Games

General

Hoyle’s Rules of Games: Descriptions of Indoor Games of Skill and Chance, with Advice on Skillful Play; Based on the Foundations Laid Down by Edmond Hoyle, 1672–1769
edited by Albert H. Morehead and Geoffrey Mott-Smith.

Revised and updated guide to rules, strategies, and odds for more than two hundred fifty games. Card games include bridge, cribbage, pinochle, poker, and solitaire—and their variations. Also contains instructions for backgammon, dominoes, Scrabble, children’s games, and some computer games. 2001.
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Deal Me In! The Use of Playing Cards in Learning and Teaching
by Margie Golick

Collection of 100 card games to be used by teachers and parents as an aid for developing learning skills in children. Includes Solitaires, Casino, Black Jack, Five Hundred Rummy, and various card tricks. 1973.
BR03491

The Out-of-Sync Child Has Fun: Activities for Kids with Sensory Processing Disorder
by Carol Stock Kranowitz

In this companion to The Out-of-Sync Child (DB75079), the author presents activities such as Touch Pantry, Paw Prints, and Tapping Tunes for kids with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). Groups games by touch, balance, body position, sight, hearing, and smell. Lists materials, preparation, and directions for each. 2003.
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General—Children

Card Games
by John Belton

Step-by-step directions explain the rules and strategy of nine card games including Speed, Fan Tan, Crazy Eights, Kings in the Corner, and Rummy. For grades 4-7 and older readers. 1976.
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The Ultimate Indoor Games Book: The 200 Best Boredom Busters Ever!
by Veronika Alice Gunter

Games to play by yourself or with others. Some require ordinary household objects—paper and pencil, a deck of cards, marbles, coins, dice, balls, or pillows. Others, such as brainteasers, races, or physical activities, require no equipment at all. For grades 36. 2005.
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Let’s Clap, Jump, Sing, & Shout; Dance, Spin, and Turn It Out!: Games, Songs and Stories from an African American Childhood
by Pat McKissack

Treasury of African American children’s games, songs, poetry, stories, and jump-rope rhymes. Discusses the coded language in the songs of the Underground Railroad, and the superstitions and fables that served to keep children from harm. For grades K3 and older readers. 2017.
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Play with Us: 100 Games from around the World
by Oriol Ripoll

Covers a broad variety of indoor and outdoor activities, from board games to chases. Includes the number of players and materials required, rules, and step-by-step instructions for each game. Also provides the game’s country of origin and cultural variations. For grades 36. 2002.
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Games (and How to Play Them)
by Anne F. Rockwell

Instructions for 43 games for all kinds of occasions and all kinds of children—noisy games, quiet games, team games, traveling games, outdoors games, and rainy day games. For grades 14. 1973.
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Backgammon

Backgammon: The Quick Course to Winning Play
by Don Stern

An introduction to the game known originally as the King of Games. Explains the theory, strategy and psychology of the game. Includes raised line drawings. 1973.
BR02614

Bridge

The Fundamentals of Contract Bridge
by Charles Henry Goren

A recognized bridge authority offers a simplified and condensed instruction manual, including his famous quizzes. 1950.
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Bridge Is My Game: Lessons of a Lifetime
by Charles Henry Goren

Advice for beginning and more experienced players, on such topics as dealing with erratic players and making bold and knowledgeable bids. 1965.
BR01398

The Art of Card Reading at Bridge
by Fred L. Karpin

Concentrates on counting out a hand, or card reading, and consists of drawing correct inferences from the bidding, the fall of the cards, or both, and the nature of an opponent’s highcard holding or distribution. 1973.
BR02323

The Backwash Squeeze & Other Improbable Feats: A Newcomer’s Journey into the World of Bridge
by Edward McPherson

Author’s homage to the card game he describes as one of “deep complexity and infinite mystery.” McPherson discusses bridge’s history and development, famous players, and the gaming circuit as he recounts his personal efforts to learn its intricacies before competing in a national tournament. Provides a brief tutorial. 2007.
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Play Bridge with Reese
by Terence Reese

Illustrates how to analyze the bidding, count mathematical plusses and minuses, and calculate the odds of card placement for seventy-five bridge hands. 1960.
BR02754

Introduction to Bidding
by William S. Root

The basics of contract bridge presented by a tournament player, columnist, and teacher. His approach is along the lines of standard American bidding, using the pointcount system, with numerous examples and quizzes. 1967.
BR00809

The Education of a Bridge Player
by Howard Schenken

Called the “greatest bridge player ever,” Mr. Schenken tells how he progressed from local pool parlor poker to contract bridge, which became his passion and profession. Each anecdotal chapter ends with a lesson on technique and strategy. 1973.
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The Bridge Bum: My Life and Play
by Alan Sontag

Account of a successful professional bridge player. Includes stories about the great masters, Sontag’s own most fascinating hands, cheating and hustling and the game itself. 1977.
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Bridge for People Who Don’t Know One Card from Another
by Ray Young

Easy-to-follow instructions for the beginning bridge player. 1964.
BR01627

Checkers

Play Winning Checkers: Official American Mensa Game Book
by Robert W. Pike

Explains the basic rules and moves in the multigenerational, interactive game of checkers. Intended for beginners and experienced players who want to improve their performance. Provides guidance for conducting tournaments. Also offers variations on the standard American game. For junior and senior high and older readers. 1999.
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Chess

Logical Chess, Move by Move
by Irving Chernev

Move by move analysis of thirty-three great chess games that illustrate the basic concepts of good chess play. The emphasis is on positional play from which winning opportunities and decisive combinations are derived. 1957.
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Bobby Fischer Goes to War: How the Soviets Lost the Most Extraordinary Chess Match of All Time
by David Edmonds

Authors of Wittgenstein’s Poker (DB55828) chronicle the 1972 chess contest between the Soviet world champion Boris Spassky and twenty-nine-year-old American upstart Bobby Fischer. Presents the match not simply as a game but also as a clash of Cold War political ideologies. 2004.
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Chess—Beginner to Expert
by Larry Evans

An international grandmaster presents a step-by-step technique of learning to play chess. Includes notation, basic openings and game studies, and other advice. 1967.
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The Chess Competitors’ Handbook
by B. M. Kažić

A detailed international handbook by an official of the World Chess Federation to assist organizers, arbiters, and advanced tournament players. Explains the various forms of the Swiss system and the FIDE system of rating players and awarding titles. Recommended for readers who want to understand or participate in competitive chess. 1979.
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Chess for Beginners: Know the Rules, Choose Your Strategy, and Start Winning
by Yelizaveta Orlova

A nationally ranked chess player presents a guide for those new to the game. Includes an overview of the board, pieces, and rules, along with basic strategies and tactics that allow a player to control the board, think multiple moves ahead, and achieve checkmate. 2018.
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Winning Chess Openings
by Bill Robertie

Explains the twenty-five essential chess openings from the standard King’s Pawn to the counterattacking half-open defenses. Discusses each approach and the thought processes involved from “both white’s and black’s perspectives, and the possibilities of moves and their strengths (and weaknesses) fully played out.” 1995.
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The Immortal Game: A History of Chess or How 32 Carved Pieces on a Board Illuminated Our Understanding of War, Art, Science, and the Human Brain
by David Shenk

Journalist explores the fifteen-hundred-year history of chess from antiquity and the Middle Ages to modern Western culture. Discusses influence on military strategy, mathematics, and the arts. Provides move-by-move analyses of six famous matches including the 1851 contest between Anderssen and Kieseritzky that is dubbed the “immortal game.” Explains rules. 2006.
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Searching for Bobby Fischer: The World of Chess, Observed by the Father of a Child Prodigy
by Fred Waitzkin

Despite its title, this is not a book on Bobby Fischer. Instead it is the story of child prodigy Josh Waitzkin, who at age seven was playing tournament chess. The story reveals not only the relationship of father and son, but also the world of chess clubs, impoverished chess wizards who sleep on park benches, and the compulsive players who fight constant battles against financial ruin. 1988.
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The Road to Chess Improvement
by Alex Yermolinsky

Champion player and coach offers advice and strategy tips by analyzing actual games. Discusses a variety of opening set-ups, trend-breaking tools, the value of exchanges, and computer chess. Revisits classic games and instructions. 1999.
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Chess—Children

Opening Moves: Michael Thaler, the Making of a Very Young Chess Champion
by Barry Berg

Describes kindergartner Michael Thaler’s rise to the national chess championship for his age group. Recalls how he developed his talent and learned to handle winning and losing. Views lessons gained from playing; recaps decisive moves in several tournaments. For grades 3–6. 2000.
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The Story of Chess
by Horacio Cardo

Long ago a man named Sissa devises a game in tribute to a war. Beginning with the squares on the board and the king as the key figure, Sissa explains the basic movements of each chess piece and the overall strategy of the game. For grades 3–6 and older readers. 1998.
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Chess: From First Moves to Checkmate
by Daniel King

Introduces chess basics. Explains how to set up the board, move individual pieces, place an opponent in check, and secure a checkmate. Discusses the shapes of the pieces, history, rules, and strategies of the game. Describes some of the great players and matches. For grades 4–7 and older readers. 2000.
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Winning Chess: Tactics & Strategies
by Ted Nottingham

Presents tactics and techniques for playing this ancient board game. Discusses openings, middlegame and endgame strategies, forks, pins, skewers, and examples from the games of world champions. For grades 5–8 and older readers. 1999.
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Cribbage

All about Cribbage
by Douglas Anderson

A brief history on the origin of cribbage, along with a description of the cribbage board and three, four, and five card games. A basic work that includes scoring, penalties, and probabilities that may occur. 1971.
BR01911

Dominoes

Dominoes around the World
by Mary D. Lankford

Explains the basic rules of dominoes and describes how the game is played in Cuba, France, Malta, the Netherlands, Spain, Ukraine, the United States, and Vietnam. Also includes rules for playing solitaire dominoes. For grades 3–6. 1998.
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Dungeons and Dragons

Dungeon Master’s Guide: Dungeons & Dragons

One of the core rule books for Dungeons and Dragons game play for both new and experienced Dungeon Masters. Contains world-building tools, tips and tricks for creating memorable dungeons and adventures, optional game rules, hundreds of classic D&D magic items, and more. 2014.
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Player’s Handbook: Dungeons & Dragons

Essential reference guide for fans of Dungeons and Dragons role-playing games. Contains rules for creating and equipping characters, exploration, combat, spellcasting, and more. 2014.
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Monster Manual: Dungeons & Dragons

One of the core rule books for Dungeons and Dragons, this volume presents a wide range of monsters culled from the history of the game. Each entry contains a description of the monster and easy-to-use statistics for game play. 2014.
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The Elfish Gene: Dungeons, Dragons and Growing Up Strange
by Mark Barrowcliffe

Comedian and journalist looks back on his adolescent obsession with the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons. Discusses the effects of gaming on his social life and the compulsion to prove he was smarter than the next nerd. Also describes his struggle to overcome addiction to playing the game. 2008.
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Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms
by Ethan Gilsdorf

Former Dungeons and Dragons addict explains the allure and popularity of role-playing games through youth into adulthood. Describes his findings from his global interviewing quest of gamers, fantasy fans, scholars, conventioneers, and others. 2009.
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Dungeons and Dragons—Children

Dungeons & Tombs: Dungeons & Dragons
by Jim Zub

Guide to six lethal lairs role-players encounter in the world of Dungeons & Dragons, and the dangerous beasts that live within. Includes instructions on how to build your own dungeon. For grades 4–7 and older readers. 2019.
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Monsters & Creatures: Dungeons & Dragons
by Jim Zub

Guide to the creatures role-players encounter in the world of Dungeons & Dragons. Grouped by locations, each beast profile includes a description of their traits, lair, special powers, and level of danger. For grades 4–7 and older readers. 2019.
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Monopoly

The Monopoly Book: Strategy and Tactics of the World’s Most Popular Game
by Maxine Brady

Traces the history of the game, its impact on the game-playing public, and explores many of the madcap marathons that have taken place. Includes clarifications and explanations of official rules. 1974.
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Poker

Poker Strategy: Winning with Game Theory
by Nesmith C. Ankeny

A mathematician shows how to win at draw poker by understanding and applying the probabilities and the tool of game theory. Offers practical rules for the draw, the bet, and the bluff. 1981.
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Molly’s Game: From Hollywood’s Elite to Wall Street’s Billionaire Boy’s Club, My High-Stakes Adventure in the World of Underground Poker
by Molly Bloom

A high-stakes poker player recounts how she came to run the most exclusive underground poker games in the world, hosting celebrities, moguls, and millionaires. She enjoyed the finest luxuries, until it all came crashing down. Basis for the 2017 movie. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2014.
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The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King: Inside the Richest Poker Game of All Time
by Michael Craig

Author of The Fifty Best (and Worst) Business Deals of All Time (DB53243) chronicles a three-year poker game, begun at the Bellagio casino in Las Vegas, that had more than fifteen million dollars on the table. Depicts some of the world’s greatest poker players, including banker Andrew Beal. 2005.
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Big Deal: A Year as a Professional Poker Player
by Anthony Holden

A British biographer, obsessed with his weekly poker game, decides to take a stab at professional poker. Starting in Las Vegas, he spends a year playing with Johnny Moss and other major players on the worldwide pro circuit. He describes the thrill of the game and the characters on the circuit and delves into poker history and philosophy. Some strong language. 1990.
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Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion’s World Series of Poker
by James McManus

On assignment to cover both the 2000 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas and former game host Ted Binion’s murder trial, McManus entered the competition. Describes the action at the tables, his progress in the event, and the underground world of the city. Explicit descriptions of sex, violence, and strong language. Bestseller. 2003.
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Poker Night: Winning at Home, at the Casino and Beyond
by John Vorhaus

A renowned poker strategist and commentator offers a guide to all aspects of home poker: hosting a party, understanding variations of the game, recruiting players, establishing house rules, and setting betting limits. Explains what beats what; basic games such as stud, Omaha, and Texas hold’em; and playing in casinos. 2004.
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The Noble Hustle: Poker, Beef Jerky & Death
by Colson Whitehead

Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Nickel Boys (BR22817/DB95925) chronicles his 2011 assignment from ESPN’s blog Grantland to experience the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas. Colson reports on studying Texas Hold’em and undergoing personal training for sitting in twelve-hour stretches, and observes the differences between gambling in Atlantic City and Las Vegas. Strong language. 2014.
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Puzzles

Conundrum

Crossword and logic puzzles, anagrams, word searches and general knowledge quizzes.
BR magazine code COU

The Puzzlemaster Presents 200 Mind-Bending Challenges
by Will Shortz

Audio puzzles from National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition Sunday. Includes word games that take some thought. For example “change one letter in each word to name a color” and “every answer in this puzzle is a word or name that ends in the letters que.” 1996.
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Sudoku Easy to Hard: 100 Wordless Crossword Puzzles
by Will Shortz

Provides four levels—easy, moderate, demanding, and challenging—of the popular logic-driven, wordless crossword puzzles. Explains the objective, which is to fill in the grid with numbers so that every row, every column, and every box contains the digits one to nine, without repeating. Includes instructions and solutions. 2005.
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Scrabble

Everything Scrabble
by Joe Edley and John D. Williams, Jr.

A national Scrabble champion and the executive director of the National Scrabble Association present information to increase skill in every aspect of the game. Includes basic board strategies; use of letters J, Q, X, and Z; seven-letter plays; bonus squares; and secrets to getting better tiles. 2001.
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Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players
by Stefan Fatsis

As he progresses from living-room Scrabble player to expert, the author examines the subculture of people devoted to championship tournament play. Discusses the game’s history, its international variants, and its controversial elements. Some strong language. 2001.
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Word Nerd : Dispatches from the Games, Grammar, and Geek Underground
by John D. Williams

The former executive director of the National SCRABBLE Association recounts stories from his years among the hard-core players of the game. Includes chapters on the official SCRABBLE dictionary (both how new words make it in and controversies over “bad” words) and the world of competitive tournaments. Strong language. 2015.
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