Learn To Play Go, Volume II: The Way of the Moving Horse

In this volume the authors focus on expanding a bit on the basic concepts presented in the previous book. They continue to do so in a clear fashion and with plenty of diagrams so we can follow along without need of a board. First they talk about the opening strategy and give clear rules as to how to approach this face of the game. These concepts should help guide the beginner, but as soon as you have played for a couple of months you are going to need more than this. The enclosures and approaches explanation is good, but once again really simplified. After that they explain the concept of making a base, which is key when playing go, followed by the different types of connections and instructions on when to use each type. The handling of the concept of invasions and reductions is merely as an introduction of these existing, and not much else, which is not off base when addressing beginners.The sections on how to attack and defend in the second part are the most useful part of this book. Understanding that attacking is not only about killing the enemy groups and protecting ones weaknesses are key notions that when understood make a huge difference in playing strength. There is a section on capturing races, which is pretty basic. If you want an excellent resource for this topic, you would be best served by looking up  The Second Book of Go (Beginner and Elementary Go Books) . I liked the way in which they explained ko fights, focusing on not being afraid of them and just presenting the importance of understanding ko threats. In the life and death section there is a presentation of the most common shapes and of which ones are alive, dead or conditionally alive. The chapter on contact fighting is the other part of this book that I thought was excellent and extremely useful for beginners. Finally, the endgame section goes over a couple of the most common situations and nothing else, so once again after playing for a month or two, the beginner player will need to look for another reference material on this.As long as you are aware of the strengths of this book, it should be a very good guide for you. The main strength is that the material is presented in a very gentle fashion, but this also means that there are a lot of missing parts that other beginner books address. Therefore, your satisfaction with this volume will depend on whether you are looking for a easy to follow guide or a more challenging reference material.

If you want to play Go, this is a great second book once you know the rules. This one book improved my handicap several stones almost overnight. You will learn how to connect stones in several ways, including why some moves are more "stylish" than others. Ms Kim also gives some history and lots of terminology for common moves in English, Japanese and Korean. Definitely recommend!There's a couple required reading for learning Go. After the elementals book, this one is perfect. Volume 3, the Dragon Style, is also good, as you learn how to fight. Also required is Davies _Life and Death_ which you really need to memorize to be effective.

This second book in the series is needed if you have only read the first volume in the series. I found that The Second Book of Go (by another author) is more advanced than this . Requirements being that material in Janice Kim's first and second book be known to be able to follow along well in The Second Book of Go.I think after reading about the Learn to Play Go series . The were originally written for Jeong Soo=Hynu's students by him. i just wish i would have taken into consideration that probably he had many younger student. I find these books useful in that the first 2 books had helped me play a better game. The books just skim the surfaces of different techniques and types of moves of the game. I would surely suggest these books for someone with a short attention span who desires to learn how to win a game in the beginner ranks. But as for me , i will move on to more thorough go literature.(some of which can be downloaded on [...]

I will post this to the first four books of the series, which I bought all at once.I was hoping this series, as popular as it seems to be, would be the Go equivalent of Yasser Seirawan's "Play Winning Chess," but this series has nothing in comparison. I agree with other reviews that describe the books' lack of depth. There is actually so little information presented in the first four volumes, that they might as well be combined into one book for the same price as one of the books. There are also glaring typographical errors throughout every copy.Don't let the glossy covers fool you, in my opinion, this book series is nothing but a money grab. (I liked this book the best and thought it was a decent, if very quick, intro for the very beginning player).

This book is a must in addition to volume I to start playing Go. Volume I outlines the basic principles but does not cover strategy. In this volume you will learn basic strategies and be able to play at a beginning level with some understanding of what types of moves you should be making to attack and defend.

This is a great book for those who have only played for a few months. In particular, this book documents the relationships of stones and the concept of speed vs. strength between them well. I found the first half of the book more profound and helpful than the latter.

I have several Go books. So far this one has been my favorite. It gives a good overview of the areas one needs to know to play well, as opposed to focusing on any particular aspect in too much depth. It explains things well. It give a good description of the middle game and many areas that are often neglected by other Go books that I have seen.

As a beginner I must give this book a thumb up ! This book guides you step by step till you understand one by one the rules of go. Excellent.

The five books in the Janice Kim series on learning to play GO are by far the best books for beginners and improvers to learn the game of GO in depth. The Way of the Moving Horse, second in the series is excellent at extending the basics and really helping you to understand the finer detail of GO which can be bewildering for a beginner. Following on from the first book it goes into the tactics and strategies of play. You will also find yourself referring back to this book as you progress with playing GO.I have bought a number of beginner's GO books before, but none of them were as well structured as the Kim books, Also I believe you cannot fit all the scope and subtleties of GO in a single book.If you are keen to study GO at a beginner or improving level, buy this series.

this series of books is excellent. Very clearly written with good illustrations and step by step guidance. I highly recommend them. Geoff

I like it CJ I like it. Glad to see the horse is moving in the right direction. Good for beginners or early players

Great !

Five Stars.