Book review
Carl S. Portman MBE
MY 6O MEMORABLE GAMES
The Collector’s Edition
BOBBY FISCHER
Bobby Fischer
Pages: 392
Published by: Batsford Chess
2026 Hardcover
ISBN: 9781849948494
The Blurb
A must-have collectors' edition of one of the most
inspirational and influential chess books ever written.
First published in 1969, My 60 Memorable Games
offers a rare window into the mind of American chess icon Bobby Fischer. It
contains Fischer’s objective, honest and self-critical annotations to games he
had won, drawn and even lost in the period from 1957 to 1967 – but from which
he also learned valuable lessons.
Reading Fischer’s intensely personal commentaries
is like going back in time and watching live coverage of his over-the-board
battles with the leading players of the day. Soon he would become the greatest
of them all. Released in a luxurious new edition for collectors, with foiled
cloth binding and an eight-page plate section, this remarkable book is a true
insight into one of the most gifted, troubled and controversial minds of the
20th century.
My thoughts
To my own astonishment after over 50 years of
playing chess, I have never fully read this classic. Sure, I have flipped
through and played the occasional game, as many chess players have but shamefully I have never given it my undivided attention. With this new publication from
Batsford (a royal name in chess books if ever there was one) I knew it was time
to embrace the moment and actually read it.
First to the look and feel of the book. I much
prefer actual hard copy books to any digital offering so this is a delight with a classy looking blue cover embossed with gold lettering and delightful figurines. The font and diagrams are easy to read with plenty of space on the pages. It is
reprinted exactly the same as Fischer wrote it but with one significant
difference. This luxury edition contains six pages of photographs in the
centre, one of which is a real favourite of mine – you can choose your own of
course. This one below is not in it, so I won't spoil your fun.
Bobby Fischer in Manila
1976 – Wikimedia Commons
Andy Soltis, himself a most excellent chess author provides
a lucid introduction to the book reminding us that everyone still knows who
Bobby Fischer was and that he was responsible not only for scintillating chess games
but improving playing conditions and prize money for generations to come. He
stood up to the sponsors, and the players today can be thankful for that. It was
rare at the time for a grandmaster to write about his own games and it stands
amongst the great chess books, a must-have for every fan of the game.
Fischer is arguably (very arguably) the greatest
player of all time and his assertion that the move 1.e4 is ‘best by test’ is immediately placed under the microscope in the very first game as he takes on Sherwin in New
Jersey in 1957 when Fischer was only 14 years of age. In this position (below) Bobby
played 18.Nxh7!
What a stunner. He said that tactics flow from
superior positions and who could argue with that? These are the sort of tactics
that we should all be looking for in games.
The thing that strikes me about these games when
playing though them is not only the directness – Fischer was a committed
pugilist – but the simplicity of his development and opening play. With White
playing against Sicilians he often said just play sac, sac and mate and you
could see him playing for this during well-chosen h4 thrusts against the
castled king.
Fischer did not trust many people so it must have
been a proud moment for Larry Evans when Bobby agreed to let him write the brief
introductions to each game. These condensed of his passages lead us nicely into each
battle.
Unsurprisingly there are some tremendously
instructive games. I found the following position with Fischer as black against
Walther in Zurich 1959 to be hugely enjoyable to study. Two pawns down Fischer
drew this game – but he knew how to do it, that’s the key.
Walther played a natural looking move here in 54.a4
and Fischer gave it an immediate ‘?’ saying that Walther had thrown away the
win. He should have essayed 54.b4 and by such slim margins games are won and
lost. Set this position up in any school classroom and watch the kids go crazy
trying to win it as white and defend it as black. Marvellous stuff.
Fischer was magnanimous enough to include three
losses in this book. Certainly he had an ego but he was also always in search
of the truth at the chessboard and if the truth meant showing a loss to the
world and exposing his human side (he was not a chess robot after all) to
illustrate certain features of a game then so be it. How many players today
would do that?
I cannot let this review end without mentioning his
win against Robert Byrne at the US Championship in 1963-64. Fischer was black
and they reached this position after Byrne had played 15. Qc2
Fischer now played 15…Nxf2!! Even now in 2026 the
chess engine gives the text move as best. Fischer rarely missed an opportunity,
pouncing like a voracious tiger once the prey was vulnerable. No wonder that
this game won a brilliancy prize. Fischer had already beaten Byrne in a
sparkling game in 1956 by offering a stunning queen sacrifice. Byrne must have
been sick of him.
There are so many games against the like of Tal –
who also glittered, all too briefly on the chess stage, and Najdorf and Larsen
to name a few.
I love some of the one line comments too such as 'a nettlesome maneuver' or '4...exd5 leads to the kind of wood pushing that always bored me.'
Before I knew it I was at the end of game 60 where
Fischer beat Stein in a flourish. I felt at this point that I ‘knew’ Fischer a
little better through his chess and I have endeavoured to copy his open style
in online games with some success! I was not a 1.e4 player before but I am a
disciple at the moment after reading this. If I could liquidize this book and
inject it into my system, taking all the information with it I would.
There were two sides to Bobby Fischer. His chess
and his politics. This book celebrates the former and the world was – and is –
much richer for having it. It is more than a book, it is part of his legacy. The
big picture here is that in my view chess players need to know the classics.
The classic players, the classic games and the classic books. This is one of
them and we should thank Batsford for sprinkling their magic dust into the
chess arena and making this gorgeous special edition hardback copy available.
I was only introduced to chess when Karpov was World
Champion after the mercurial American had refused to defend his crown which he
had torn from the head of Boris Spassky in 1972 so I missed all of the hysteria
and brilliance of the man. I never followed the change from chess god to wayward
son, if not madman, and in a way I am glad. I want to remember him for his
chess.
This book has always given me – and everyone else –
the opportunity to witness this mesmerizing comet through its pages. Of course
many people will already have a copy of this chess bible but you won’t have this
copy – it is a lovely book to have. I can only suggest that you get yours quick
whilst you can – it can only add value to your collection and indeed your game
if like me you read it properly for the first time.
Fischer was notoriously protective of this book and there have been many documented articles about his displeasure with reprints and intellectual property rights. The bottom line is this: if Bobby Fischer were here today would he approve of it?
No one could ever second guess such a genius but you know, I think he would.
Who is the
author?
Bobby Fischer (1943–2008) became famous as a
teenager as he took on the Soviet chess machine almost single-handedly. In
1972, at the height of the Cold War, he won the world title from the Russian
Boris Spassky in a gripping match in Reykjavik, Iceland that generated
worldwide media interest. Fischer not only played brilliant chess but raised
the game to new levels of professionalism and his influence is still felt
strongly today.
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