[blackshoe]

Lots of good reviews/suggestions here. Let me add mine:

Bidding On Target, George Rosenkranz and Alan Truscott

Intermediate to Advanced, B+

Some chapter headings: "Problems of Second Hand", "Problems of Third Hand", "Constructive Bidding", "Slam Bidding".

This is a "theory" book - but with many example hands. Great discussions of Notrump bidding and preemptive bidding, lots of good stuff on tightening up partnership understandings.

Bid to Win, Play for Pleasure, George Rosenkranz
Godfrey's Bridge Challenge, George Rosenkranz and Philip Alder
Godfrey's Stairway to the Stars, George Rosenkranz and Philip Alder
Godfrey's Angel's, George Rosenkranz and Philip Alder

These four books describe the modern Romex system. The first is a pretty large book, with an awful lot of stuff in it. The last three are written in a conversational style, and take the reader through Godfrey's teaching his wife Meche and her regular partner Mayté the basics of the Romex system. Very good reading, and I think Romex deserves wider recognition than it's had.

Intermediate to Advanced, B+

[CarlRitner]

Thanks for the great reviews. There was a fourth book in the Godfrey series, this one was the first, actually: Our Man Godfrey: Tales From The Bridge Table

George published this after Bid to Win, Play for Pleasure and it was another theory book, but on general systems, not Romex. It was written in the conversational style and is quite a good read. It does not carry Phillip Alder as a co-author but as contributor, and that small injustice was corrected for the rest of the series.

Quite a few Rosenkranz books are available on my website.

Cheers,

Carl
ACBL Library Used Bridge Books

[ArcLight]

365 Winning Bridge Tips by Danny Kleinman


The book is really an assortment of various bidding problems/tips, declarer play, and defense problems. Its geared towards Match Points though many of the problems/ideas are also applicable to IMPs.

Some of the bidding problems involve hand (re)evaluation, hand patterns (what the other players have), and rebid problems. The author discusses why not to open a hand NT, why certain conventions are bad, and shows some of his own. I don't necessarily agree with all of this, but its interesting reading.

The defense problems involve counting, and some are a lot harder and involve asking yourself what the meaning of the spots played are and their implication for that suit.

The declarer play problems are a variety of match point decisions and bad contracts.

Overall I though the book was worthwhile reading, though its not organized in any specific way. Its probably Intermediate plus level.

[mike777]

100 Bridge Problems. Using Poker Tactics in Contract Bridge. Mike Cappelletti. 14.95$. 2004. 224pp.
Grade=B

I really enjoyed the first half of this book and would grade it A-. The second half drops off in quality and there are a few editing errors where the analysis does not seem to match the hands.

The first half discusses aggressiveness at bridge and what a difference a level makes. The last half discusses cuebidding and bluffing.

[ArcLight]

Dynamic Defense by Mike Lawrence 1985

I tried reading this when I had been playing Bridge for 5 months and it was way over my head. So now with a couple of years of additional experience I tried it again. What a world of difference experience and study makes when reading a book on defense.

The problems are generally not difficult ones. They involve counting and deduction. Also listening to the auction.
- what are pards and declarers shapes?
- what are pards and declarers HCP?
- why did/n't pard make such and such a lead?
- why is declarer playing in this fashion?
- what do I need to set this?
- what opening lead should I make?

What helps this time around (compared to when I just started playing) was based on the carding (Count signals, low from touching honors, Suit preference) it was reasonable to come up with the solution.

A very good book for Intermediate (plus) level players.

[mike777]

I Love This Game. Sabine Auken. 2006. 207pp. 19.95$
Grade=B
General Interest, all Levels.

The book details the thrilling comback by Germany over France in the 2001 Venice Cup Final. I found the hands almost incidental as I enjoyed the general interest stories and sidebars into such issues as are women better players than men and the state of dress or undress at the top levels of bridge.

Sabine Auken is a forceful advocate for her MiniNT and aggressive preemptive bidding style. A book that players at all levels can enjoy. Ms. Auken displays a keen sense of humor with a dash of style that truly shows how she loves this game. I hope to see more of these general interest bridge books that tell us what is going on behind the scenes at bridge as well as at the table.

[ArcLight]

Partnership Defense by Kit Woolsey

The book covers the basic signals (Attitude, Count, Suit Preference), discusses lead (Rusinow, Low from Odd) and carding conventions, gives many examples, and presents the reader with problem sets.

What I found interesting was the creative use of Suit Preference signals. There are some nice examples of discard signals to help pard in a [seudo squeeze situation. The author gives some examples that might not occur to everyone. There was also an interesting section on Match Point defense. One partner KNOWS there is no set, and must "trick" pard into cashing out, so they miscard so as to fool pard.

Some of the problems were a tad obscure, but its a highly worthwhile book.
It's a bit advanced so I'd suggest first reading Eddie Kantars MODERN BRIDGE DEFENSE and ADVANCED BRIDGE DEFENSE.


There is also a version on CD which has additional material, including a section on reading hands based on leads. The CD has some interactive hands which are harder to present clearly in a book. The downside is the CD costs $40

http://www.bridgebase.com/cgi-bin/store/co...id=197249.25090

compared with around $4 for a used copy.
http://www.campusi.com/bookFind/asp/bookFi...odId=0910791686

[ArcLight]

Dormer on Deduction by Al Dormer.

This builds on the foundation Mike Lawrence built in How to Read Your Opponents Cards (HTRYOC). It goes beyond the fundamentals like counting HCP and seeing where the unseen honors are. It covers more advanced topics such as:

- empathize with pard - why did pard make such and such a play? Is it becaus ehe didn't have enough information? Can you help him out? There is an example hand against an enemy contract where you get in. You have a stiff, and the Ax of trumps. If you lead the stiff, pard may duck, thinking its a doubleton and taht you have a trump entry. What can you do to clarify the situation?
Cash the Ace of trumps, then lead the stiff. This shows pard that there is no point in not winning the ace and continueing the suit. Of course both partners must be on the same wave length! Thus both should read the book!

- look at the enemy discards. usually you want to keep parity with dummy, especially if dummy has a suit like AQJ7. If a defender discards in that suit, the chances are that its safe for them to do so, meaning they had more than 4 cards.

- just like HTRYOC there are chapters on clues form the bidding and opening lead

- clues from how a suit is played. Why is declarer not playing on Spades with KQJ96 in dummy in a 3NT contract? Because he has the ace, and needs to establish one more outside trick.

- beware of gifts - why did the opponent give you an optio? Such as allowing you to reach dummy to take an otherwise impossible to take finesse? OR not force you to ruff with Dummy when Dummy holds Ax in trumps

The negatives - some of the bidding is obsolete. He has one glaring error on one hand, where his suggested play is wrong. Some of the signals he uses are not used in the USA (which is the center of the universe, hence the book is wrong
Some of the inferences are a bit thin, and I would hesitate to draw conclusions, especially against non-experts who might not card correctly anyway.

I consider this an intermediate+ level book.
All in all , a great book, I rate it an A.

[ArcLight]

Private Sessions by August Boehm

Well presented low Intermediate level book on visualization.

Much of the book is spent on visualizing the unseen hands based on the bidding.
Conventions are mostly ignored, and Hand Evaluation is emphasized.
What are some hands pard might have for his bid? What might the opp be holding? How well do the hands mesh? Given that pard bid and I hold all the honors in 2 suits, what can pard have for his raise?
Pard passed initially, and then jump raised me, why?

There are also sections on:

-the value of a singleton honor.
-play of the hand.
-thinking at the table
-memory

Recommended for low intermediates. Beginners will also benefit as it introduces many fundamental concepts. A fun book to read.

[mike777]

Card by Card Adventures at the Bridge Table. Roy Hughes. 2006. 18.95$ 240p.
Advanced
Grade=C-

58 deals presented in the over the shoulder method. There is a bit of bidding discussion on each hand but for the most part this is a play book. Many of these hands have been published elsewhere and the deals are attributed.

While the book is advertised as advanced I found the hands to be very difficult and at an expert or higher level. I found it difficult to follow the play and often was unsure what cards had been played and which ones were left. As a result I would lose interest in the deal and move on. If you enjoy puzzle books you may enjoy this book more than I did.

As a side note:

Is Master Point Press publishers in the business of vaporware? They often advertise new books as just published but then they are not available for months?

[ArcLight]

Step by Step Premepts by Alan Mould 1997

Good intermediate level book on 2 and 3 level bids.
What they look like and hope to accomplish.
- Styles - solid, wild, random.
- How to respond to pards preempt.

Nothing earth shattering, but still a good read, I give it a B+.

It doesn't cover conventions like Namyats, Multi 2s, etc.

At somepoint I'll have to reread Preempts A-Z by Ron Anderson/Sabine Auken (it was Zenkel back then)

[mike777]

Dormer On Deduction. Albert Dormer. 1995. 15$. 143p.
Grade=A-
Level=Intermediate/Advanced

Reread this book after a decade. Excellent book on deduction and visualization. I highly recommend it. The problems are a bit harder than I remember. This book will help you ask the right questions of yourself in the play and on defense.

[ArcLight]

Win the Bermuda Bowl With Me by Jeff Meckstroth & Marc Smith

Nice selection of bidding and play decision hands taken from Meckstroths Bermuda Bowl hands. Nothing too fancy, no crazy squeeze or Level 5 Bridge master Hands.
Instead the emphasis is on:

1 - knowing partnership agreements (it was interesteing reading a little about his bidding ideas, I wish there was more on that - not so much his system, just on bidding philosophy)

2 - deductive reasoning - based on the opps bidding, lead, and card play, how do you procede

3 - aggressive bidding. Using the Fight the Law method (Mike Lawrences/Anders Wirgren) I was able to also come up with the same bid in many cases. Of course Mechstroth is able to play the cards well and back up his judgment.

4 - staying cool in case you suffer a disaster. You will easily lose a match (and a place on the team) if you let a terrible board cause you to lose focus

Overall a fun read, and recommended for intermediate+ and above.

[ArcLight]

Better Bridge for the Advancing Player by Frank Stewart

Excellent Intermediate Plus/Advanced book on drawing inferences and play of the hand. No Squeezes, just visualization of the hands, and thinking what can go wrong. Example: Looking ahead to problems with communications, or a bad split.

90 Probelms (Not So Hard, Not So Easy, For the Expert)

I'm quite sure that non-expert players here would get less than 70%, and wouldn't be surprised if it was closer to 50% or less. These are nice common problems.

Problem #71


Playing MATCH POINTs you are playing against Bobby Hamman on your Left and Justin Lall on your Right.

Scoring: IMP

Dealer South (YOU)
1NT - 3NT

Hamman leads ♣6

---

1. You win the first trick with the ♣K
2. ♠K - all follow
3. ♠Q - ♠J falls on the right (East)
4. 7♥ -> Dummies 9 and Justins J (East)
5. back comes a club, Low from Hamman (West), won by Dummies J.
6. Spade to Ace, Justin (East discards a Diamond)

What do you do?
Solution hidden:

Spoiler

Hamman (West) knows the whole hand at this point.
1. He knows you have 5 Spade tricks, 2 Diamonds (you need the Ace to make your bid), 2 Clubs. He knows you have the heart 10 because his pard played teh J and not the 10.
2. If he held the Heart King he would not duck the Club and allow you a chance to make 6, he would cash it. He's giving you a losing option.

You go up with the Ace and Justins King falls on your right.

[andych]

Would be grateful if someone write a review of Michael Rosenberg's "Bridge, Zia & me".

[newmoon]

ArcLight, on Feb 3 2005, 05:54 AM, said:

"Winning Declarer Play" by Dorothy Hayden (Truscott) (an oldie from 1969)

For Beginners I rate it A+.
For Intermediate I’ll give it a B+.

For Beginners, I rate this A+ also, but...
For Intermediates, A+++

It is more useful for players who have played a bit and can understand bridge logic.

Each student of mine (in the Intermediate class) has to own 1.

The new edition of "Bid Better, Play Better" has been modernised and is a must also! A+++ for intermediates also.


I was saddened to hear she passed on recently.


Newmoon

[mike777]

2005 World Bridge Championships. Brian Senior Editor. 336 pages.
Level=General Interest for players at all levels.
Grade=A

Another fine job of discussing the Championships at Estoril. A fun and interesting book for all. A must for the serious bridge book reader. Typos have been reduced but still too many to give this book an A+ rating.

The 37th Bermuda Bowl, 15th Venice Cup, 3rd Seniors Bowl and the 5th World Transnational Open Teams Championship are discussed in detail. Butler rankings and many hands from the round robin matches are included. In depth coverage of the semi and finals of the Venice Cup and Bermuda Bowl.

This is a book that will give you weeks of reading enjoyment.

[ArcLight]

Becoming a Bridge Expert by Frank Stewart.

At 300 pages with many hands and bidding sequences it took a while to get through it. Overall its ok, but not great, maybe a B-. The book is aimed at Intermediate/Advanced players.

What I found interesting was all the things one can do with Standard bidding (not 2/1 or using any conventions).
There is a section where a bidding sequence is given and you have to select teh hand that best fits the pattern. This requires some careful thought, and the emphasis is on how well you understand basics.

Another good section was "Is it Forcing". These are the common situations where knowing your partnership agreements are far more useful than using 6 way inverted Check Back Stayman or Inverted Majors.

Lots of assorted hands covering various topics in decalrere play and defense.

I think the section on Competitive bidding may be a bit out of date.

Overall, not bad. I wouldn't buy it. But it did make me think about some common bidding problems. I did find the bidding section interesting enough I bought one of the Authors book "The Biddrs Bible". It may be obsolete too for all I know, but if its anything like the first section of this book, it should be worth looking at.

[mikeh]

andych, on Aug 2 2006, 11:59 PM, said:

Would be grateful if someone write a review of Michael Rosenberg's "Bridge, Zia & me".

 

Great book... so long as you understand the idea behind the book... it is not an instructional book, but Rosenberg writes well and the book is worth reading just for the section on great hands... it has what I consider to be the most beautiful single dummy hand of all time.... I gave it to several expert friends, one of whom gave it to Mike Passell (so he told me) and it took Passell come 12 hours to solve it.... and Rosenberg's section on ethical considerations is thought-provoking as well.

It is in the same category as The Bridge Bum, At the Table, and so on, and is amongst my favourites of that genre... far superior, sadly, to Zia's Around the World in 80 Hands.. I had expected a better read from a player with Zia's flair.

[CarlRitner]

Great reviews here by all.

Just a brief reminder, many of these books, including those out of print, can be found at my used bridge book and magazines website, which is sponsored by (and benefits) the ACBL Library (not the product store).

My inventory varies widely, depending on what is shipped to me, so please check the lists frequently, if you are looking for good prices and/or hard to find bridge books. I sell ONLY bridge books and magazines. Thanks!

Cheers,

Carl Ritner
ACBL Library Bridge Books and Magazines