cards – Jestress's Forgotten Books and Stories

50 Card Games for Children by Vernon Quinn, 1933, 1946.

I love games of all kinds, and I was fascinated by this vintage children’s book about card games! Along with the card games, there is also a section in the book with card tricks. The vintage pictures in the book are also nice.

If you’re curious about what kind of card games children were playing during the Great Depression and around the time of WWII, this book offers some interesting insights! There were many games in the book that were already familiar to me, but there were some others that I had never heard of before.

The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive.

Sections in the Book:

Card Games that Are Fun to Play

That struck me as an odd title for the very first section of the book, like whatever follows is going to be games that are not fun to play, but basically, this section contains multiplayer card games specifically aimed at children. It becomes clear when you study not only the contents but the titles of the other sections, which are about solitaire games, card tricks, and a section about popular card games that adults play.

I recognized a number of popular children’s card games in this section, like I Doubt It, War, Concentration, Hearts, Old Maid, and “Go Fishing” (which is what they call it instead of Go Fish, which is what I’ve always heard it called). There were some other games that I didn’t recognize, like The Earl of Coventry, Rolling Stone, Frogs in the Pond, and My Ship Sails.

Twelve Games of Solitaire

I was familiar with Klondike, Canfield, Pyramid, and Around the Clock (which I always called Clock Solitaire). I had never heard of Pirate Gold, Spread Eagle, Lazy Boy, or Down the Stairs before.

Twelve Card Tricks

These are magic tricks with cards. Some of them sound a bit complex when you’re reading the descriptions, but I think they would be more clean when actually trying them with a deck of cards.

Some Games That Grown-Ups Play

The games in this section are Rummy, Casino, Seven-Up (also known as High-Low-Jack), High Five, Cooncan, and Five Hundred. Actually, I have seen Rummy decks specifically for children, usually Animal Rummy, but that’s still a Rummy version, so that game isn’t just for adults.

An Easy Lesson in Contract Bridge

I never thought of Bridge as being easy because I’ve always been intimidated by the concept of bidding. I understand trick-taking games like Whist, but I haven’t wanted to try Bridge because of the bidding. Actually, I think this basic description for children is a good tutorial for people like me, who find the bidding concepts confusing.

The Klutz Book of Card Games for Sharks & Others by the Editors of Klutz Press, 1990.

This book is part of the classic children’s hobby and activity series from Klutz Press. Originally, this book came with a deck of cards, which was attached to the book at the hole in the upper left corner.

The book begins with a brief history of playing cards. The exact origins of playing cards are unknown, but the book describes some notable events in card game history, including the fact that people throughout history have often disapproved of playing cards, identifying them as signs of sloth or believing them to be associated with the devil (probably for their connection with gambling, although the book doesn’t get that specific). The book says that the modern form of the standard 52-card deck with 4 suits of 13 cards solidified around the late 1400s in Europe.

The book then gives instructions for playing various card games, including various types of solitaire and two-player games as well as games for larger groups. The book has the rules for different versions of Poker and Rummy and some childhood classics like War, I Doubt It, Crazy Eights, and Old Maid. For games that involve gambling concepts, like Poker or Michigan, they recommend using M&Ms.

Besides giving the rules for the games, each section also includes a few words about the history of games or some interesting thoughts or facts about them or tips for playing. Many of the thoughts (and some of the history facts) about games are joking, like the tip for Egyptian War, “This game is traditionally played on lunch or picnic tables, when you’re supposed to be taking your tray back.”

At the end of the book, there are instructions for two magic tricks with cards and for building a house of cards.

The book is available to borrow and free for free online through Internet Archive.