THE QUEEN'S INDIAN is an openings book rarity - it combines solid research and analysis with discussion that is accessible to nearly all levels of player. It is an excellent update for an opening that remains popular at the all levels of tournament play.

The authors are experienced players and authors. Yrjola is a grandmaster who has won the Finnish Championship twice, and Tella is an international master and experienced chess trainer. They also teamed up in 2001 to write AN EXPLOSIVE CHESS OPENING REPERTOIRE FOR BLACK (click to see reviews of "Explosive" by Donaldson and Bauer). While that book - which put together a complete system for black based on 1.d6 - was a reasonable effort, they have done even better in this later work.

One of my criticisms of their earlier book were some of the recommended repertoire choices, but THE QUEEN'S INDIAN is a complete discussion of all the variations that arise after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6. As the authors note, the theory on the defense is enormous, and some lines are growing in popularity while others are declining.  This book seeks to strike a balance by allocating space not simply by the depth of the theory in a given line but also based on what is popular at the moment or may be deemed to become more popular in the future. I think this is a wise decision that should help guide the reader to key areas of concentration in the book.

For example, the authors spend more time than usual on the seemingly pedestrian 4.e3.  They note that two seemingly very different chess superstars, the dynamic Paul Keres and the positional Vasily Smyslov, both adopted the variation in the 1950s. Further, it is getting additional attention of late, both because it is a practical choice that avoids a lot of heavily analyzed lines and there are possibilities for rich and varied play for both players.

This is an excellent point, and, for many of these reasons, I have played 4.e3 several times over the years, particularly against theoreticians. In my opinion the chapter on 4.e3 alone makes the book worth its purchase price. This is the sort of system that a player can learn and use for his or her entire chess career and never have to fear that it will be busted by the latest analysis out of Moscow.

The authors make a number of similarly useful points in the book's early pages. The introduction briefly touches on the history of the variation and then discusses the key theoretical lines at the moment. The authors note, for example, that 4.g3, which has long been the main line, is showing its age, and the coverage here has been reduced somewhat, especially in the old main lines with 4.Bb7. At present, 4.Ba6 is the move of choice, and the variation 5.b3 Bb4+ 6.Bd2 Be7 7.Bg2 c6 is probably the defense's main line, though as the authors note, the line is seeming a bit tired and dull these days. 

The introduction also touches on related opening systems, which are those that can be part of a repertoire with the Queen's Indian or provide opportunities for transposition to the lines in the book. This is a helpful feature for the player considering using this book as part of a larger repertoire. There is also a strategic introduction, which discusses key ideas that arise from the defense - hanging pawns, an isolated d-pawn, hedgehog formations, Benoni structures, the open d-file, and doubled c-pawns. This is extremely helpful material that assists in assimilating the opening plans for both sides in the following chapters.

The author's focus on understanding as well as analysis continues throughout the chapters devoted to specific variations and sub-variations. Each chapter starts with a general overview as well as a discussion of typical positions and plans. Generally, this is accompanied by several diagrams illustrating the positions and the ideas that guide one or both players' moves. Each chapter closes with conclusions that summarize the authors' judgement on the state of theory in the variation in question. They also point out new areas worthy of further exploration and other practical issues. Combined with the introductions, these provide much greater insight than is often found in similar books.

A key chapter concerns the "Nimzo Hybrid" after 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Qb3 or 5.Bg5.  Grandmaster Chris Ward wrote a good book on this, which he dubbed the NIMZO INDIAN KASPAROV VARIATION (click to see reviews of that book by Donaldson and Bauer). Also written in 2003, it was interesting to compare theoretical assessments, since the timing of their release suggests that the authors did not have the opportunity to rely on the other book for guidance.  The theoretical assessments were remarkably similar, although, of course, there were some differences.  I was intrigued to see these authors' views on some of Ward's assessments. One line I mentioned in the review of Ward's book was 5.Bg5 Bb7 6.e3 h6 7.Bh4 g5 8.Bg3 Ne4 9.Qc2 Bxc3+ 10.bxc3 d6 11.Bd3 f5 12.d5 Nd7 13.Bxe4 fxe4 14.Qxe4 Qf6 15.Qxe6+ Qxe6 16.dxe6 Nc5 17.h4. Here Ward follows the game Roeder-Fernando, where white got good play after 17...g4 18.Nd4 0-0-0 19.h5 Rde8 20.Rh4 Rhg8 21.Bf4. In this book, however, the authors suggest that black is fine after 17.Ke7 18.hxg5 hxg5 19.Ke2 Ne4.

In terms of coverage, the largest number of pages are reserved for lines that do not involve 4.g3. That is a big break from tradition in past Queen's Indian books. The authors note that Geller's 1991 book on the Queen's Indian devoted 60% of its space to 4.g3. Here, the moves 4.Bf4 and 4.Bg5 get 5 pages; 4.e3 is covered in 21; 4.Nc3 Bb7 5.Bg5 and other fifth move alternatives get 9 pages; the Nimzo Hybrid with 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Qb3 or 5.Bg5 are covered in 41; and two chapters cover Petrosian's 4.a3 over 81 pages. The lines with g3 are covered over 4 chapters, with the "old main line" with 4.Bb7 getting 42 pages; 4.Ba6 is covered in the final three chapters, with alternatives to 5.b3 getting 27 pages; miscellaneous 5^th moves for black after 5.b3 are covered in 20 pages; finally, the "new main line" with 5.b3 Bb4+ is covered in 23 pages.

The book concludes with an index of variations. This was slightly less developed than I would have preferred; the QID is a complex defense with lots of possibilities, and it would be easier to wend its way through it with a tree that goes deeper than six or seven moves. I was surprised that the authors did not include a bibliography; from their mention of Geller's book in the introduction, it seems likely that they consulted this and other books. 

Probably my biggest complaint concerns some of the dense thicket of variations the reader will encounter. There are many places where one encounters pages upon pages of discussion of alternate choices to the main variations. In at least two cases, these stretch on for at least four pages. These can be very confusing to plow through, and they make it hard for the player to assimilate the information. It is possible to devise a variation structure that keeps these to more workable numbers, although it may somewhat increase the page count.

As with similar books from Gambit Publications, this one has strong production values.  The cover shot is attractive, the paper, printing, and diagrams good.  The authors provide much useful commentary, and the language is fluent

In conclusion, THE QUEEN'S INDIAN is a thoughtful look at an important opening.  The authors provide good theoretical coverage while doing so in a way that will help the average player understand and learn the opening in question. Because the authors attempt to concentrate on areas that are still developing (or likely to be the subject of greater future discussion) it is a book that should be of value for many years to come.

Click to see Silman's review of this book.

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