Wojo’s Weapons 2

IM Dean Ippolito and NM Jonathan Hilton are back with their second in a series of opening volumes based on the games of the late Alex Wojtkiewicz. While the first volume was devoted primarily to the Catalan and Slav, in Wojos’s Weapons: Winning With White – Volume 2 attention is focused solely on the fianchetto variation of the King’s Indian.

The authors present their treatment of the subject matter in the form of 78 well-annotated games that contain not only critical analysis but plenty of explanatory prose. The variations, examined, in keeping with Wojtkiewicz’s style, tend not to be highly theoretical main lines (for example 8.b3 against the Panno, not 8.d5 or 8.h3) and the emphasis is more on understanding.

This is not to say that the proposed repertoire is not without sting nor that the author’s don’t improve on Wojo’s play when warranted. One example is the line 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 0-0 5.d4 d6 6.0-0 c5 7.dxc5 dxc5 8.Ne5!?. This symmetrical variation is a deceptively dangerous system for Black that was a proven point winner for Wojt. Now after the correct move 8……Nfd7! White does best with 9.Nd3 (and not Wojtkiewicz’s 9.Nxd7).

Wojos’s Weapons: Winning With White – Volume 2 is an excellent guide to the White side of the fianchetto King’s Indian that is ideally suited for players from 1800 on up.