Best Chess Books?

Question

What are your favorite Chess Books and which ones did you
benifit the most from?

I have many many books on Chess but I'm drawn to 6-8 again and again.

Zurich 1953 by David Bronstien
The Game of Chess by Siegbert Tarrasch
Laskers greatest games 1889-1914
The Life and games of Mikhail Tal
My best games of Chess Alexander Alekhine
My 60 Memorable games Bobby Fischer
Morphy's Games of Chess by Sargent
One hundred select Games by Botvinnik.

Answer 1

Although you don't state your rating it is obvious that you are a tournament player. Based upon the books that you listed, I'm pretty sure you would also enjoy:

Masters of the Chessboard - Richard Reti
The Development of Chess Style - Max Euwe
The Battle of Chess Ideas - Anthony Saidy
Tal-Botvinnik 1960 - Mikhail Tal
and the multivolume set
My Great Predecessors - Garry Kasparov

I am rated Expert by the USCF. I also have a large collection of books, but would probably only choose a handful for those that have influenced me the most. Keep in mind that my first published rating was under 1000, so some of these books you would probably consider too basic. I list them in chronological order of my reading them.

Invitation to Chess - Chernev & Harkness
Last Lectures - J. R. Capablanca
Lasker's Manual of Chess - Emanuel Lasker
Chess Fundamentals - J. R. Capablanca
Logical Chess: Move by Move - Irving Chernev
Chess Master vs. Chess Amateur - Euwe & Meiden
Modern Chess Strategy - Pachman

I also am a big fan of Chernev's "Most Instructive Games of Chess", but I wouldn't include it on my list because I was already pretty good by the time I read it. Pachman's book has a reputation as a classic and I believe it is completely deserved.

Answer 2

Here's one I thought was enjoyable:

"How to Cheat at Chess", by William R. Hartston.

Answer 3

The Game of Chess Siegbert Tarrasch

Rock solid fundamentals from no nonsense Player Teacher from the 19th century.

Reuben Fine's Basic Chess Endings by Reuben Fine

Reference Bible on the endgame for many top players including Bobby Fischer and Pal Benko for decades it's still a very instructional book anyone who works through it cover to cover will be a much better endgame player can take about 2-3 years to work through it thoroughly.

Fundamental Chess Endings by Karsten Muller

Very good Mullers books on the endgame are thorough and fundamental.

Practical Chess Endings by Paul Keres

This book has just been brought back into print by Ishi Press you can find it on the USCF site or on Amazon Keres focuses on the practica side ofl endgames that are fundamental Kere's book is excellent refresher if you want to brush up on your basic endgames good value for money.

Recommended Books to study Tactics, Combinations, Sacrifices (not all are intended for beginners)

Winning Chess Irving Chernev&Fred Reinfeld

Study Chess with Mikhail Tal and Alexander Koblencs
1000 Checkmate Combinations by Victor Henkin and Mikhail Tal
Queen Sacrifice by Iakov Neishtadt
The Magic Tactics of Mikhail Tal by Karsten Muller
Chess Tactics for Advanced Players Yuri Averbakh
The Chess Sacrifice by Vladmir Vukovic
The Basis of Chess Combination by Julius Dumont

To arm up and become an explosive and dangerous tactical player solve lots of problems easy ones hard ones difficult and checkmates every kindfrequently.

1001 Winning Chess Combinations by Fred Reinfeld
1001 Brilliant ways to Checkmate by Fred Reinfeld
5600 Chess Problems by Carlos Hernandez (Spanish Edition)
5334 Problems Combinations and Games by Laszlo Polgar
Simple Checkmates by A.J Gilliam
1001 Deadly Checkmates by John Nunn

Play over the games of aggressive players and also books with tons of miniature games over a real set computer.................

1000 Best Short Games of Chess by Irving Chernev
100 Soviet Chess Miniatures by P.H Clarke
Encyclopedia of Chess Miniatures by Chess Informant
Power Chess by Paul Keres
Spassky's 100 Best Games of Chess by P.H Clarke
The Chess Games of Adolph Anderssen
Charousek's games of Chess by Phillip Sergeant
Fire on Board by Alexi Shirov
My Best Games of Chess by Vishy Anand
Polgar How I beat Fischer's Record by Judit Polgar
Attacking Formations Joel Johnson

Answer 4

for a beginner it is instructive to read CAPABLANCA'S CHESS ENDINGS. No one mentioned it. Beginners need to learn about ENDINGS (not openings). It may sound like you'd be starting backwards but it is not that: openings do not matter much for beginners because both sides make a lot of mistakes, so the tables turn every few moves. The winner is really the one who knows more about end games. Read Capablanca (by read I mean really STUDY it and try to understand the reason of every move).