Chess for Success: Using an Old
Game to Build New Strengths in
Children and Teens by Maurice
Ashley
An Accomplished Chess Artist Shows Us The Way
Maurice Ashley immigrated to New York from Jamaica at the age of
twelve, only to be confronted with the harsh realities of urban life. But he
found his inspiration for a better life after stumbling upon a chess book and
becoming hypnotized by the game. He would eventually break the chess
worlds color lines by becoming an International Grandmaster in 1999.
Ashley realized that chess strategies could be used as an educational tool
to help children avoid the pitfalls often associated with growing up. In this
book, he serves up compelling anecdotes about how chess has positively

affected young players. He also offers tips on technique, how to make the
game fun for children of all ages and levels, and how to overcome the
myth that chess isnt cool. Through his guidance, readers will understand
how chess strategies can improve a childs mental agility, creativity, and
problem-solving skills. Chess for Success is a much-anticipated resource
for parents, teachers, counselors, youth workers, and chess lovers.
Personal Review: Chess for Success: Using an Old Game to
Build New Strengths in Children and Teens by Maurice Ashley
As someone who has played chess off and on for the better part of my life,
I can attest to the tremendous power the game has in shaping young
minds. My older brother turned me on to the game when I was about
seven or so. He in turn was turned onto the game when he was in high
school, much like Maurice Ashley was, but in his case, it was the older
dudes in the park in our 'hood that hipped him to the game. Every so often
he would come around, and we would fire up a game. Sometimes I won,
most times I had my --s handed to me on a silver platter. Yet each time we
played, I came away stronger, sharper, and more focused on my academic
work.
Just a few days ago, while searching for some books on commercial real
estate, I came upon Chess for Success on the shelves. Being somewhat
intrigued, I took it and a few other chess books off the shelves, and two
days later, after reading Chess for Success first, I pulled out my old copy of
Chessmaster 8000 and started reading a book on chess openings. By the
time I began writing these words, a profound change had overcome my
very being.
You see, thinking back on it, back in grade school when I played chess
with a school chum, everything seemed to be so easy. Schoolwork was a
breeze. Math problems were trivial, computer programming on the Apple II
(yes, I am THAT old) was a walk in the park, and all was well in my world.
Homework? Never had any- probably because I had done it all for the
entire week by Monday's lunch period. Though I sucked at sports, I
excelled in scholarship, and by the time I hit high school, I was hitting my
academic stride. I stopped playing chess for a time, and suddenly,
geometry was difficult. Back on the chess, I finished not only geometry,
but also knocked off all of algebra II for good measure. Suddenly, I found
myself in trig, then pre-calculus, where I took a break from chess.
Suddenly, grades began to slump, key concepts difficult to master, but
then, back on the chess, a rousing finish and top marks in the class.
Calculus in senior year was rote and mechanical, all the while, the chess
program on my old TI-994A (yes, I had one of those. Please don't laugh.)
kept humming and whirring along. I finally retired my computer and my
board shortly before heading off to MIT. Big mistake, for over the next four
years, I found myself grade-wise always 'somewhere in the middle of the
class' as one of my professors kindly put it. By the time graduation rolled
around, I limped my way to the podium to get the ol' sheepskin.

The intervening years were a hazy fog, until reading this book. Thinking
back on it, the chess was always in the background for each of my major
academic milestones. Without knowing it, the chess was sharpening my
mind, honing my focus, and bringing clarity to my endeavors. Maybe it
was just heightening what was already there, or maybe it added something
to my repertoire that I badly needed, but whatever it did, it worked, and it
very likely made me the man that I am today, intellectually.
The chess imparts clarity, and provides focus, both on and off the board, at
least for me. High hat academic studies and statistical significance be
damned, the chess works well, at least for me. I honestly do not know why
I ever gave the game up.
Play chess, albeit poorly, win big in life; don't play chess and always come
up short, at least for me. That's the moral, the lesson to be learned in this
book. Thank you Grand Master Ashley for rousing me from my slumber
and showing me the way.
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