In the foreword, GM Andy Soltis likens New York 1924 to a super-tournament of its day. He writes, “It had a narrative that is still striking today: Three world champions – undisputed world champions, mind you – fulfilling their destiny. Richard Réti unleashing his devastating “Opening of the Future,” 1 Nf3!. The invincible José Capablanca suffering his first loss in eight years. The remarkable comeback of 46-year-old Frank Marshall and even more stunning performance of 55-year-old Emanuel Lasker.”
Alekhine annotated all 110 games played at the tournament, and Soltis notes that Alekhine’s book “remained clearly the best tournament book in English for half a century.” Moreover, he writes, “Alekhine provides real analysis, and with words, not just moves. He imbues the book with personality in contrast with the antiseptic notes of most tournament books written by world-class players …”
This new edition corrects typographical and notation errors, but preserves Alekhine’s original text and comments, while adding dozens of additional diagrams as well as photographs of each participant. It also includes Alekhine’s section on “The Significance of the New York Tournament in the Light of the Theory of the Openings.” In this twenty-six page opening survey, Alekhine comments that the tournament marked “a very significant stage” in the evolution of the openings. While we may think differently about these openings today, it is interesting to see the comments from the future world champion.
You can download an excerpt from the publisher’s website
here.