--- product_id: 4978101 title: "My System: 21st Century Edition" price: "£21.48" currency: GBP in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/4978101-my-system-21st-century-edition store_origin: GB region: United Kingdom --- # Timeless strategic insights Classic chess mastery 21st-century updated notation My System: 21st Century Edition **Price:** £21.48 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > ♟️ Elevate your chess IQ with the timeless classic reimagined for today’s strategist! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** My System: 21st Century Edition - **How much does it cost?** £21.48 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co.uk](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/4978101-my-system-21st-century-edition) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Updated for Modern Play:** Enjoy the classic wisdom with 21st-century algebraic notation and clearer language. - • **Master Chess Fundamentals:** Unlock essential concepts every serious player must know to elevate your game. - • **Comprehensive Positional Play:** Learn the art of planning with detailed chapters on center control, pawn structure, and endgames. - • **Strategic Depth Beyond Beginners:** Perfect for intermediate players ready to break through plateaus and outthink opponents. - • **Proven Legacy with 50 Annotated Games:** Study real games that illustrate key strategies and sharpen your practical skills. ## Overview My System: 21st Century Edition is a revered chess classic by Aron Nimzowitsch, updated with modern algebraic notation and language for clarity. It teaches fundamental and advanced positional concepts essential for intermediate players aiming to deepen their strategic understanding. Featuring 50 annotated games, this edition bridges early 20th-century chess theory with contemporary play, making it a must-have for serious chess enthusiasts. ## Description My System: 21st Century Edition [Nimzowitsch, Aron] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. My System: 21st Century Edition Review: Teaches Essential Chess Concepts - This classic book teaches fundamental concepts in chess which every player must know. Other chess books assume that these concepts are understood prior to reading their books. Most likely other authors learned these fundamental concepts from this book and therefore assume everyone's learning has followed a similar path, which is why they never explain the concepts in depth. This book addresses the level of information I need to understand the game better. My System teaches the amateur player using small examples to make the concepts clear. This 1930 book has been translated, both in language and chess notation. Adult readers will fare better understanding the explanations than young readers because the expressions used in some paragraphs reflect the writing style of a century ago. At times the reader will be called upon to perform their own contextual translation of a concept because of the older style description. Added to this there are a few typographical errors so it can be difficult to discern a typo from an uncommon expression or failure to understand the point being explained. The book covers the elements of the Center and Development, Open Files, the Seventh and Eighth Ranks, the Passed Pawns, Exchanges, Endgame Strategy, the Pin, the Discovered Check, the Pawn Chain, and then Positional Play is covered in several chapters. The book ends with 50 games that emphasize the points taught in the book. Review: Don't advance too far without reading this book - Don't advance too far before reading this book. The reason I say this is that although this book is not for the beginner, it should be read before your chess thinking is developed much further than that of a beginner. I've been playing chess for 40 years and if I had read this on the road to becoming an intermediate player I would be a lot stronger today. There are a lot of beginner books for rules, tactics, basic strategy, but I haven't found nearly as many to properly address what happens at the next stage of a players development. This book succeeds on several levels. Having grown up without a teacher, 'My System' straightened out a lot of wrong thinking that I had developed in my game. I can now see more possibilities in a position. Also it is an excellent book on positional play that shows that you never have to lack for a plan because there is nearly always some vital improvement that you can make to a position. The algebraic '21st Century' keeps this important book alive, and there are some updates to the language to make the early 1900's, European Nimzovitch with his colorful descriptions a little easier to understand. ## Features - Used Book in Good Condition ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #76,154 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #49 in Chess (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 233 Reviews | ## Images ![My System: 21st Century Edition - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81XvaXoA1gL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Teaches Essential Chess Concepts *by T***E on November 2, 2022* This classic book teaches fundamental concepts in chess which every player must know. Other chess books assume that these concepts are understood prior to reading their books. Most likely other authors learned these fundamental concepts from this book and therefore assume everyone's learning has followed a similar path, which is why they never explain the concepts in depth. This book addresses the level of information I need to understand the game better. My System teaches the amateur player using small examples to make the concepts clear. This 1930 book has been translated, both in language and chess notation. Adult readers will fare better understanding the explanations than young readers because the expressions used in some paragraphs reflect the writing style of a century ago. At times the reader will be called upon to perform their own contextual translation of a concept because of the older style description. Added to this there are a few typographical errors so it can be difficult to discern a typo from an uncommon expression or failure to understand the point being explained. The book covers the elements of the Center and Development, Open Files, the Seventh and Eighth Ranks, the Passed Pawns, Exchanges, Endgame Strategy, the Pin, the Discovered Check, the Pawn Chain, and then Positional Play is covered in several chapters. The book ends with 50 games that emphasize the points taught in the book. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Don't advance too far without reading this book *by R***H on March 14, 2009* Don't advance too far before reading this book. The reason I say this is that although this book is not for the beginner, it should be read before your chess thinking is developed much further than that of a beginner. I've been playing chess for 40 years and if I had read this on the road to becoming an intermediate player I would be a lot stronger today. There are a lot of beginner books for rules, tactics, basic strategy, but I haven't found nearly as many to properly address what happens at the next stage of a players development. This book succeeds on several levels. Having grown up without a teacher, 'My System' straightened out a lot of wrong thinking that I had developed in my game. I can now see more possibilities in a position. Also it is an excellent book on positional play that shows that you never have to lack for a plan because there is nearly always some vital improvement that you can make to a position. The algebraic '21st Century' keeps this important book alive, and there are some updates to the language to make the early 1900's, European Nimzovitch with his colorful descriptions a little easier to understand. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ An Essential Chessbook That Needs Essential Redesign *by J***N on April 26, 2013* I am not an accomplished chess player, as I have only started to enjoy the game in the past year. When I began reading "My Sytem", I quickly realized that it contains a wealth of information on the strategic principles of chess. However, I found it somewhat slow reading, because much of the material is arranged in solid blocks of copy that should be broken up into shorter paragraphs to facilitate not only easier reading, but also retention of the material being read. As a beginner and as one who does not have the memory capability for retaining the various prior positions of pieces on the board after reading through many moves, I think that the book should make use of more diagrams showing the pieces after various moves (but not after every move), in order to aid learning. I realize that my recommended changes would substantially increase the number of pages in the book, which would increase its cost to the reader. It would also be advisable to enlarge the page size of the soft cover book in order to "open up" the copy to make it less formidable in appearance. This, too, would add to the reader's cost, but I think the additional cost would be well worth it to the reader, for this is a great teaching book and it could be even greater if it were redesigned by an expert contemporary book designer. I rated this book 4 stars only because of its shortcomings in design. In content, it is obviously a five star book that is essential reading with or without my design recommendations. ## Frequently Bought Together - My System: 21st Century Edition - How to Reassess Your Chess: Chess Mastery Through Chess Imbalances - Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess --- ## 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.co.uk/products/4978101-my-system-21st-century-edition](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/4978101-my-system-21st-century-edition) --- *Product available on Desertcart United Kingdom* *Store origin: GB* *Last updated: 2026-05-14*