Picking Your Hand
- Sort your rack the same way every time, and read it by section
- Keep two hands open, then know the moment to commit
- Ten practice racks with my thinking written next to them
American Mah Jongg · large print
Fifty-two years at the same table. Here's everything I know.
How to pick your hand, work the Charleston, use your jokers and stop feeding the winner, in plain words and big print.
- 4 books + a bonus
- Large print
- Printable cards
- 30-day guarantee
You know the rules. So why does everyone else seem to know something you don't?
You learned the game in a class, or from a friend with a lot of patience. Then you sat down at a real table. The other three passed faster, called tiles you didn't see coming, and somehow always knew which hand to go for.
That isn't talent. It's habits, and every one of them can be learned. Most people just never write them down.
Who's talking
I'm Rhoda. I'm seventy-six, and I've played the same Tuesday game since 1974.
I grew up in Flatbush pouring tea for my mother's Tuesday game. I wasn't allowed to touch the tiles until I was sixteen, when somebody got sick and they needed a fourth. In 1974 I started a table of my own. It moved to Boca Raton with me, and it's still going.
I never taught a class and I never won a tournament. I'm just the one my friends call when the new card comes out. Then my granddaughter Maya started playing and asked me to write it all down. This is what I wrote.
Plain truth: Rhoda is an AI-generated host. Her stories are part of the character; the rules and strategy are checked against the League's published rules and other published sources.
What's inside
Keep Your Jokers Close
Rhoda's American Mah Jongg Habits from 52 Years at One Table
Four short books, a bonus and printables. Large-print PDF, standard PDF and EPUB, so it reads on a tablet, a phone or paper.
The Charleston
- Right, across, left: what to keep and what to let go
- Blind passes, stopping the second Charleston, the courtesy pass
- Reading what you're handed, because the pass is information
Jokers, Calls and the Rules People Argue About
- Where a joker can go, and where it never can
- Swapping for an exposed joker: when and how
- Mistaken calls, dead hands and the arguments every table has
Defense: Reading the Table
- Counting what's gone, and reading exposures and discards
- Safe throws, dangerous throws and the quiet player
- When to stop building and start protecting
Hosting the Table
- Starting a weekly game and keeping your four
- Teaching a newcomer in one afternoon
- Money, snacks and the unwritten rules
Cards for your table
- The Charleston Cheat Card
- A hand-picking worksheet
- A table rules card for the host
This is for you if…
- You learned American Mah Jongg in the last few years
- You play every week, or want to
- You feel lost every April when the new card comes out
- You'd rather read it in big print than squint at a screen
It's probably not for you if…
- You play in tournaments and want advanced statistics
- You're looking for a copy of this year's card
- You play Chinese, Hong Kong or Riichi Mahjong; this is the American game
What it isn't
It isn't a copy of the card. Not one hand from the League's card is reprinted. Get your card from the National Mah Jongg League every year; it supports their charities. The books teach you how to think about the sections, so they work with whatever card is on your table.
It isn't a promise you'll win every game. Mah Jongg is skill and luck. These habits help with the skill part.
Coming soon
Keep Your Jokers Close
I'm still writing it. It will be $27 at launch, with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Watch the channel in the meantime; new videos every week.
Questions people ask
Is it really large print?
Yes. The large-print PDF uses a 14-point body font with plenty of space. There's also a standard PDF and an EPUB, where you can make the text as big as you like.
Does it include this year's card?
No. The card belongs to the National Mah Jongg League, and buying it each year supports their charities. The books work with whatever card you're playing.
I'm a total beginner. Is it for me?
If you know how a turn works and what the Charleston is, yes. If you've never played at all, take a beginner class or watch a few of my videos first, then come back. You'll get much more out of it.
Can I print it?
Yes, every page. The printable cards are made to be printed and kept at the table.
Who is Rhoda?
Rhoda is an AI-generated host, a character. Her stories are part of the character. The rules and strategy are checked against the League's published rules and other published sources, so the advice is real even though she isn't.
What if it doesn't help me?
Email within 30 days of buying and you'll get your money back. No forms, no arguing. See the refund policy.