If you've been following popular culture recently, you know that one of the most popular shows of the last year is , which debuted on Netflix in October of 2020. Adapted from the 1983 novel by , the stylish miniseries starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Chloe Pirrie, Bill Camp, and Marcin Dorocinski is about the life of fictional chess prodigy Beth Harmon.
Due to the popularity of the show, the gaming industry saw an unprecedented interest in chess; sales of books about chess and chess boards skyrocketed! Suddenly, people really wanted to learn about chess and play chess again. (The phenomenon was probably also helped by the fact that most people were staying home or sheltering in place during the pandemic.)
How do you play chess? Is it like checkers?
Some people think because of the similarity in the boards that chess is like checkers, but it's a bit more complicated. Chess is a board game of strategic skill for two players, played on a checkered board. The board has 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. At the start, each player controls 16 pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two knights, two bishops, and eight pawns. The pieces are moved and used to capture opposing pieces according to precise rules. A player wins when they are able to put the opponent's king in a position from which escape is impossible, which is called a checkmate. In other words: it's chess, not checkers.
What is the history of chess?
The origins of chess are believed to date back to the beginning of the seventh century. The oldest known chess manual, dating back to about 840, was written in Arabic by a renowned Arab chess player named al-Adli ar-Rumi. Over the years, the basics of the game remained the same, while the number of different strategies and notable moves continued to stack up.
The game eventually became a worldwide competitive sport, and today still boasts a large audience and several genius chess players, such as a Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, who was a child chess prodigy and is the current World Chess Champion, World Rapid Chess Champion, and World Blitz Chess Champion. His peak classical rating of 2882 is the highest in history, and he holds the record for the longest unbeaten run in classical chess.
Chess is great because it requires very little equipment and space to play. You can play it against real opponents, a computer, or yourself. And thanks to the best chess audiobooks, you can learn how to play or continue to improve your game. This curated list of chess audiobooks is for chess players at all stages, so whether you're learning the game or honing your moves, these listens will help. If you're serious about learning, there are plenty of books about chess to teach you. Who knows? You could become the next Magnus Carlsen.
