual is a major reason for this.

Rabinovich raises the beginner’s understanding of the endgame to a sophisticated level, starting with elementary checkmates and then moving on to the principles for handling complex endgames and advanced concepts in king-and-pawn endings, such as the theory of corresponding squares. The author pays special attention to frequently neglected endgame themes such as rook vs. pawns, rook vs. a minor piece, and queen vs. rook.

First published in 1927 and updated in 1938, this classic work – featuring more than four hundred instructive endings and over three hundred exercises for self-study – served a generation of players at the height of the Soviet School’s dominance. Mongoose Press now makes it available to the English-speaking public for the first time.

Content:
007 Editor's Preface

009 Foreword

011 Introduction

013 CHAPTER 1. The Simplest Mates

022 CHAPTER 2. King and Pawn vs. King

037 CHAPTER 3. Queen vs. Pawn (or Pawns)

048 CHAPTER 4. King, Minor Piece, and Pawn vs. King (or King and Pawn)

071 CHAPTER 5. Mate with Bishop + Knight

076 CHAPTER 6. Mate with Knights (vs. Pawns)

096 CHAPTER 7. Minor Piece vs. Pawns

109 CHAPTER 8. Exploiting the Advantage in Endings with a Large Number of Pieces

157 CHAPTER 9. Pawn Endings

245 CHAPTER 10. Bishops of the Same Color

272 CHAPTER 11. Bishops of Opposite Colors

303 CHAPTER 12. Knight Endings

310 CHAPTER 13. Bishop vs. Knight

337 CHAPTER 14. Rook Endings

471 CHAPTER 15. Queen vs. Rook (or Rook + Pawns)

482 CHAPTER 16. Queen Endings

490 CHAPTER 17. Rare Endings

509 Solutions and Answers