Steffen Pedersen has, once again, demonstrated that he is one of the few chess authors who can balance analytical coverage and strategic explanation in a repertoire book and do some sense of justice to both. Pedersen has the advantage of experience in this genre – his THE DUTCH FOR THE ATTACKING PLAYER is one of the better repertoire books on the market, and he has also produced good efforts (in two parts with Graham Burgess) on a white 1.d4 repertoire and a credible book on the Scheveningen Sicilian.

This book benefits from the subject matter. As Pedersen notes, the Bb5 Sicilians (which arise after either 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 or 2...d6 3.Bb5+) are more strategic in nature than the open Sicilian with 3.d4. As a result, it is often easier to explain the plans that both sides will employ, and the tactics that may be found in long theoretical sequences are kept within reason.

This, of course, is an important consideration that should be valued by the average player. I've long counseled 1.e4 players with limited study time to specialize in variations of the Sicilian that take the choice of variation away from the black player. This gives white plenty of options, from the Alapin (2.c3) to the Closed Variation (2.Nc3) to the Grand Prix (2.Nc3 and 3.f4 or 2.f4) and others (such as 2.b3, 2.d3, 2.g3, etc.). Still, of all these (with the exception of 2.c3), the lines with Bb5 are perhaps the most popular in games among high rated players. This would suggest that they provide realistic opportunities for white to secure an advantage; the fact that enterprising players such as Kasparov, Fischer, and Morozovich have been willing to give them a go as white is enough support of their viability for me.

It should be noted that Pedersen does not approach this subject matter as a "white to play and win" exercise.  Indeed, his book develops a playable repertoire for both white and black. I think this is the best approach. From the marketing standpoint, it certainly makes the book appealing to a wider audience. Beyond this, I think it helps to build some balance into the expectations of the reader.

Too many repertoire books come across as the proverbial snake oil salesman peddling a magic elixir – the message becomes "spend a few hours with me, and all your problems will be solved." Of course, chess (and opening theory) is not nearly so simple and easy.  By providing viable approaches for both sides, this book argues for reasonable expectations.

As one who has played both sides of these lines, I was quite happy with the theoretical discussion. Pedersen definitely updates the coverage in older works, such as Razuvayev and Matsukevitch's 1984 book. He also expands (and provides better explanation of the nuance of the variations) on the lines covered in two popular black repertoire works, Gallagher's BEATING THE ANTI-SICILIANS and Silman's WINNING WITH THE SICILIAN DEFENSE. Indeed, my perusal of those books and this one suggests that the earlier works are no longer sufficient to entirely cover the Bb5 variations. Time marches on.

In the end, however, a book like this doesn't rise or fall on its theoretical coverage.  By its very title, we know this isn't a work for grandmasters. Pedersen succeeds because he explains why certain move orders are better than others and why and how general plans have developed and evolved in the key lines. This is the strength of this book, and it is why I can recommend it.

No book is perfect. While Pedersen does a great job with general explanation and guidance on key lines, a lot of sidelines consist of nothing more than game fragments. The average player needs guidance in these fragments as well, and this is often lacking.  More troublesome to me is what I found to be a very light print job. Maybe I'm just getting old, but I think the publisher needs a bit more print on its presses.

In conclusion, this is a good book about an important variation for both white and black Sicilian players. It's written for the practical player, and I would recommend it – this is an author who understands what the average player needs in a repertoire book.

Click to see Silman's review of this book.