[S2000magic]

Another good beginners' book is Terence Reese' Bridge for Bright Beginners. It's a small book, but gets the beginner off to a great start.

One characteristic I like about this book (which would lead to the only complaint I have about 5 Weeks) is that it starts combining bidding and play immediately, so that when you're bidding you understand the objective in the play to which you are striving. The opening chapter in the book (if memory serve) has you play a 3NT hand; it's easy for a beginner to follow, and he concludes the illustration by saying that the greatest expert in the world could not have taken any more tricks than did you, a lowly beginner.

You may have to hunt for a copy.

[FrancesHinden]

Step by Step card play - No trumps by Robert Bethe is a superb introduction to how to play NT contracts. It's aimed squarely at the beginner and I learnt a huge amount from it - it was about the first book I read.
Card Play Technique by Mollo & Gardner is a very good book, but it's definitely a textbook - if you are academically minded and happy to read a quite dry but very well-written book with a lot of exercises, it's a good way to learn. If you want something chatty and more like a personal lesson, it's less good.

[bluecalm]

Quote

Card Play Technique by Mollo & Gardner is a very good book, but it's definitely a textbook - if you are academically minded and happy to read a quite dry but very well-written book with a lot of exercises, it's a good way to learn. If you want something chatty and more like a personal lesson, it's less good.
0

I loved it, especially writing style of the author and "being lucky is an art" quote at the end

[MartyD24]

Hi, because defense is the hardest part of the game, every beginner should start learning as early as possible. I recommend Eddy Kantars "Kantar On Defense", Part 1 and 2.

[hrothgar]

Personally, I think the Bridge Master is quite a bit better for learning that most any book on play...

[1eyedjack]

 hrothgar, on 2012-March-31, 17:06, said:

Personally, I think the Bridge Master is quite a bit better for learning that most any book on play...

This.

But aren't the number of hands directed at beginners rather low in population?

[P_Marlowe]

Hi,

I liked Bill Roots "How to declare a Bridge Hand"

I also have the "How to defend a Bridge Hand", but I liked it less, defence is more complicate,
and it is harder to have comprehensive book on defence.
You will only understand lots of defence aspects, if you have a reasonable grip on declarer play.

I also liked Sheinworlds book.

I also liked the section about defence in "How the expert win at Bridge", very good, there is a
remarks by Meckwell (?!) that says, this section alone is worth the price, very comprehensive.
If you ignore the other stuff, than this is not a bad introduction to defending, and may well be
suitable for beginners.

In the end, I would suggest finding a teacher / trainer and ask hin about books, he may have somebooks
that use the bidding system the player uses.

Random books have the negative effect, that the shown bidding differs from the bidding the N/B player
expects / understands.

I big part as declarer / defender is getting the most information out of the bidding.

And if the shown bidding does not match, what you know, than you are in trouble.

I am not sure, how well this critics is also applicable for the BM series.

With kind regards
Marlowe