A good book for beginners is Capablanca's A Primer of Chess (1935, repr. 1963). See H. J. R. Murray, A History of Chess (1913, repr. 1962); F. Reinfeld, Complete Book of Chess Stratagems (1958, repr. 1972); D. Hooper and K. Whyld, The Oxford Companion to Chess (1984); R. Eales, Chess (1985).