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I have done only the problems in chapter one. They are just what I was looking for. They are stretching for me--975 mp. I will enjoy repeating to see what I did and did not retain and doing the remaining hands. I assume the things you need to know to go to the next level is available in many places. One's ability to learn from material no doubt is a function of where you are the learning curve of becoming a better bridge player. I don't, of course, know if I will be a better player from working these problems, I think that I will be. Both these teachers are wonderful. I had the privilege of taking a panama canal cruise with Larry's wonderful teaching. If you want to attend the best bridge course I have ever had, take a sea or land based cruise with Larry! I thought I had found an error in his write up of a hand. I sent a email and the same day I have a very helpful response noting that perhaps I had mistaken the card led from the one that was led. As usual, he was correct. My only complaint of the book is that type face/font for the cards in the discussion are very hard to read. I suggest fixing on the next printing.

Nice format allowing two similar hands do demonstrate different approaches to playing the hand. I would recommend it to a good player transitioning into intermediate. Life Masters will probably want more challenging hands and technique.

I purchase most books by David Bird and Larry and have taken several lessons from Larry. This new book is the best of all books I have and cannot imagine a more valuable and exciting book on the market.

I want to congratulate you and David Bird on your book “On The Other Hand”. It is the best bridge book I have read in years! I hope you and David will continue your collaborations. Using a similar format, a book on defense would be most welcome.

Just to let you know, everyone loves the new book. I am running a six week class using your book, ordered 40 of them from Masterpoint Press. The class sold out and the feedback after 2 weeks has been all positive!! -- Sam Marks Sam Marks Bridge Atlanta, Georgia

Bridge’s most prolific author and arguably its best teacher have collaborated for the first time, and the outcome is a very readable and highly instructive book for improving players. The basic principle is simple: each of the eleven themed chapters has a series of paired deals, one from each author - 200 deals in total. The deals in each pair are similar, sometimes almost identical, but the correct play is different, sometimes markedly so. What this does is make it very clear that while you can learn all the essential techniques to fulfill your contracts, you also need to know which one to apply when, and that in turn means not just recognizing what you think is a familiar situation or pattern from a book or a lesson, and automatically applying the approach advocated there. The interplay between the authors adds a human element which makes the reading more enjoyable, and that helps the learning process. — A New Bridge Magazine 04/16/2019

Just when you thought you had seen all the possible formats for a bridge book, someone comes up with a twist! In On the Other Hand: Bridge Cardplay Explained, DAVID BIRD and LARRY COHEN present 200 problems for declarer. The twist is that each problem is part of a pair. The authors alternate in presenting a problem which looks similar to the original but has a key difference that requires declarer to do something else to make their contract. The book is targeted at intermediate to advancing players. The 11 chapters cover familiar topics (starting with drawing trumps, finesses and hold ups, and concluding with how to play a suit, read the opponents' cards, and end play an opponent) but the problems themselves will test the reader. Each problem is presented and discussed in one page. Following the analysis is a snappy paragraph entitled "Understand Why" which encapsulates the key points of the deal. Each chapter concludes with a one-page summary of key principles. Both Bird and Cohen are experienced problem setters and writers, so the deals are challenging and the explanations are crisp. Any player who gets all the problems correct will be well on the way to being a highly competent declarer. My only gripe with this otherwise excellent book is that the deals are presented with all 52 cards on display, a format Bird favours. I think most readers find the temptation to peek too hard to resist, which reduces how much they learn. Readers of a hardcopy can adopt the old-fashioned solution of folding-a piece of paper so that it covers the East-West cards; readers of digital versions will have to find alternatives.

My husband reads this book for pleasure all the time.

Great Gift for my Mom January 1, 2020 My mom loves this book. I don't play bridge, but she has been playing for years. She says that it is written differently, giving examples and having you think through them. She has shared it with her bridge club members and several have bought the book.

If you are going to play bridge higher than at purely social levels, this is a book you will need. In duplicate bridge clubs, to compete in the bidding, you have to understand the concepts described in this book.

Clearly written, very good examples.