(in English known as Basic Chess Endings). Fine's book deals with all types of endgames. It is considered the first systematic book in English on endgames and is one of the classic works of chess literature. For example, Mikhail Botvinnik in his time considered the book to be the most valuable of all that had been written about endgames. John Nunn wrote of the book: The quality of the general explanations is excellent and probably has never been surpassed. ... Fine is at his best when he gives general descriptions and the book has been rightly praised for its instructional value... The book has reached several editions in English and has also been translated into other languages. This is the First edition in Russian. Reuben Fine (1914-1993) was one of the world's top chess players for two decades and is also highly regarded as an author.