Holiday gifts for bridge players

If you're looking for gifts for your friends and relatives who play bridge (or who would like to learn), here are some recently published -- and recommended -- books.

Bridge books published in 2011:

The Official ACBL Encyclopedia of Bridge   (General interest)
Edited by Brent Manley. The bridge reference book, packed with information on conventions, card combinations, bridge terms, biographies, history and everything else you might ever want to know about bridge. Hardcover, 629 pages, with additional material on included CDs.

Deadly Endplay  (General interest)
By Ken Allan. A bridge murder mystery set in a small town in rural Ontario. The "endplay" in the title refers to a deal played at a local club game and how the murder -- if there was one -- was committed.

A First Book of Bridge Problems  (Beginner to intermediate)
By Pat O'Connor. Fifty declarer and defensive problems, presented in approximate order of difficulty. The emphasis is on planning the play at the first trick.

Take All Your Chances 2  (Intermediate)
By Eddie Kantar.  A sequel to the award-winning Take All Your Chances (2009), this is another collection of play problems for advancing players. The theme is finding and combining as many possible lines as possible to optimize the chances of making a contract. 

Deadly Defence       The Deadly Defence Quiz Book  (Intermediate)
By Wladyslaw Izdebski, Roman Krzemien & Ron Klinger. Two books  that offer insights into how to become a deceptive defender and how to recognize special defensive situations.  . 

 The Complete Guide to Passed Hand Bidding  (Intermediate to advanced)
By Mike Lawrence. This is the definitive work on auctions that begin in third and fourth seat. Originally published in 1989, this is a new version that has been expanded and updated with modern bidding ideas.

Bridge at the Edge  (Intermediate to advanced)
By Boye Brogeland. An "over-the-shoulder" look at almost 200 deals the author played in World and European Championships. Brogeland also discusses his partnership bidding methods and his approach to the mental side of the game.

The Rodwell Files: Secrets of a Bridge Champion  (Advanced)
By Eric Rodwell. A technical analysis of innovative ideas in card play for declarers and defenders. The author also discusses common mistakes and how to mentally prepare for competition.

Bridge books on Kindle -- A wide range of new and old titles are now available in electronic format for the Kindle, Amazon.com's e-book reader.

Games, magazines and software:

Learn to Play Bridge I & II are two self-teaching software programs that make great stocking stuffers for anyone who wants an easy introduction to the basics. Best of all, both are totally free from ACBL. You can download them from the link above (both setup programs fit onto one CD) and give copies to everyone on your list. Print out copies of ACBL's quick-start How to Play Bridge page to go with your gifts. 

Mike's Advice (Intermediate) by Mike Lawrence. More than 330 bidding problems with evaluations of all the choices and clear recommendations for the best bid. Even experienced players will find helpful tips here. Runs on PC and Mac systems.    

aBRIDGEd game (Beginner) is a box game that's as close as you can get to "real" bridge, without the complexities of bidding. The set includes color-coded cards and simple rules that can be learned in 20 minutes. It's a great introduction to bridge-style card play and bidding principles for children and adults.

Bridge Baron 22 is the newest update of one of the top-rated and most skilled bid-and-play software programs on the market. It features seven sophisticated levels of play, plus a deal generator, double-dummy solver, ACBL tournament deals, challenge hands, flow-chart bidding tutorials and a wide range of conventions. Available for Windows and Mac.

Need more ideas? You'll find other books and gift suggestions on these shopping pages just for bridge players:

Karen's Bridge Library Bookstore features short reviews of recommended bridge books, along with an updated listing of the newest books and software. Books are grouped by skill level and can be purchased at discounted prices from Amazon.com by following the links.

The Holiday Shopping Page on the above site offers ideas and links for a wide range of bridge-themed gifts, including clothing, jewelry, bakeware and glassware, party accessories, software packages, electronic games, magazine subscriptions and other specialty gifts.

Great Bridge Links offers a full directory of specialty products and online shopping sites for bridge players. You'll find links to unusual and hard-to-find gifts here, along with some special discounts.