Mah Jongg is a Chinese game played with 144 tiles – small rectangular blocks of wood or ivory with a face showing various characters and designs. There are 108 suit tiles (bamboo, circles, and characters), 28 honor titles (winds and dragons), and 8 flower tiles.
Here are some books to help you learn about the game of Mah Jongg, from expert players. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced player, there's always something new to discover about this fascinating game we love.
Mah Jongg Books
A Beginner's Guide to American Mah Jongg
Mah Jongg is competitive, sociable, relaxing, and best of all, fun! Written by Elaine Sandberg, A Beginner's Guide to American Mah Jongg teaches the language of mah jongg, as well as how to play the game and win. The book includes step-by-step instructions for game play, hands-on exercises that will help you learn faster, background on the history of the game and the symbolism of the tiles, tips and quizzes that make learning easier, and a glossary of mah jongg terms. By Elaine Sandberg.
A Mah Jong Handbook: How to Play, Score, and Win
A Mah Jong Handbook gives beginners and enthusiasts a first-hand look into the exciting game of mah jong. Offering a clear and concise introduction to the classic Chinese, Western, and Japanese rules of the game and outlining its many variants, this comprehensive guidebook will help you to improve your skills and add strategy to your game. By Eleanor Noss Whitney.
Mah Jong: An Illustrated Guide
Until now, a comprehensive book on Chinese mah jong for English-speaking readers did not exist. Finally, The Book of Mah jong meets that long-sought need, as author Amy Lo, in consultation with many master players of the different forms of mah jong, offers the most complete mah jong guide ever. Amy Lo, born in Canton, China, divides her time between Hong Kong, Tokyo, and the United States. Mah jong, which she has been playing for more than 30 years, is one of her favorite pastimes.
Mah Jong, Anyone?: A Manual of Western Play
Ask any player about the rules to mah jong and the inevitable answer is a frustrating, "Well, that depends." The game has so many variations that the rules change according to city, country, and even year. But don't worry--this book provides a solution by presenting clear and simple rules that combine the ancient spirit of the game with some of the best modern innovations. Once you learn the basics here, it's much simpler to pick up local variants. Even old pros may find some new information on special hands to liven up their house rules.
The Red Dragon & The West Wind
The Red Dragon & The West Wind is the perfect introduction to this ancient game of strategy and subterfuge, covering all aspects of the two most common varieties, American and Chinese, along with an overview of other global approaches. The book begins with the history and origin and moves on to the rules of play and ways to win and avoid essential errors as well as the etiquette to follow. With everything from clear instructions on dealing, building, and distributing tiles to a look at the history and future of the game, this is the essential book for anyone who wants to have fun -- and win -- while playing mah-jongg.
