Historic Book List: As Sold Before 2010
This historic list of Go books published in English, those stocked by us prior to December 2010, gives an indication of the level many books are suitable for - beginner, intermediate or advanced. Books long out of print are included where possible and are shown in italics.
We have lists of all the known books that have been published in English, sorted by:
If you want to know more:
- some book reviews from the British Go Journal are here,
- David Carlton's Go Bibliography has reviews of many books,
- other reviews can often be found on Sensei's Library or publishers' websites.
There is also a list of beginners' books published in English and those recommended.
A list in date order of books published since 2004 is also available.
There are various Go terms that have come into common use, mostly from Japanese. In case there is no glossary, our extensive list of Japanese Go Terminology definitions may be useful.
For a long time there was only Ishi Press publishing Go books in English, but then for some years thereafter there were three main publishers of Go books: Kiseido, Slate and Shell, and Yutopian. Hinoki Press, Oromedia and some others also published books.
- Kiseido - original English-language instructional material, including the fomer quarterly Go World magazine (including most of the original Ishi Press titles).
- Slate and Shell - a growing catalogue of translated and original works, some especially for newer players.
- Yutopian - publishes many translations of Asian go classics for all levels of play.
- Go Game Guru took on publishing the Hinoki Press series and stocked the Orodmedia books and was starting to publish its own books
The majority of the books published in English in recent years are included in this list.
Key to level: B - Beginners, E - Elementary, I - Intermediate, A - Advanced
Please note that these ratings were the opinion of Gerry Mills, the former BGA Bookseller.
The publishers indicated by the book codes are: G = Ishi Press, H = Hinoki Press, K = Kiseido, O = Oromedia, SL = Slate and Shell, Y = Yutopian, Z/other codes = miscellaneous publishers.
| Title | Level | BGA Code |
|---|---|---|
| The 3-3 Point | I | G44 |
| 4-4 Point Joseki - A Brief Introduction | E | SL23 |
| 9 Dan Showdown | A | SL72 |
| 21st Century Baduk for Beginers | B | ZBFB |
| 21st Century New Openings | A | Y45 |
| The 36 strategems Applied to Go | A | Y08 |
| 38 Basic Joseki | E | K11 |
| 100 Challenging Go Problems | A | Y05 |
| 100 Tips for Amateur Players, Vol. 1 | E | OR28 |
| 100 Tips for Amateur Players, Vol. 2 | E | OR29 |
| 200 Endgame Problems | I | SL18 |
| 200 Tesuji Problems | E | SL20 |
| 400 Years of Go in Japan | any | SL51 |
| 501 Opening Problems | I | K71 |
| 501 Tesuji Problems | I | K74 |
| 1001 Life and Death Problems | E | K72 |
| The 1971 Honinbo Tournament | A | K07 |
| The ABC’s of Attack and Defense | E | SL09 |
| After Joseki | I | ZAJ |
| All About Ko | I | K76 |
| All About Joseki | I | SL45 |
| All About Life and Death Vol 1 | E | G42 |
| All About Life and Death Vol 2 | E | G43 |
| All About Thickness * | I | G34 |
| Appreciating Famous Games | I | G25 |
| An Asian Paradigm For Business Strategy | any | K99 |
| The Art of Capturing Stones | I | Y25 |
| The Art of Connecting Stones | I | Y09 |
| Attack and Defense | E | K14 |
| Baduk Made Fun and Easy, Vol. 1 | B | ZBM1 |
| Baduk Made Fun and Easy, Vol. 2 | E | ZBM2 |
| Baduk Made Fun and Easy, Vol. 3 | I | ZBM3 |
| The Basics of Go Strategy | I | K75 |
| Basic Techniques of Go | E | K02 |
| The Best Game Records of 2009 | A | OR32 |
| The Best Play | I | SL27 |
| Beauty and the Beast | I | Y17 |
| Beyond Forcing Moves | I | G37 |
| Breakthrough Attacking Power | A | H09 |
| The Breakthrough to Shodan * | I | G19 |
| Catching Scent of Victory | A | H04 |
| Changing One's Conceptions | A | H06 |
| The Chinese Opening | I | K33 |
| Cho Hun-Hyeon's Lectures on Go Techniques | E | Y20 |
| Cho Hun-Hyeon's Lectures on Go Techniques Vol. 2 | I | Y48 |
| Cho Hun-Hyun's Lectures on the Opening | E | Y44 |
| Cho Hun-Hyun: Life and Master Games | I | G46 |
| Come Up To Shodan | I | SL16 |
| Contemporary Go Terms | any | OR23 |
| Cosmic Go | I | K69 |
| Counting Liberties | E | SL17 |
| Creative Life and Death | A | ZCLD |
| Creative Life and Death, Vol. 2 | A | ZCL2 |
| Cross Cut Workshop | E | SL04 |
| Dictionary of Basic Fuseki, Vol. 1 | A | Y39 |
| Dictionary of Basic Fuseki, Vol. 2 | A | Y40 |
| Dictionary of Basic Fuseki, Vol. 3 | I | Y46 |
| Dictionary of Basic Joseki by Yoshio Ishida, Vol. 1 | A | K21 |
| Dictionary of Basic Joseki by Yoshio Ishida, Vol. 2 | A | K22 |
| Dictionary of Basic Joseki by Yoshio Ishida, Vol. 3 | A | K23 |
| Dictionary of Basic Tesuji, Vol. 1 | I | SL44 |
| Dictionary of Basic Tesuji, Vol. 2 | I | SL47 |
| Dictionary of Basic Tesuji, Vol. 3 | I | SL50 |
| Dictionary of Basic Tesuji, Vol. 4 | I | SL52 |
| Dictionary of Modern Fuseki—The Korean Style | I | K81 |
| The Direction of Play | I | K26 |
| Dramatic Moments on the Go Board | I | Y10 |
| Enclosure Joseki * | A | G24 |
| Endgame | E | K15 |
| Essential Joseki | I | Y22 |
| Eurogo Vol. 1 (History to 1950) | any | EGO1 |
| Eurogo Vol. 2 (History 1949-1968) | any | EGO2 |
| Eurogo Vol. 3 (History 1968-1988) | any | EGO3 |
| Even Game Joseki — NK Handbook Vol. 5 | I | Y36 |
| Fighting Ko | I | Y04 |
| The Final Summit | I | SL68 |
| Four Great Games | B | 4GG |
| Fundamental Principles of Go | E | SL42 |
| Fuseki — NK Handbook Vol. 2 | A | Y28 |
| Galactic Go | A | Y27 |
| Galactic Go Vol. 2 | A | Y32 |
| Game of Go (Smith) | B | ZPG |
| Games of Go (Moffatt) | E | NM02 |
| Get Strong at Attacking | I | K60 |
| Get Strong at the Opening | I | K51 |
| Get Strong at Invading | I | K55 |
| Get Strong at Joseki Vol. 1 | I | K52 |
| Get Strong at Joseki Vol. 2 | I | K53 |
| Get Strong at Joseki Vol. 3 | I | K54 |
| Get Strong at Tesuji | I | K56 |
| Get Strong at the Endgame | I | K57 |
| Get Strong at Life and Death | I | K58 |
| Get Strong at Handicap Go | I | K59 |
| Go: A Complete Introduction to the Game | B | K50 |
| Go: An Application of the Principles of War | any | YPW |
| Go as Communication | any | SL05 |
| The Go Companion | I | SL63 |
| The Go Consultants | I | SL66 |
| Go for Kids | B | Y31 |
| Go Player's Almanac (2001 edition) | any | K40 |
| Go Problems for Kyu Level Players, Vol. 1 | E | SL31 |
| Go Problems for Kyu Level Players, Vol. 2 | E | SL32 |
| Go Problems for Kyu Level Players, Vol. 3 | E | SL33 |
| Go Problems for Kyu Level Players, Vol. 4 | E | SL34 |
| Go Problems for Kyu Level Players, Vol. 5 | I | SL35 |
| Go Problems for Kyu Level Players, Vol. 6 | I | SL36 |
| Go Proverbs (Mitchell) | E | SL03 |
| Go Shapes Resolve | E | YGS |
| Golden Opportunities | I | Y12 |
| Graded Go Problems, Vol. 1 | B | K47/GGP1 |
| Graded Go Problems, Vol. 2 | E | K47/GGP2 |
| Graded Go Problems, Vol. 3 | I | K48/GGP3 |
| Graded Go Problems, Vol. 4 | I | K49/GGP4 |
| Graded Go Problems for Dan Players, Vol. 1 | I | K61 |
| Graded Go Problems for Dan Players, Vol. 2 | I | K62 |
| Graded Go Problems for Dan Players, Vol. 3 | I | K63 |
| The Great Joseki Debates | A | G35 |
| Handicap Go | E | G16 |
| Handicap Go — NK Handbook Vol. 4 | I | Y33 |
| How Not to Play Go | I | SL69 |
| How to Play Handicap Go | I | SL10 |
| Igo Hatsuyo-ron, Vol. 1 | A | Y16 |
| Imagination of a Go Master | I | ZIGM |
| Improve Your Intuition, Vol. 1 | I | SL11 |
| Improve Your Intuition, Vol. 2 | I | SL12 |
| Improve Your Intuition, Vol. 3 | I | SL13 |
| In The Beginning | E | K10 |
| Ingenious Life and Death Puzzles Vol. 1 | A | Y14 |
| Ingenious Life and Death Puzzles Vol. 2 | A | Y15 |
| Inspiration of Pro | I | OR30 |
| An Introduction to Go | B | G30 |
| Invincible: the Games of Shusaku (Paperback) | A | K01 |
| Invincible: the Games of Shusaku (Hardback) | A | K01H |
| Joseki Fundamentals, Vol. 1 | E | JAS1 |
| A Journey in Search of the Origins of Go | any | Y43 |
| Jungsuk in our Time | I | ZHK1 |
| Kage's Secret Chronicles | E | G17 |
| Kamakura | I | SL65 |
| Kato's Attack and Kill * | I | G27 |
| Keshi and Uchikomi | I | SL07 |
| Key Concepts in Life and Death | E | SL54 |
| Killer of Go | I | Y01 |
| Korean Style of Baduk: Vol. 1 | I | OR22 |
| Learn Go (Moffatt) | B | NM01 |
| Learn to Play Go, Vol. 1 | B | LPG1 |
| Learn to Play Go, Vol. 2 | B | LPG2 |
| Learn to Play Go, Vol. 3 | B | LPG3 |
| Learn to Play Go, Vol. 4 | B | LPG4 |
| Learn to Play Go, Vol. 5 | B | LPG5 |
| Learning From the Masters, Vol. 1 | I | SL37 |
| Learning From the Masters, Vol. 2 | I | SL49 |
| Lee Changho's Novel Plays and Shapes | I | Y26 |
| Lessons in the Fundamentals of Go | E | K28 |
| Let’s Play Go | B | SL28 |
| Level Up Vols. 1-5 and Review 1 | B | ZLU |
| Life and Death | E | K13 |
| Life and Death: Intermediate Problems | I | SL26 |
| Liping Huang's Problem Series: Vol. 1 | I | SL41 |
| Magic of Placements | A | Y47 |
| The Magic of Go | B | G41 |
| Magic on the First Line | E | SL70 |
| Making Good Shape | I | K73 |
| Master Go in Ten Days | B | Y11 |
| Mastering Ladders | E | SL60 |
| Mastering the Basics of Go | E | SL43 |
| Master of Haengma | I | OR31 |
| Master Play: Kitani and Cho | I | SL67 |
| Master Play: The Fighting Styles of Kato Masao and Seo Bong Soo | I | SL64 |
| Master Play: The Style of Go Seigen | A | SL58 |
| Master Play: The Style of Lee Changho | I | SL56 |
| Master Play: The Style of Takemiya | I | SL61 |
| Masterpieces of Handicap Go, Vol. 1 | I | SL02 |
| Masterpieces of Handicap Go, Vol. 2 | I | SL06 |
| The Middle Game | I | G5 |
| Modern Joseki and Fuseki Vol 1 | A | G1 |
| Modern Joseki and Fuseki Vol 2 | A | G3 |
| Monkey Jump Workshop | E | SL08 |
| New Go Proverbs Illustrated | E | Y42 |
| Ni Weiping on Go | I | Y03 |
| Opening Theory Made Easy | E | K36 |
| Oriental Strategy in a Nutshell (EZ-GO) | B | EZGO |
| Otake's Secrets of Strategy | A | H05 |
| Pair Go | E | ZPA |
| Perceiving the Direction of Play | A | H03 |
| Playing the Endgame | E | SL53 |
| Positional Judgment | I | K45 |
| Power Builder, Vol. 1 | I | Y19 |
| Power Builder, Vol. 2 | I | Y35 |
| The Power of the Starpoint | I | G32 |
| Pro-Pro Handicap Go | I | Y13 |
| Proverbs — NK Handbook Vol. 1 | E | Y23 |
| Punishing and Correcting Joseki Mistakes | A | SL19 |
| Pure & Simple Takao's Astute Use of Brute Force | A | H02 |
| Reducing Territorial Frameworks | I | K29 |
| Reflections on the Game of Go | any | SL46 |
| Rescue and Capture | I | Y18 |
| The Road to One-dan: Vol. 1 | I | OR21 |
| A Scientific Introduction to Go | B | Y34 |
| The Second Book of Go (Ishi) | E | G31 |
| The Second Book of Go (Kiseido) | E | K31 |
| Shuko: The Only Move, Vol. 1 | A | H11 |
| Shuko: The Only Move, Vol. 2 | A | H12 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 1 | B | OR11 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 2 | B | OR12 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 3 | B | OR13 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 4 | B | OR14 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 5 | B | OR15 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 6 | B | OR16 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 7 | B | OR17 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 8 | B | OR18 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Vol. 9 | B | OR19 |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Answers (1-3) | B | OR1D |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Answers (4-6) | B | OR1E |
| Speed Baduk for Beginners: Answers (7-9) | B | OR1F |
| Star Point Joseki — NK Handbook Vol. 3 | I | Y30 |
| Step up to a Higher Level | E | Y37 |
| Strategic Concepts of Go | A | G6 |
| Strategic Fundamentals in Go | A | Y24 |
| Teach Yourself Go by Charles Matthews | B | TYGO |
| Test Your Go Strength (What's Your Rating?) * | E | G18 |
| Tesuji | E | K12 |
| Tesuji and Anti-suji of Go | I | Y06 |
| The Theory and Practice of Go (Korschelt) | B | ZPT |
| Think Like a Pro, Vol. 1, Haengma (shape) | A | OR26 |
| Think Like a Pro, Vol. 2, Pae (ko) | I | OR27 |
| This is Go the Natural Way | I | H10 |
| This is Haengma | E | ZTIH |
| Top European Players Training | A | ZEPT |
| Tournament Go 1992 | I | KPP1 |
| Treasure Chest Enigma | I | SL24 |
| Train Like a Pro, Vol. 1 | A | ORO1 |
| Train Like a Pro, Vol. 2 | A | ORO2 |
| Train Like a Pro, Answers | A | OROA |
| Trick Plays | I | Y02 |
| Tricks in Joseki | I | Y29 |
| Understanding Dan Level Play | I | SL71 |
| Understanding How to Play Go | I | SL01 |
| Utilising Outward Influence | I | Y07 |
| Vital Points and Skilful Finesse for Sabaki | A | H01 |
| The Way of Creating a Thick and Strong Game | I | H07 |
| The Way of Go | any | ZFP1 |
| A Way to Play for the 21st Century | I | ZBP1 |
| Weichi in Culture | B | Y41 |
| Whole Board Living Tesujis | I | Y38 |
| Whole Board Thinking in Joseki (Vol. 1) | I | ZWB1 |
| Whole Board Thinking in Joseki (Vol. 2) | I | ZWB2 |
| Winning a Won Game | I | Y21 |
| The Workshop Lectures Vol. 1 | E | SL25 |
| The Workshop Lectures Vol. 2 | E | SL29 |
| The Workshop Lectures Vol. 3 | E | SL55 |
| The Workshop Lectures Vol. 4 | E | SL57 |
| The Workshop Lectures Vol. 5 | I | SL59 |
| The Workshop Lectures Vol. 6 | I | SL62 |
| The World of Chinese Go by Guo Juan | I | K70 |
| Yilun Yang's Go Puzzles, Vol. 1 | A | SL21 |
| Yilun Yang's Go Puzzles, Vol. 2 | A | SL22 |
| Zone Press Park | A | H08 |
* these books (G18,G19,G24,G27 and G34) are available on CD
Last updated Fri May 26 2023.
If you have any comments, please email the webmaster on web-master AT britgo DOT org.
If you have any comments, please email the webmaster on web-master AT britgo DOT org.