New chess books

Kaválek's Avalanche and Played Life

[25.05.2023 00:00:00] - Lubomír Kaválek, one of the best Czech chess players in history, would have celebrated his 80th birthday this year. To mark the occasion, the Prague Chess Society is publishing a book of his best games with his own commentaries, Kaválek's Avalanche, and the Argo publishing house is publishing a book of his memoirs, The Played Life. Both books in Czech language can be ordered by email (prazska.sachova@gmail.com), details below in this article.

Lubomír Kaválek was one of the greatest Czech chess players of all time - and his memoirs, entitled The Played Life (Rozehraný život), offer a fascinating insight into his life. Kaválek's chess career started promisingly in Czechoslovakia and culminated in the USA, where he went as an international grandmaster after the Soviet occupation in 1968. He became a three-time champion of the United States, represented his new homeland at international tournaments and chess Olympiads, and was a member of the world's top ten in the mid-1970s. In 1972, as Bobby Fischer's second in command, he took part in the "Match of the Century", a major Cold War battle in which the eccentric American famously defeated the world champion Boris Spassky of the USSR. Kaválek tells his life story in a very engaging and humorous manner. The literary form was given to the memoirs by the writer Jan Novák, who was friends with Lubomir Kaválek for many years.

Luboš Kaválek's life's work is his chess games, many of which were awarded the prize for the most beautiful game of the tournament or even the best game of the year. From his rich career, Grandmaster Kaválek selected 46 of the most interesting games and 44 of them he himself commentated very nicely. The book Kaválek's Avalanche (Kaválkova lavina), named after his famous game with Soviet Grandmaster Eduard Gufeld, in which an avalanche of black pawns sweeps away the white position, brings chess players not only great fun but also a lot of lessons.



Thanks to ČEZ CHESS TROPHY 2023, you can now order both books at a significant festival discount - The Unplayed Life for 499 CZK (instead of the standard 588 CZK) and Kaválek's Avalanche for 390 CZK (instead of the standard 460 CZK). The offer is valid until 9 June 2023, please send orders by email (prazska.sachova@gmail.com). Both books are in the Czech language.

| Pavel Matocha | visits(1111x)