ABC's of Attack and Defense, Michael Redmond

Michael Redmond’s first book is a clear and thorough presentation of the basic principles of attacking and defending, focusing on the positions that arise from an approach to a 4-4 stone. This book will set a double digit kyu player on the right path to understanding the fundamentals of effective play and at the same time it will reveal and fill in gaps in even a fairly strong dan player’s grasp of how to deal with common situations. Redmond presents a high level of analysis in a way that is very accessible and that is very accessible, making it easy to understand and remember the underlying principles involved. The book is based on an award winning series Redmond did on Japanese National Television.

Comments & Reviews

This book should actually be called the “AB’s” of Attack and Defense, because actually there are only two principles in the book, and their duals: Surrounding/Escaping and Connecting/Separating. This may sound simplistic, but I think many players get distracted during a complex game and forget to check these basic things. There are some basic shapes in the book that every player should know, as well as practical advice on avoiding complications when playing against a stronger player’s 5-4, 5-3, or 3-4 point. Looking back at the books that helped me break out of double-digit kyu status, this one is near the top of the list, and is the only one that I read multiple times.

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Sometimes the hardest part of a handicap game is getting through the fuseki and the early fighting without losing your advantage. Reading this book will make you more confident in this phase of handicap games, but the principles discussed in the book apply to even games as well.

Redmond focuses on simple, solid play, and he shows how to exploit the weakness of the white stones to gain thickness, safety, and profit. Some of the variations are complicated or too simple (depending on your level), but each lesson hammers home his themes. One great thing about the book is that the lessons are relevant. I recognized many patterns from my own games. Also, I now use some of his techniques as white when I give handicaps.

This book is not as essential as, say, Tesuji and Life & Death, but it is a great guide for untangling the complexity of the opening and early fighting, particularly in handicap games. Like all good books, it is worth going through a few times to absorb more of his subtler points.

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