From: Jonathan Tisdall C2I NET> Date: 16 jan 2001 Subject: Habu's Words Hello all, I thought that I would start off on a rather obvious thing to discuss, the new book in English. My copy arrived with amazing speed (I wasn't even sure it had been fully printed, and it was here seemingly the day after I sent away for it) and Tony Hosking asked for reactions. I have only just skimmed it quickly and am looking forward to reading it properly. Two things immediately struck me though: On page 1, Habu immediately gives a very straightforward evaluation of the pieces, with none of the usual, well-known, 'it depends' clauses, which I thought was interesting. One question - discussing some games he seems to know the approximate strength of the players, making clear reference to this, in others he seems unsure, saying he guesses they are dan players - how much information did Habu have about the games when he selected them for the book? Is there any chance at all that some books in Japanese might ever be translated, or is this such a huge project for such a small audience that it is in practice impossible? Habu's Words is quite an event though. Hope it is the first of many. jt -- Jonathan Tisdall tlf: +47-66 90 50 93 Morellveien 45 mobil: +47-92 69 63 58 1387 Asker, Norway jtisdall usa net mobilmail: 92696358 sms netcom no fax: +44-845-334-5011