Category: Reviews

Book Review: The Road Map to Shodan, Volume 2

The Basic Principles of the Opening and the Middle Game

Description: “In this book, 20 basic principles are presented. Each principle is accompanied by numerous examples and each section is followed by problems in which the application of these principles is required to solve them. The intuition of the novice player who studies the principles, examples, and problems presented in this book will quickly rise to the level of an expert go player.”

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Review: The Divine Move (Movie)

The Divine Movie Post

When I first saw the trailer for this movie, there were two things that I noticed: go and martial arts. And as someone who grew up on kung fu movies and watching subtitled Asian movies, I was sold immediately.

One of my concerns was that I would have to find some bootleg version of the movie online or wait forever to buy the DVD and have it shipped to the U.S. However, fortunately they had a limited theatrical release in the United States and one of the theaters was only about a 35 min drive away from me. Awesome!

In case you’re planning on seeing it soon and don’t want to have any of my opinion impact your viewing of the movie, I will just say that I recommend you check it out. The only word of caution I would advise is for people who are squeamish about blood and violence. It’s not anything horrific or terribly gory (like a horror movie), but it’s certainly not completely sugar coated (like some martial art movies where the people never bleed or have injuries).

If you’d like to hear a bit more opinionated review, read on!

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Book Review: Graded Go Problems for Dan Players - Vol. 1

Graded Go Problems for Dan Players: Volume One - 300 Life-and-Death Problems (5-kyu to 3-dan)

Description: This is the first volume of the continuing series to the popular “Graded Go Problems for Beginners.” This first book is focused on providing life-and-death techniques that are foundational to developing stronger reading abilities as players try to climb their way into dan status.

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Equipment Review: Dirt Cheap Go Set

The Dirt Cheap Go Set

Description: “Are you looking for an affordable Go set? Look no further. The Dirt Cheap Go Set is a complete, full size Go game set at an unbeatable price! Each set includes one foldable 19x19 plastic Go board, 180 Go stones of each color (black and white) and two plastic Go bowls. Because the board can be folded and sealed tightly inside one of the bowls (with the stones) this set is also compact and portable.” - GoGameGuru

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Equipment Review: Slate and Shell Sample

Slate and Shell Go Stones - Sample Pack - Size 36 Biconvex

Description: “This is a sample pack of our size 36 slate and shell Go stones, which are among the highest quality Go stones available. It contains three black stones and three white stones. Size 36 refers to the thickness of the stone (in this case 10.4 mm or 0.41 inches). The additional thickness and weight of these stones gives them a pleasant feeling in your hand and produces a sharp and satisfying snapping sound when the stones are played.” - GoGameGuru

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Equipment Review: Featherweight Go Set

The Featherweight Go Set

Description: “Weighing in at just 20.5 oz (580 g), the Featherweight Go Set is even lighter than your average travel Go set. But here’s the thing; it’s a proper, full sized Go board with stones. It includes size 21 plastic stones (0.3 inches or 8 mm thick) with a 0.8 inch (20 mm) diameter and a durable, full size, crease resistant 19x19 plastic Go board. The board can easily be folded or rolled, making this set highly portable. Keep a set in your bag or briefcase so that you’re always ready for a serendipitous game of Go!” - GoGameGuru

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