Chess - The Scotsman 14/12/12

‘TIS the season to be shopping, and one book that should be on every club player’s wish list this year is Amateur to IM by Jonathan Hawkins published by Mongoose Press.

Hawkins’ book tells how an 18-year old managed to go from being an average tournament player to the cusp of clinching the Grandmaster title.

The secret to his success was knowing what to study and how to learn as efficiently as possible. Hawkins devised a number of building blocks and identified crucial areas of study, in particular paying attention to the endgame. His well-planned, and assiduous work ethic resulted in a meteoric rise through the ranks, and in eight years he gained 400 rating points, the IM title and has two GM norms – and just a few weeks ago, he captured the British Rapidplay championship title.