Unlike some magazines, which emphasize recent tournaments and the latest opening theory, the attractiveness of KingPin is not effected by any slight delays in publishing. Indeed, picking up a few back issues will provide some very entertaining reading. Getting somewhat ahead of myself I heartily recommend this delightful publication. You can either subscribe or buy individual issues from Chess Digest.

Issue 26 Autumn 1996: The cover has photos of Fidel Castro, Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi under the banner, “FIDE announces new presidential team.” This sets the tone for the magazine. The “Kingpin Questionnaire” has the replies by IM Colin Crouch, and he answers such questions as: What is your first memory of playing chess? What was your worst defeat? How do you relax? What is your favorite record? What is your favourite television programme? (remember, this is an English magazine). Which meal do you most like to eat and could you cook it yourself? What was your most embarrassing moment at the chess board? Who is the most courteous person you have played? There are many other interesting questions and answers along these same lines.

Following is a regular column with perhaps the most appealing title I’ve come across, Gary Lane’s Agony Column. Perhaps this title was my first clue of a similarity to Chess Chow as it contained a regular feature titled Michael Wilder’s Agony Column. Lane’s column is different, though, with a Q&A format where he answers the questions sent by “readers.” One sample: “Dear Gary, why not save time by reading a chess book in the shower. Simply cover all the pages in cellophane and it will be waterproof. Probably.” Gary: “The best ideas are often the simplest ones.” Well, you get the idea.

GM Glenn Flear contributes the next article named What’s the difference between a ‘good’ and a ‘bad’ performance? He says, “If you’ve ever examined your own games after a tournament, it’s amazing how just a few critical moments make the difference between a great result and a disaster.” He then documents this concept with examples from his personal experience ... very interesting, with some very real examples in the form of annotated games.

The Voice of Reason by GM Nigel Davies explains why wooden sets are better plastic. Of course, there is more to this article than this little topic. Perhaps it’s a personal idiosyncrasy but I rather enjoy glimpses like this into a “foreign” society such as the English. GM Davies gives his opinions on how to improve the chess club scene in England with many interesting observations.

There was also a lengthy article by Edward Winter. His explorations into the history of chess are well known to American readers and are always interesting. Other articles in this issue: Sophisticated Ideas: The Importance of Open Lines by IM Luc Winants, More Ideas in the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit by IM Gary Lane, Letter from France by GM Tony Kosten, C.J.S. Purdy: AN Unconventional Chess Thinker by Amatzia Avni, a caption contest (most amusing), Hack Attack ... Happy Bloody Birthday by GM John Emms, Neutralising the Norm-hunters by GM James Howell, and Confessions of a British Nightclubber by IM Aaron Summerscale fill out the remainder of this issue, followed by over eight pages of book reviews by notable chess authorities.

There were few advertisements and over 50 total pages in this entertaining issue. A little humor mixed in with some serious chess makes for a winning combination.

Issue 27 Summer 1997: The cover has a photo of Nigel Short and Bulgarian IM Antoaneta Stefanova. He’s saying, “Are you fun-loving Chess Spice?” I think this is an English humorous remark, but I can’t be sure. The “Kingpin Questionnaire” is of GM E. Gufeld. There’s Gary Lane’s Agony Column followed by a more serious article Did Intel Break its Word to 20,000 Children? by IM Michael Basman. There’s The Article With No Name by GM Tony Kosten which mixes chess games and lots of personal stories. Next to the article The Fine Art of Swindling by FM Jonathan Rogers is a fake (?) ad for Kirsan Toilet Tissue. There’s also The Lost Weekend by GM Stuart Conquest, Before and After the IM Title by IM Susan Lalic, Skewer (a real potpourri of chess behind-the-scenes stories) and (a personal favorite) “Nunn is out to ruin me” -- Golombek’s shock claim. It starts, “The world of chess publishing was rocked to its foundations last month when former world champion chess writer Harry Golombek launched a scathing attack on B. T. Batsford and editor and typesetter John Nunn. In the course of a two-hour diatribe organised by spiritualists in Buenos Aires, Golombek claimed that Nunn had ‘deliberately improved my analysis’ in the new Batsford algebraic edition of his classic Capablanca’s 100 Best Games.” The article continued in this vein. I particularly enjoyed the reply attributed to Nunn. “I never had any of this trouble with Alekhine.”

Also in this issue: Never Forget the Elephant Gambit by Gary Lane, Forum by Edward Winter, Old Masters Never Die, They Just Fade Away by GM Nigel Davies, Scenes from Paris by GM Jim Plaskett, Blood from a Stone by IM Jonathan Rowson and about ten pages of book/magazine reviews. Overall, this publication provides a nice mix of serious chess and humor in a most attractive and readable fashion. The articles are written almost entirely by titled chess players ... very nice and very readable. There’s little specifically for the correspondence chess player but that doesn’t prevent me from recommending this excellent publication to my readers.

http://nic.net4u.nl/~reviews/booksbw.htm on the Internet contains chess book reviews by Bertrand Weegenaar and makes for some interesting reading. [Note: these book reviews are now located at the Chess Mail web site at John Elburg's Chessbookreviews. -- JFC] His review number 21 contains a short review of KingPin number 27. The editor of KingPin can be reached directly by email at: "Jonathan Manley" .

Chess Digest is selling No.26 for US$8.95 and No.27 for US$9.95. Sterling prices for a 3 issue subscription: UK = £8.00, Europe = £10.00, USA/RoW = £12.00. Jon Manley added, “... If your readers would like to order by credit card, I suggest they contact either Chess Digest or the London Chess Centre. Several Kingpin articles are archived in the Chess Cafe's Skittles Room. ... Kingpin No.28 will be out in January ...” Featured in No. 28 will be: an interview with Yasser Seirawan which contains some very straight talking about Kasparov, Edward Winter's Forum, IM Gary Lane's Agony column, GM Tony Kosten's Letter from France, IM Crouch on Kasparov's analytical gaffes, IM Chris Ward on Paul Morphy, A mysterious letter from Hungary from one Robert Fischer, IM Gary Lane advocates the Grand Prix Attack (2 Nc3, 3 f4 Sicilian), IM Richard Forster on a curious 19th century chess variant, GM Nigel Davies says that preparation is unimportant, IM Jonathan Rowson on the supernatural power of chess intuition, and a selection of book reviews.

--- J. Franklin Campbell, APCT News Bulletin, January 1998

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Harding’s purpose is to provide the sort of coverage currently available to German-language readers in Fernschach magazine. However, it won’t be a clone of that magazine. His first pilot issue contains articles and tournament reports from quite a few different countries, including an article on cc chess etiquette by this columnist and a games article by former CCLA Games Editor Roy DeVault on games from the CCLA Championship. Besides the English language countries there will be coverage from other countries where English is in use, such as the Scandinavian countries.

The pilot issue consists of 64 pages printed on good quality paper in the A5 paper size (about 8x6 inches, the same size as Fernschach). The entire world of correspondence chess will be reflected in the coverage, including postal, email and fax. Harding has set up a web page and will provide some of the magazine material there (e.g., my article is now available on his web page). The pilot issue covers material about or from the following countries: USA, Sweden, Qatar, Iceland, Holland, Israel, Ireland, Wales, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. Also included are ICCF results, crosstables from ICCF and various other tournaments, analysis columns, international and national chess news plus probably the best coverage offered so far on email and chess on the Internet. Reviews of software and Internet services are promised, in addition to book reviews.

Harding plans to establish a network of chess journalists from all over the world to provide material for his magazine. He is an established chess author and a strong cc competitor. I recently favorably reviewed his new book Winning at Correspondence Chess in my column. He also wrote the excellent The Games of the World Correspondence Chess Championships I-X in addition to many other chess books. Harding will probably personally write quite a bit of the magazine himself. This magazine promises to fill a void in the chess literature for English speakers. I know of nothing similar in print anywhere. I strongly recommend this wonderful new magazine. ... No magazine covers club news better than the APCT News Bulletin. Add this second magazine to your subscription list and you’ll have the rest of the world covered. I want to personally thank Tim Harding for producing this fantastic new magazine, which I believe is a real service to the correspondence chess community. You can check out some sample articles on Chess Mail’s web page at Chess Mail magazine

--- J. Franklin Campbell, APCT News Bulletin, November 1996

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Tim Harding is well-versed in international cc (correspondence chess) play, representing Ireland in various high-level competitions and serving on ICCF committees. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to this book and shares many interesting stories and insider viewpoints with the reader. He told me that he was only told at the last moment that the book would be published in the USA. Otherwise he would have included more references for the American reader. Most of the references and addresses are for British readers. The language is very “British” as well. Personally I found this interesting, except I would have liked to see the addresses of USA postal organizations given for the uninitiated cc player. He’s promised that these references will be updated in any future edition to include USA organizations.

This book is aimed squarely at the competitor, as opposed to the person who plays postal in an attempt at perfection in play. Thus there is no advice to give back moves or such. Instead, he aims at helping the cc competitor to improve his chances at winning games through proper attitude and application of skills. As he says in the preface, “This book is primarily a battle manual for the player who wants to be a winner at correspondence chess.” For instance, on page 49 he discusses publishing games and notes in magazines and says, “The corollary to this is that you should not be too keen to publish your games and analysis because they reveal details of your style and opening preferences.” Following are a few more miscellaneous quotes to give the flavor of the book.

“... it is advisable to approach each new tournament in a standard way.” “If you have other games still in progress and quite possibly at a critical stage, it is important to decide on clear priorities ...” “In particular, do not underestimate opponents who tell you they are in their late sixties or even in their eighties!” “Victories, particularly when well-earned, are still very sweet and there is nothing like a resignation card from an opponent to make your day.” “An important piece of advice for any CC player is: know the rules! Study them!” “... it is important for all CC players to have a reliable ‘move processing’ system ...” “Check every step and then check again ...” “Opponents’ conditionals should always be considered first anyway, in case your opponent has not given himself the best move, enabling you to make a move that would otherwise have been bad.” “Every Friday evening look through your notebook and see what games are slow and, if a repetition seems due, send it off on Saturday morning.” This provides a small window into the types of practical advice you’ll find on every page of this outstanding book.

There are a few comments I found amusing. His recommendation to use “ ... either a hardcover ruled foolscap book ... or, alternatively, a ... ‘single cash’” to keep tournament records had me scratching my head. But these instances were more amusing than anything. On the other hand, this book is packed with interesting stories and practical advice. You may find yourself thinking, “Of course, why didn’t I think of that.” He covers how to use books and databases in your selection of openings, loads of practical advice on the conduct of both individual games and tournaments and he even provides a short history of cc, including brief biographies of the leading players. This is a marvelous book. Every cc player should have it on their shelf (after thoroughly reading it).

--- J. Franklin Campbell, APCT News Bulletin, September 1996

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The book opens with a brief history of opening classifications. It then launches into the real meat of the book with entries for every ECO code from A00 through E99. For each code the identifying moves are presented (often a number of different lines fall under one ECO code and they are all given). The corresponding NIC code is listed for each variation. The common names are also listed. If you want to identify the Koltanowski Variation of the Giuoco Piano it’s right there as one of the many lines listed for C50. You can easily find it by checking the extensive 18-page index in the back of the book. The intent of this book isn’t to introduce original ideas. Rather, it has brought together all the essential chess opening codes and nomenclature that are normally spread throughout your chess library.

I heartily recommend this book. It should be on the reference shelf of every chess enthusiast with an interest in openings. The index makes identifying specific names easy. This 6x9-inch Chess Digest softcover book has 127 pages with a list price of $16.50.

--- J. Franklin Campbell, APCT News Bulletin, March 1996

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