Customer Reviews

Complete Book of Mah-Jong Pb

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A. D. Millington's "The Complete Book of Mah-Jongg" is by far the most comprehensive, lucid and readable book on the classical Chinese version of the game I have found. I recommend Millington for thoughtful, complete organization of material, thoroughness of presentation, wealth of detail, and engaging writing style.

Millington deals exhaustively with the form of the game as played earlier in the 20th century in China, and then places into historical/developmental context the rule variations and other current national forms of the game as dealt with by such authors as Strauser & Evans, Kanai & Farrell, Eleanor Whitney, David Li, Dieter Kohnen, and Thompson & Maloney. Many of these authors deal with the Chinese form of the game to a greater or lesser extent (Li's book is also devoted to it), and Millington is even cited in bibliographies. Millington's discussion, however, fills in gaps and answers many questions that one may still have after reading these various other authors (not only questions in regards the Chinese game, but also about Western versions).

Millington's introductory chapter alone is worth the price of the book, dealing as it does with the intellectual challenges of Mah Jongg play, its similarites and differences to other great games like Bridge, a rationale for pursuing the form of the game as played in China in the second decade of the last century, and a discussion of what should actually constitute the "ideal form" of the game to play.

Preliminaries and procedural elements of play are dealt with step by logical step. A most comprehensive and readable catalogue of rules is provided and later cross indexed in tabular form. Scoring is cogently but thoroughly explained. A chapter on the elements of luck and skill and the interaction of these elements in successful play is both delightful and informative (points mentioned are, however, developed much further in E.N. Whitney's strategy discussions in "A Mah Jong Handbook"). Information about tile design, forms of counting sticks and other accessories, and very detailed discussion of procedural variations within the Chinese game itself are all also presented.

In addressing issues of Mah Jongg's philosophy and symbolism and its historical development Millington provides a vivid account of Chinese culture, key persons in its evolution in China, an account of the entrepeneurial Americans who first introduced the game to the West, and abundant arcana about early "proto-Mah Jongg" games that finally coalesced into the standard game based on the 144 tile set.

Millington's magisterial evaluation of variant forms that have developed since Mah Jongg was first introduced to the West in the 1920s convincingly argues for the superiority of the classical Chinese game. This evaluation provides a wealth of detail illustrating how variations of play have actually changed the fundamental character of the game as well.

Upon completion of this volume the reader will not only understand the Chinese game in much greater depth, but, having gained a deeper cultural, historical, and scholarly context for understanding other versions - Japanese, Richii, early and "New" American, British - of the game, the reader/player will be ready to adapt to these other forms of the game with greater understanding, fluency, and ease. Millington's case for the classical Chinese form, however, is made with such sagacity, clarity, and brilliance that other versions of the game pale before the brightness of its exposition.

Millington's work is probably the best I have come across that explains Mah Jongg as it was played before Babcock and a whole slew of American players f*cked it up. It goes into great detail in the rules for play. While there is no extensive section on strategy--only a brief one--it does have a fascinating section on the history of the game, and a brief description of several variations. Read the directions in detail. It may look a little overwhelming but once you've read it you'll be an expert in Mah Jongg forever and have a thorough knowledge of all the rules of the game.

This book is the only Mah-Jongg book that I have read (of many) that dispells the many factual inaccuracies that have been carried for many years to America because of "marketing" originating in the 1920's. Those fallacies have been continued until the present. This book corrects them including the authentic rules. The author discusses how the original game was sacrificed for the American players game-playing needs, which are very different from the original Chinese game (not nearly as ancient as we were led to believe in the 1920's.)The author is very precise in his decription of the original game and the Chinese thought processes of that original game. Millington rounds out the book with the philosophy and symbolism of the oroginal game play. This book does take away some of the mystery we were sold by marketers in the 1920, so buyer beware if that fantasy is part of your play.

I agree with these other reviewers wholeheartedly. I'm learning the classical Chinese version, as we are about to adopt our daughter from China, and wanted something of her culture to pass on to her. In reading this book as a newbie, it has been a great help in starting to understand the game. But it's definitely not for beginners only - quite a bit of what is discussed is over my head as a newcomer to the game, and would be more clearly understood by moderate and advanced players. Something in it for everyone, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in mahjong.

Note regarding shipping - I purchased it through the Amazon website from a seller named caiman_com. I selected expedited media mail, and it took WEEKS to get here from England (I believe), so if you need the book in a hurry, carefully check the shipping options offered by sellers.