After 1.e4 c6 Black challenges the center the way the French does, but without locking in the light-squared bishop, which usually comes out to f5 or g4 before the pawn chain closes. That one difference is most of the opening’s appeal, and it is why the Caro-Kann survives at the top level while remaining playable for someone with limited study time.
One thing worth saying plainly before the list. Our Caro-Kann shelf is currently much deeper for White than for Black. If you are looking for a Black repertoire, read the last section first, because two of the three books you would actually want are out of stock.
Facing the Caro-Kann as White
Four books, and they differ mainly in how much theory you are willing to carry.
Squeezing the Caro-Kann: Simple Chess
Alexander Khalifman and Sergei Soloviov (Chess Stars, 2022, 254 pages) take the Exchange system, 3.exd5 cxd5 4.Bd3, and argue you can play for a small pull without memorizing much. The lightest study load here by some distance. The caveat is in the name: this is a squeeze, not a knockout, and if you need a win on demand it will not manufacture one.
There is a 16-page sample on the product page.
Alexey Dreev (Chess Stars, 2015) covers the Advance Variation, 3.e5, across thirteen chapters. Dreev played these positions for years and the recommendations carry that weight. It is also ten years old now, so expect to check the critical lines against a database before you trust them in a serious game.
Grandmaster Repertoire: 1.e4 vs the French, Caro-Kann and Philidor
Parimarjan Negi (Quality Chess, 2014) is the most demanding option and the one that covers the most ground, because it solves the French at the same time. If you play 1.e4 you face both anyway. It assumes you will do the work, and club players often buy this one and use a fraction of it.
There is a 13-page sample on the product page.
Alexey Bezgodov (New in Chess, 2014). Despite the title this is a White book, built on 3.f3. It is a surprise weapon rather than a main system, and worth having only if you already have a repertoire and want something to reach for occasionally.
Playing it as Black
The Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation
Anatoly Karpov and Mikhail Podgaets (Russian Chess House, 2016) is the one currently in stock. Karpov played the Classical for over thirty years and the explanations reflect that. It covers the Classical only, so it is not a complete repertoire, and you will need an answer to the Advance and the Panov from elsewhere.
The two books that would fill that gap are both out of stock at the time of writing: Lars Schandorff’s Playing the Caro-Kann (Quality Chess, 2021, 344 pages), the standard modern one-volume repertoire, and Alexei Kornev’s A Practical Black Repertoire with d5, c6, Volume 2 (Chess Stars, 2017, 352 pages), which pairs the Caro-Kann with a Slav to give one coherent answer to both 1.e4 and 1.d4. Kornev’s has a six-page sample if you want to see the structure. If you are building a Black repertoire from scratch, it is worth waiting for one of these rather than starting with a book on one variation.
Where to start
If you play 1.e4 and simply want the Caro-Kann to stop being a problem, take Squeezing the Caro-Kann and spend an evening on it. If you already have a 1.e4 repertoire and the French is also giving you trouble, Negi solves both and will take you a season.
If you want to play the Caro-Kann as Black, the honest answer today is that we can sell you Karpov on the Classical, which is a good book about part of the opening, and you should come back for Schandorff.