Backgammon For Dummies
£10.10£12.30 (-18%)
Backgammon is one of the oldest games in the world, the origins of which date back some 5000 years – and it’s still going strong. It enjoyed a huge resurgence in the 1970s, and then again in the 1990s with the popularity of the Internet, where millions of people play tournaments online every day.
Today, backgammon’s following in the UK is huge, with a dedicated British Isles Backgammon Association, and hundreds of face-to-face tournaments taking place across the UK every year.
In this book, backgammon expert Chris Bray walks you through the basics of setting up a board, opening strategies, middle and end-game tactics, and tips on when to make key moves. You’ll also get to grips with basic probabilities, the doubling cube and the 25% rule. And if you want to take your gaming further, there’s plenty of advice to get you started in tournament backgammon, as well as playing online.
Suitable for both beginners and experienced player looking for more tips and techniques, Backgammon For Dummies includes coverage on:
- Starting and Playing the Game
- Handling the Middle Game
- Bearing Off (The Last Lap)
- Varying the Play
- About the author
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Additional information
| Publisher | 1st edition (27 Oct. 2008), For Dummies |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 282 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0470770856 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0470770856 |
| Dimensions | 13.72 x 2.03 x 21.34 cm |
by Pigweed
Well, you’d better not be a dummy if you want to learn from this book. It’s long (260 pages of text), confusing in places, and is clearly the product of someone who is an expert in the game and has spent much of his life devoted to it. For me, the book reads like it was written by someone who has long forgotten what being a newcomer to backgammon actually felt like.
I have bought a number of dummies books over the years, and I’ve found them helpful and supportive (and in many cases, highly amusing, too) but most of all, sympathetic to the newcomer’s point of view. This really isn’t any of those things and this really doesn’t fit the usual Dummies’ style at all.
So, will it be useful? Not really, no. I guess I will probably dip into it from time to time when I need clarification on specific rules, but frankly it’s not making the task of learning backgammon from scratch either very quick or easy for me. I think I will stick with the brief set of basic instructions that I’ve downloaded from the web and which tells me what I need to know to at least get me started with the game.
Worth it? Sorry, not for me, I’m afraid.
(It’s also a pity that the copy that I received was stained on almost every page from cover to cover; it looks like the result of being stored in a damp environment for quite a long period of time before it ever got to me.)
by Mrs. Da Gale
I am new to Backgammon. This book is an excellent introduction to what is a challenging game.
by Leon Forrester
This is a great book for any beginner into the back garden I would recommend this for the price.
by yendorp
Having just learnt the basics of Backgammon from surfing the net, I downloaded the excellent freeware GNU backgammon. Even on the beginner settings I was getting badly,humiliatingly mauled by the program. Not a single win.
So I bought this book which explains everything from the board layout, through the moves, dice probability, the beginning,middle and end games, with all the related strategy and tactics. Good examples shown. An excellent book regardless of your prowess at this game, and still worth dipping into as a refresher on a regular basis. Written in an easy style, as all ‘Dummies’ books are, but you won’t be a dummy at backgammon for very long after reading this book.
Read to Victory!
by Leon Forrester
Having ploughed through a handful of other BG books, this one was a revelation. It has genuinely and quickly improved my game. It’s accessible and enjoyable too. As a comparison, I’ve marked 14 pages with notes for re-reading, as they are major lessons I wasn’t aware of before. With Bill Robertie’s “Backgammon for Winners” I only marked 3.
A minor irritation was the author switching between using “he” and “she” as pronouns for the opponent in the examples. This was confusing and hindered understanding of the point being made. If the publishers insist on being politically correct, then for me they could just use “she” throughout.
by Kevin Leeds
The title is a bit misleading I think. It is true that the book does start from how to set up the board and work on from there including moves and rules for each stage of the game. The writer though is an expert player and this shows in the very unclear way that much of the description is written. I think I have got the hang of the style now and I will probably finish the book in the hope of fixing all the rules and tricks in my mind. To be honest thought the book I got in a cheap multi game set was mush easier to follow.
If you can already play Backgammon this will be a great asset, if not read the rules that came with your set and play a few games preferably against someone who can play first, then tackle this tome.
by Mr. C. Clarke-williams
Learning this game and this book helps
by V. J. Wigley
A useful introduction.
But the layout is poor. With instructions and advice on moves often not all on the same page as the relevant diagram.