The A-Z of Card Games

by David Parlett

This fascinating dictionary tells you how to play almost any card game popular in the Western world. Besides classics like Bridge and Poker, it also includes famous historical games, popular folk games, and even Tarot games. With hundreds of games to explore and enjoy, David Parlett's book will be invaluable to anyone planning a card evening with friends.

Now in a fully revised and updated second edition, its broad coverage includes all the...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0198608705
• ISBN13: 9780198608707
• Release Date: December 2004
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 454 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.2" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

An excellent book on card games

David Parlett's The A-Z of Card Games, published in Oxford Paperback Reference series, is the best compilation of card game rules I've ever seen, at least in book format. The book is full of interesting games from all around the world - the book has some Finnish games, too! It's an intelligent book and takes card games seriously, unlike many other rule books that seem to be written on autopilot. Parlett's book passes even the hardest test: it includes few games played with the Tarot pack. That's something fairly rare and always a sign of a good book. This book isn't perfect, though: there are some errors in the rules, but fortunately those are fairly rare. Parlett's style isn't probably the easiest, so I'd recommend this book to people who already know how to play card games and want to learn new, interesting games. This isn't the best first book for card game newbies.

A Gem

If you like cards, this book is a great choice. It lists several hundred card games in alphabetical order. These include both popular and obscure games from all over the world. Each entry offers clear, easy-to-understand rules for the game. This is the 2nd edition of the book entitled "A Dictionary of Card Games" written in the early 1990s by the same author. Since I have a copy of the older edition, I wondered whether buying this new edition would be worth it. I can report that it definitely was. This updated edition adds some new international games, from countries such as China and Vietnam, that have not before been published in English. As a card hobbyist, I've bought a dozen or so books on card games. One of the few as good as this is from the same author, entitled "Penguin Encyclopedia of Card Games." That book organizes games by type, whereas this one lists them alphabetically. You can't go wrong by buying either book (or just get both!). May all your deals be happy.