The Cardturner


Book Description

When Alton's ageing, blind uncle asks him to attend bridge games with him, he agrees. After all, it's better than a crappy summer job in the local shopping mall, and Alton's mother thinks it might secure their way to a good inheritance sometime in the future. But, like all apparently casual choices in any of Louis Sachar's wonderful books, this choice soon turns out to be a lot more complex than Alton could ever have imagined. As his relationship with his uncle develops, and he meets the very attractive Toni, deeply buried secrets are uncovered and a romance that spans decades is finally brought to conclusion. Alton's mother is in for a surprise!







Duplicate Bridge Schedules


Book Description

The Bridge Movements Encyclopedia. Duplicate Bridge Schedules, History and Mathematics is an essential book for tournament directors as well as bridge players curious about the history of the game of duplicate bridge. This comprehensive volume supplies you with all the movements ever thought of and many hundreds of new ones. Included for each movement are the variations, modifications, origins, authors and history of its development. Each movement is then assessed for its measure of quality, called calibre. The author presents a brand new event type, the Scissor movement - run like any Howell movement. In this type of event the players play as pairs as usual, but also have their teammates as another pair, never meeting each other. This allows the event to be scored both as teams and pairs, producing a winning team and a winning pair. Duplicate bridge players will find the history of their favorite game most intriguing. The book delves into the lives of well-known figures such as John T. Mitchell and Edwin C. Howell. When did they live, what did they contribute to bridge, and what were the politics of their time? In addition, many lesser-known historical figures are examined for their contributions to the development of duplicate movements. For the mathematically inclined there are plenty of interesting oddities. The mathematics of balance of movements, giving the measure of quality, is thoroughly discussed. The controversial debate over movement quality, along with its history, is presented through the ideas and opinions of players and mathematicians. IAN McKINNON is a mathematician, expert bridge player, tournament director, author and computer professional. Through circumstance, around 1970, he started tournament directing at a major bridge club in Sydney which eventually led to him being the senior Tournament Director within the Australian Bridge Federation during the 1970s. He produced his first book, Bridge Directing Complete, in 1979. All those years of experience, and the last ten years of intense research and computer programming, have resulted in this book.




The New York Times Bridge Book


Book Description

A guide to the popular card game includes anecdotes about great players, major tournaments, scandals, and strategies that make bridge so legendary.




The Official ACBL Encyclopedia of Bridge


Book Description

Covers players, history, rules, and bidding conventions.




2 Over 1 Game Force


Book Description

This book covers a popular variation of Standard American bidding methods called Two-Over-One Game Force.




Bridge For Dummies


Book Description

You can play bridge all over the world, and wherever you go, you can make new friends automatically by starting up a game of bridge. What exactly is it about bridge that fascinates countless millions, has fascinated countless millions, and will continue to fascinate countless millions? In a nutshell, Bridge is a social game: You play with a partner and two opponents. Right off the bat you have four people together. Inevitably, you meet a host of new friends with a strong common bond, the game of bridge. Bridge is a challenging game: Each hand is an adventure; each hand presents a unique set of conditions that you react to and solve. You have to do a little thinking. Bridge is a game of psychology: If you fancy yourself a keen observer of human behavior, look no further. You have found your niche. Players aren’t supposed to show any emotion during the play, but there are always a few leaks in the dam. Bridge is fun: Hours become minutes! Playing bridge can mean endless hours of pleasure, a host of new friends, and many laughs. If you’re an absolute bridge beginner, you need the hand-held tour of the game that Bridge For Dummies can give you. Take your time getting to know the fundamentals, carefully examine the real-life examples, and get a feel for the basics before you start to play. Even if you have played bridge before, this book still has much to offer you. Author Eddie Kantar condenses his fifty years of experience with the game into tips and hints that can make you a better player. Start with a birds-eye view of bridge and begin with techniques for taking tricks in a notrump contract. Move on from there to cover the following aspects of the game and more: Counting and taking sure tricks Working with trump suits Finessing for extra winners Grasping the importance of bidding Knowing when to pass and when to rebid Slam bidding Keeping score Playing defense After you play a few hands, you may find that you can’t stop playing bridge. If this happens, call a doctor – you may be a bridgeaholic. The only cure for your addiction is play, play, play. In order to satisfy your craving for bridge, Bridge For Dummies will help you connect with bridge clubs, tournaments, computerized games, and even online partnerships.




How to Improve Your Bridge


Book Description




Audrey Grant's Better Bridge


Book Description

"This book tells you everything you need to know about the most widely accepted bidding methods. Read about the secrets of hand evaluation that can dramatically improve your game. Learn how to describe your hand to partner so that the partnership can find its way to the best contract. Discover new concepts that keep the bidding conversation straightforward. You'll be confident when you go to your next bridge game because you'll have the solid foundation needed to handle any bidding sequence."--Back cover