We are pleased to offer a variety of books to enhance or complement your bridge game.
Which book will help YOU the most?
Bridge books and software are available by contacting us by email at or calling (416) 487-8321.
HOT OFF THE PRESS! BARBARA'S QUIZZES
$22.00 CAD but on special for $15.00 CAD
or $12.00 USD
plus postage (if you cannot pick up in Toronto)
Pick up in Toronto is at 220 Lawrence Ave East (between Bayview & Mt Pleasant)
I cannot tell you how excited I am about this new book. SO much work has gone into it. This is the preface:
When I first began to learn this wonderful game of ours, it was explained to me by my teachers that the key to successful bridge is not being more brilliant than your opponents. In the long run, you will win more games by making fewer errors than they do. If you and your partner are communicating effectively (making bids that state your shape and values accurately) then your partnership will reach the right contract (and, even better, keep your opponents from theirs) more often.
Time and time again, in my bridge career, I have found this advice to be proved only too true. But how do you make sure your bidding is up to scratch? The answer is easy:
1. You buy this book, and
2. You do the quizzes
And, because you are serious about your bridge, you score 100% (well done!)
And then. and this is the important part. you make sure partner does the quizzes as well. (I would suggest buying partner another copy of this book because I know you will not want to risk losing this one!)
You may have to work with partner until partner does as well as you. But, I promise, this journey will be worthwhile.
All kidding aside, I've written this book so you have a fun way of finding out how much of modern bridge bidding fundamentals you have mastered. It is also a tool that will help you identify and improve any areas of your game that may need some work. I suspect (and am hoping) you will want to share this with your regular partner.
There is some similarity to some of the Covid quizzes but these have all been completely revised, and reworked. The answers are far more comprehensive and this is now such a great learning tool.
I urge you not to write the answers in the book but to use a scrap of paper because you will want to return to the book time and time again to see how much your bridge has improved.
2 Ways to ORDER
Comment from a recent purchaser.
Hi Barbara
I was visiting Toronto for a grandchild's wedding. My children then drove me around to show me where i might like to live when i move there in April. Actually I thought I should live with you and after 6 months of intensive instruction i would emerge as the 'white swan' of bridge. I don't remember the flight on Air Canada to and from Wpg. to Toronto and return because i took your new Barbara's Quizzes with me. I started the first page as we were taking off and suddenly I was in Toronto. By the way i also learned a lot. The quizzes were really fun to do and then test myself. Barbara, you make everything sound so easy and so logical.
All the best and thanks for the Quizzes. xxNora
ON SALE: $20.00 CAD + postage OR $17.00 USD + postage
Or pick up from Barbara @ 220 Lawrence Ave East (Between Bayview & Mount Pleasant on North side of Lawrence)
Whether you have been playing for a while or you’re not very experienced, this book will help you to move your game up to the next level.
The tips cover all aspects of bridge — bidding, play and defense. Advice and examples are drawn from material Barbara Seagram has developed for her students over the last twenty years — it’s like having your own personal bridge coach sitting beside you!
A compilation of all you need to know!
This is my fourth time winning the Book of The Year award and I am thrilled. "Barbara's Bridge Tips" is my first solo book. It was my Editor's (Ray Lee) idea and he was an enormous help.
25 BRIDGE CONVENTIONS YOU SHOULD KNOWMy completely revised book: 25 Bridge Conventions You Should Know is now in stock!
NEW & FULLY REVISED & REWRITTEN FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1999
If you prefer to pay by email transfer or check, please email me and I can easily arrange that.
2022 BOOK OF THE YEAR - American Bridge Teachers’ Association
Barbara's Newest Book (# 36)
PLAY IT SAFE
Playing party bridge or teams, declarer's objective is to make his/her contract -- nothing else matters. Playing it safe is of vital importance.
Yet playing safe can take many forms -- it might involve simply choosing the best line of play, or keeping one opponent off lead, preserving entries, or even giving up a trick you don't have to lose, all in the cause of bringing that contract home securely.
Playing matchpoints (regular duplicate bridge), there are times when safety is more important than anything else.
Recognizing all these situations, and knowing what to do when you encounter them, will improve your bridge scores by leaps and bounds.
Retail: $25.00 On special: $22.00 CAD.
$20.00 USD Postage extra.
You can also pick up at 220 Lawrence Ave East, Toronto. (Near Yonge & Lawrence)
OR you may order from our online store but above is best for us.
Barbara Seagram's Doubles Cheat Sheet
Takeout doubles, Negative Doubles, Support Doubles, Redoubles, Lead Directing Doubles, Lightner Doubles, Responsive Doubles, Penalty Doubles
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
BUY 4 CHEAT SHEETS: $40.00
or
ALL 5 CHEAT SHEETS: $48.00
Special is on until March 31, 2023
Barbara Seagram's Intermediate (Version 5.0) Cheat Sheet
A summary of all you need to know about bidding. A laminated guide for your lap: An easy reference.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
Barbara Seagram's Conventions Bridge Cheat Sheet
A summary of all the important conventions you need to know.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
Barbara Seagram's Bridge Defence Cheat Sheet
A summary of signalling & defensive strategy.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
Barbara Seagram's Two Over One Cheat Sheet
Learn the system that has swept North America.
Available at 220 Lawrence Ave East on request. Or we can mail it to you for discounted shipping price: Add $2.50
Barbara's three Quiz books on Declarer Play, Bidding and Defense.
Special: All 3 for $39.00* or 2 for $28.00*
Also on SALE are 2 Eddie Kantar books. Declarer Play and Defense.
These two books are the two best bridge books ever written.
Your Declarer Play and your Defense will improve so much when you read these books. VERY easy reads! Revised and updated very recently by Barbara Seagram.
NOTE: *Postage extra. Email Barbara, with postal mailing address, or pick up at 220 Lawrence Ave East, Toronto
MORE CONVENTIONS, MORE PRACTICE by Barbara Seagram and David Bird
Following the runaway success of Practice Makes Perfect, bridge teachers asked the authors to produce a similar companion book to 25 More Bridge Conventions You Should Know.
And here it is -- a brief summary of each of those 25 MORE conventions at the start of each chapter, followed then by example hands that can be dealt out and used to apply your new knowledge.
Such conventions as: Cappelletti, DONT, Inverted Minors, Redoubles, Four Suit Transfers, Forcing No Trump, Control Bidding, Exclsion Blackwood, Bergen Raises, Gambling 3NT, Support Doubles, Puppet Stayman, Flannery, Unusual versus Unusual.
Contact Barbara via email: to get your copy. You may pick up the books from us at a convenient address in North Toronto if you pre-arrange by email. We leave orders between our doors.
25 Bridge Conventions You Should Know (Bestseller!) by Barbara Seagram and Marc Smith
"It doesn't get any better . "
-- Eddie Kantar
The topics covered in this book include: Balancing, Blackwood & Gerber, Cuebid Raises, Control-showing Cuebids, Fourth-Suit Forcing, Grand Slam Force, Help Suit Game Tries, Jacoby & Texas Major-suit Transfers, Jacoby 2NT as a Major-suit Raise, Landy 2C over an Opponent's 1NT, Lebensohl after a 1NT Opening is Overcalled, Lead-directing Doubles, Michaels Cuebids & Unusual Notrump, Negative Doubles, New Minor Forcing, Ogust Responses to Weak Two-Bids, Responsive Doubles, Reverse Drury, Reverses, Roman Key Card Blackwood, Splinter Bids, Stayman, Takeout Doubles, Two Clubs Strong Artificial Opening, Weak Two-Bids
BARBARA SEAGRAM is the former owner and operator of Toronto's oldest bridge studio. Each year, she teaches over one thousand students to enjoy bridge. She has been awarded Master Teacher status by the American Contract Bridge Teacher's Association.
MARC SMITH writes monthly columns for Bridge and Bridge Plus magazines in Britain and for the OKbridge Spectator on the Internet. He occasionally writes for the ACBL Bridge Bulletin and is an expert bidding forum panelist for numerous magazines. Among his recent books are World Class (1999), Countdown to Winning Bridge (1999, with Tim Bourke), and the Bridge Technique series (with David Bird).
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
25 Ways to Compete in the Bidding by Barbara Seagram & Marc Smith
"You are holding a winner in your hands; just make sure you get one in your partner's hands as well."
-- Eddie Kantar
The topics covered in this book include: Simple Suit Overcall, Raising Partner's Suit, Responding To Overcalls Without Support, Overcalls That Show Two Suits, Jump Overcalls, Takeout Doubles at the One Level, Responding to a Takeout Double, Later Bidding After a Takeout Double, Other Takeout Double Situations, Notrump Overcalls, RHO Bids Over a 1NT Overcall, Competing over 1NT, Doubling 1NT, Conventional Defenses to 1NT, Takeout Doubles of Weak Two Bids, Overcalling Weak Two Bids, Bidding Over 3-Level Openings, Bidding Notrump Over a Preemt, Bidding Over Other Preempts, Balancing - General Principles, Other Balancing Auctions, Forcing Passes, Locating Stoppers for Notrump, The Law of Total Tricks, Hand Evaluation
BARBARA SEAGRAM is the former owner and operator of Toronto's oldest bridge studio. Each year, she teaches over one thousand new students to enjoy bridge. She has been awarded Master Teacher status by the American Contract Bridge Teacher's Association.
MARC SMITH writes monthly columns for Bridge and Bridge PLus magazines in Britain and for the OKbridge Spectator on the Internet. He occasionally writes for the ACBL Bridge Bulletin and is an expert bidding forum panelist for numerous magazines. Among his recent books are World Class (1999), Countdown to Winning Bridge (1999, with Tim Bourke), and the Bridge Technique series (with David Bird).
Available in person at our Bridge Studio.
25 Ways to Take More Tricks as a Declarer by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
This book deals with the play of the cards as declarer, perhaps the most important part of the game.
As usual in the '25' series, basic ideas on the strategies and tactics available to declarer are covered comprehensively in the early part of the book, while in later chapters, more advanced players will find ideas and topics that challenge their own understanding of the game.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio.
25 Ways to be a Better Defender by Barbara Seagram and and David Bird
Defense is the hardest part of playing bridge, but that doesn't mean that it's impossible to learn.
In the final book of the bestselling '25' series, the authors explain how to make a plan as a defender: how to work out from the auction and play what declarer probably has, and which of the strategies available to defenders is likely to be successful. Opening leads, signaling and discarding are all covered in this basic guide to a vitally important topic.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio.
25 MORE Bridge Conventions You Should Know (New!) by Barbara Seagram and David Bird
If you're comfortable with the material in Barbara Seagram's best-selling first book, then you're ready to move on to the more sophisticated bidding gadgets in this one. Even if you don't want to add all these to your own system, you need to be familiar with them because you'll find your opponents using them. Once again, each convention is clearly and simply explained, and you'll see how it fits into any standard bidding system if you decide to use it. Each chapter includes a helpful summary of the key points and a quiz with full explanations of the answers.
CONVENTIONS: Ace-and-king (Italian) cuebidding, Bergen Raises, Cappelletti, D.O.N.T., DOPI, ROPI and DEPO, Exclusion Blackwood, Fit-showing Jumps, Flannery, Forcing 1NT, Four-suit transfers, Gambling 3NT, Ingberman, Inverted Minor Raises, Leaping Michaels, Multi Two Diamonds, Namyats, Pick-a-slam 5NT, Puppet Stayman, Responding to Three-bids, Snapdragon Doubles, SOS and other Redoubles, Stayman continuations, Support Doubles, Unusual over Unusual, Weak Jump Shifts
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to .
Barbara Seagram's Beginning Bridge Coded Cards
Specially coded playing cards allow teachers and students to set up the 40 practice deals from the book "Barbara Seagram's Beginning Bridge".
TWO OVER ONE TEXT BOOK
by Barbara Seagram
($20.00 CAD plus shipping)
Simply explains all you need to know about this system that has swept the world. Quizzes within will make you very comfortable with the system very quickly. And if you don’t play it, at the very least you should understand what your opponents are playing.
Available by emailing Barbara at
Jacoby 2NT, Roman Keycard Blackwood or Splinter Bids by Barbara Seagram, Linda Lee & Andy Stark
With these handy little books, you can; Learn a new convention, or extend your knowledge of it, Learn and practice by yourself using the unique quiz format, Practice with your partner using the specially selected sample hands, and compare your results with the recommended auctions.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to .
Four-Suit Transfers by Barbara Seagram, Linda Lee & Andy Stark
Part of the popular Practice Your Bidding Series.
Each book in the series in in paperback format, 72 - 80 pages.
With these handy little books, you can: Learn a new convention, or extend your knowledge of it, Learn and practice by yourself using the unique quiz format, Practice with your partner using the specially selected sample hands, and compare your results with the recommended auctions.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to .
Jacoby Transfers by Barbara Seagram, Linda Lee & Andy Stark
Part of the popular Practice Your Bidding Series.
Each book in the series in in paperback format, 72 - 80 pages.
With these handy little books, you can: Learn a new convention, or extend your knowledge of it, Learn and practice by yourself using the unique quiz format, Practice with your partner using the specially selected sample hands, and compare your results with the recommended auctions.
Stayman Auctions by Barbara Seagram, Linda Lee & Andy Stark
Part of the popular Practice Your Bidding Series.
Each book in the series in in paperback format, 72 - 80 pages.
With these handy little books, you can: Learn a new convention, or extend your knowledge of it, Learn and practice by yourself using the unique quiz format, Practice with your partner using the specially selected sample hands, and compare your results with the recommended auctions.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to .
Pocket Guide to Bridge by Barbara Seagram & R. Lee
Do you need a quick hint about what to bid? Do you know what you are supposed to lead from KJ10x? Do you remember what a reverse is?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this handy reference book is for you!
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
Pocket Guide to Declarer Play at Bridge by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Using the same format as The Pocket Guide to Bridge, this book provides a handy pocket summary of about two dozen basic concepts in declarer play. In a concise but readable manner, it summarizes most of the material presented in 25 Ways to Take More Tricks as Declarer, by the same author team.
Pocket Guide to Defensive Play at Bridge by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Using the same format as The Pocket Guide to Bridge, this book provides a handy pocket summary of about two dozen basic concepts in defensive card play. In a concise but readable manner, it summarizes most of the material presented in 25 Ways to be a Better Defender by the same author team.
Pocket Guide to Even More Bridge Conventions by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
A pocket-sized edition of 25 More Bridge Conventions You Should Know by the same authors, this is a handy guide to popular intermediate-level conventions such as Bergen Raises, Support Doubles, Puppet Stayman, Inverted Minor Raises, Forcing 1NT and more.
Pocket Guide to ACOL Bridge by Barbara Seagram & Mark Horton
Do you ever need a quick hint about what to bid? Are you confused about what to lead from KJ10x? Have you forgotten what a reverse is? If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions, this is the book you need! And as well, it will be perfect for those times when you want to point to something and say "Look partner, it says here you should have done this!" -- and win your argument!
Practice Makes Perfect by Barbara Seagram and David Bird
Each chapter has a short summary of each convention & then 4 hands to help you to practice the convention. It can be mailed to you or you can pick it up in Toronto at HABONIM.
Available by emailing Barbara at
Bidding At Bridge - A Quizbook by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Available by calling Barbara, 416-487-8321, or by
email to .
Declarer Play at Bridge (New!) by Barbara Seagram
This book is very gentle and is written for less experienced players. There are many, many practice hands within. The first page always has the problem and the second page has the solution. Detailed planning for playing hands in suit contracts and in No Trumps. This is Barbara's 18th. published book.
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to
Defensive Play at Bridge - A Quizbook by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to .
Planning the Play of a Bridge Hand Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Winner of Book of the Year Award 2010
Available in person at our Bridge Studio, or by email to .
Planning the Play: The Next Level
by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Barbara's first book in this series (also co-authored by David Bird) won Book of the Year Award by the American Bridge Teachers' Association: Planning the Play of a Bridge Hand. It introduced the basic concepts of how to go about making a plan as declarer for beginning and improving players, and is a popular text for bridge teachers.
This sequel extends the plan to more complex situations, and covers ideas such as safety plays, avoidance play, trump control, dummy reversal, and endplays. It will appeal to players who have a good grasp of the basics of declarer play, and are looking to improve from there.
Books are available from:
Lee or Wayne at their excellent Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon and evening games at Temple Sinai Synagogue @ 210 Wilson Ave. OR from Josee at Trinity Presbyterian Church at 2737 Bayview Ave on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. OR order by email from Barbara OR you may pick up the books from us at a convenient address in North Toronto if you pre-arrange by email. We leave orders between our doors.
NEW.
Planning the Defense
by Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Ten years after their award-winning Planning the Play of a Bridge Hand, Seagram & Bird tackle the hardest part of the game: defense. Using the same step-by-step approach, they guide the reader through the minefield of signaling, making a defensive plan and, above all, counting - points, tricks and distribution.
Available at our school or at Lee's bridge club or Wayne's bridge club or at Stephen's bridge club or by contacting Barbara at
NEW.
Planning the Defense: The Next Level - Part 2 Advanced
Using the same step-by-step approach, they guide the reader through the minefield of signaling, making a defensive plan and, above all, counting – points, tricks and distribution.
Available at our school or at Lee's bridge club or Wayne's bridge club or at Stephen's bridge club or by contacting Barbara at
The two best bridge books ever written. They were out of print but have now been reprinted. Contact Barbara for pricing:
Introduction to Declarer's Play
An Eddie Kantar Bridge Classic
Introduction to Defender’s Play
An Eddie Kantar Bridge Classic
Introduction to Declarer's Play
An Eddie Kantar Bridge Classic
The classic first book on declarer play at bridge, covering the topic with clarity, skill and humor. More than fifty years after its first publication, this book has been revised and updated to bring it into line with modern methods of play and bridge education.
Introduction to Defense
An Eddie Kantar Bridge Classic
The classic first book on defensive card play at bridge. Learn everything from hold-up plays, to second hand play, third hand play and defensive signalling which is almost like cheating but it is legal.
Interested in learning about bridge?
Barbara Seagram (Toronto, Canada) ran one of the largest and most successful bridge clubs and bridge schools in N. America for many years, the Kate Buckman Bridge Studio. After selling the club in 2006, she now concentrates solely on teaching and organizing her popular bridge cruises, in addition to building and sustaining schools in Cambodia (thanks to the support of so many in the bridge community and her partner in this venture, Pati Lee). An ABTA Master Teacher, Barbara has co-authored many successful titles, most notably 25 Bridge Conventions You Should Know. With more than 300,000 copies in print in English alone, this book is the bestselling bridge title of the last 50 years. It has been translated into Japanese, French, Danish and German.
Listen to a brief interview with Tracy Mumford about the TV show “Fargo,” with a 10 minute interview (@ approx 17:40) with Barbara talking about the game of bridge. NOTE: When the page loads, click on the 'play' icon to hear the interview .
