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Keeping one's opening in proper order is kind of like having a house. You know, the front lawn needs care, there is a creaky door that needs a bit of oil, keep an eye on the roof and of course the pipes will need attention at some point. With openings it is similar. It could be keeping up on a pet line or introducing a variation that has tickled your fancy or possibly just dissatisfaction with results in a particular sequence and heaven only knows who is out there dreaming up some surprise in one of your variations. There always seems to be something to do. Everyman Chess has proven to be quite helpful in this area with the "Dangerous Weapons" series. Dangerous Weapons: The Benoni and Benko works to help with some of the "trouble" spots you might be having in these aggressive defenses. As with previous volumes in this series, Dangerous Weapons: The Benoni and Benko consists of a series of analytical articles that are either glimpses of new lines or updates of existing theory. "Benoni and Benko" have 14 chapters in this format. Sections average 17 to 18 pages with an introductory game or two, then "Looking a Little Deeper" gives some theoretical details and a "conclusion" which gives the author's basic value of the line in consideration. The text includes short side notes marked by icons that are explained in the introduction. These side notes indicate where the reader should observe an untested alternative, the line has succeeded in its intent, there is a transposition or simply where the player has to be extra careful. While this is helpful, I had the feeling that the authors weren't sure if this was a serious effort or just a bag of tricks. I hadn't sensed this in any of the other volumes of the "Dangerous Weapons" series I have seen. Of the 14 sections five look at the Modern Benoni, four at the Benko, two at Blumenfeld-type formations, plus one each for the Czech, Snake and Ne7 Benonis. One point to keep in mind is that this book is aimed primarily for players of the White pieces. This is made apparent with the chapters on the Czech/Snake/Ne7 Benonis where the emphasis is on lines by which White looks to gain a considerable advantage. One of the chapters is titled "Killing the Snake Benoni" which is hardly a recommendation for the defense. Still, the material on the Benko is oriented towards the Black player and contains interesting updates on critical lines. A recurring motif of the authors was that lines which were previously considered second rate actually have a lot of life. Examples of this are the two Blumenfeld sections, Chapter 2 on the Sosonko Kramnik gambit (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 b5 6. e4) and chapter 11 "Tromping the Benko" (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. Bg5). All of the lines I listed had been floating around the cusp of respectability and will likely get more attention. All of the authors are GM's so there isn't any question about quality of analysis which is a little extra-important as all the lines have a sharp edge to them. One thing is that I couldn't find any indication of which author(s) worked on each chapter.
This book is aimed
directly at dedicated Queen's Gambit players who are looking for some fresh
material to work with in the Benoni and Benko or players of the Black pieces
who feel the need to keep current. The material in this book will remain
relevant for the next couple of years and will reward the astute reader. Other Dangerous Weapons titles reviewed at Chessville: Dangerous Weapons 1.e4 e5 by John Emms, Glenn Flear and Andrew Greet (Everyman Chess, 2008), reviewed by NM Bill McGeary Dangerous Weapons: the French by IM John Watson, reviewed by Rick Kennedy
Dangerous
Weapons: The Nimzo-Indian by John Emms, Chris Ward, and Richard Palliser,
and
Dangerous
Weapons: The Sicilian by John Emms and Richard Palliser, reviewed by S. Evan Kreider
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