--- product_id: 17976436 title: "Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess)" brand: "neil mcdonald" price: "€ 41.82" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 10 url: https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17976436-starting-out-the-english-starting-out-everyman-chess store_origin: HR region: Croatia --- # Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess) **Brand:** neil mcdonald **Price:** € 41.82 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess) by neil mcdonald - **How much does it cost?** € 41.82 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.hr](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17976436-starting-out-the-english-starting-out-everyman-chess) ## Best For - neil mcdonald enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted neil mcdonald brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess) ## Images ![Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/W/WEBP_402378-T1/images/I/41KRD0FFCCL.jpg) ![Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess) - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/W/WEBP_402378-T1/images/I/41zTe-1UuYL.jpg) ![Starting Out: the English (Starting Out - Everyman Chess) - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/W/WEBP_402378-T1/images/I/31RMdoCMxYL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Beyond almost all opening books --- GREAT stuff !!! *by C***K on Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 20, 2019* I can point out exactly why it is definitely an EXCELLENT opening book. Neil McDonalddoes not give a lot of comments to variations, in sub-variations, in database games !What he does, and he does very completely, is to point out the strong squares, open files,three-to-four-move maneuvers to coordinate piece placement together with pawns, to stayconsistent with the opening plan, then, to get a solid midgame position. What's more, hedoesn't stop there. He continues into the full game to show strategy. He emphasizes thekey patterns, in specifics, so that an amateur player can figure out oneself the candidate moveswithout relying on memorization, out at the 17th move. Another excellent book on chessthinking and candidate moves, in 36 annotated games, is Michael Stean's expert Simple Chess.Opening books usually leave out typical mistakes and traps. (See Knaak and Muller's book222 d4 Traps (some 1.c4), shows typical tactical mistakes.) Yes, McDonald did not show everyEnglish line with an illustrative game. Remember, there's some English books with 1,000 pages!(Mihail Marin has three volumes, with variations up to and beyond the 17th move.) Hansenhas the Full English, ideas, lots of specific variations, 400 pg. Then, why study this 1.c4 opening?The (g3) English has fewer counter defenses than d4, and expertise is easier, in part becausethe basic strategy is not so diverse, "simpler" (not necessarily tactics) and McDonald shows this.McDonald focuses on the g3 English (the most consistent way to play it for position ). Note ---there is Palliser's book Beating Unusual Chess Openings (50% a database guy), he focused insteadon the Black side against the English, also against Bird's 1. f4, against the Larsen 1. b3, and 1.Nf3.Critical reviews of S.O. English make good points (Black's counter attacks not all shown). But, a 1.d4awesome book for independent thinking is Edmar Mednis' Strategic Chess in Closed Games. Thoseare often similar in positions to the English. Like Mednis' book, Mr. McDonald shows games and specificplans (independent thinking) which a lot of database-style chess writers leave out. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Great book that covers many of the most important lines. *by E***N on Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 25, 2014* I own several of the "Starting Out" books and they do a nice job of laying out the basics and then analyzing some of the more important games for a given opening system. I think these books are excellent in terms of building an understanding instead of getting bogged down with tons and tons of analysis.The hardest part of the English Opening is dealing with the transpositional possibilities. You can walk into lines of the King's Indian, Queen's gambit declined, certain variations of the Sicilian Dragon and so on. Other books (or software) recommend 1 c4 and then 2 g3 no matter what Black plays. This book really focuses on the Main Lines (usually the second move is Nc3 or Nf3).I wish the book had more coverage of the Mikenas system because I think most players on the black side won't be very prepared for it.Overall you get what you pay for here and this can be said about the "Starting Out" series in general. In one book you get some exposure to many of the major systems. The downside is that if you want more in depth coverage, you may need to augment this book with others. Still if one takes the time to just play over the games (don't worry about reviewing all of the side lines in detail) I think you'll come away with some understanding of where the pieces go and you'll have some idea of the basic plans for this opening. ### ⭐ NOT A CHESS BOOK. *by U***E on Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 13, 2022* All the reviews sieste that this was a chess book. I thought this book was a steal for the price until I received it and learned that it has nothing to do with chess. Not even a little bit. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17976436-starting-out-the-english-starting-out-everyman-chess](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/17976436-starting-out-the-english-starting-out-everyman-chess) --- *Product available on Desertcart Croatia* *Store origin: HR* *Last updated: 2026-05-16*