Ray Adams Writes a Book

Dear Modesto Unit Bridge Buffs,

     Many of you already know me since I have been a regular player at the Modesto Bridge Center for several years.  I have also run an invitational game on 3 to 4 Sundays per month, including the presentation of a free bridge lesson before the game.  I am writing to you because I have recently completed a bridge book called Intermediates Gone Wild, about the exploits of the intermediate cards – the tens, nines, and eights – in making and breaking bridge contracts.  All of these stories are told in the intermediates’ cozy club, Intermediate Place, by the cards who lived them.  

    There are a total of 104 bridge hands and related stories in the book.  I am sending two samples:  the  introduction and a story that involves the Harlem Globetrotters. They are available for download below. Please contact me at blindberlin@gmail.com and I will send you via snail mail, copies of both if you are unable to download these copies. 

     This book has not been printed like most other bridge books, but rather has been done on regular copy/typing paper, with a cover designed by me.  I have figured that the cost of producing this book, which includes postage, handling, and supplies, at around $7.50.  Therefore, I am asking $15 per copy and I will sign every copy for the buyer and include a personal note on the first page.  If this book interests you, please send a check or money order for $15 to:

                        Ray Adams

                        2226 Ryanlee Drive

                        Riverbank CA  95367

     You should receive your personally inscribed copy of the book in about one week.  If you like it, please tell any of your bridge friends who may not be duplicate players, but who could have an interest in these appealing stories.  I have written the book to make it both entertaining and instructive.  I think most bridge players will enjoy it greatly. 

     Thank you for your consideration,

Sincerely,

Ray Adams

INTRODUCTION

 Welcome to Intermediate Place, where all the tens, nines and eights go to relax and tell bridge stories after a hard day at the duplicate table.  Since cards live in a strict social order where an ace always beats a king, a ten a nine, and a three a deuce, they are very conscious of their rank.  As a result, they have formed three social clubs:  the Royal Honors Club for aces, kings, queens, and jacks; Intermediate Place; and the Sevens and Under Public House.
 Intermediate Place is quite cozy, but roomy enough to accommodate all of the intermediates plus everyone from the Sevens and Under Public House on special occasions.  Its center is dominated by a horseshoe-shaped bar surrounded by tables and chairs.  In the roomy kitchen, delicious food is cooked for any intermediate who might be feeling hunger pangs after a hard day at the bridge table.  Next to the bar, a large blackboard has been provided so that the regulars can diagram bridge hands and auctions.  Friendly and hospitable bartenders and waiters serve orders quickly and efficiently.  The jukebox has a nice selection of golden oldies, blues, and jazz classics.  It is no wonder that intermediates feel so much at home here.
 This book is set entirely in Intermediate Place.  Readers will hear the tens, nines, and eights tell bridge tales in their own voice and in their own way.  A great number of bridge players have forgotten about this important group of cards, but listening to their tales of triumphs and tribulations will surely change many views.
 The regulars at Intermediate Place feel that bridge buffs frequently discriminate against them.  When a hand is evaluated, for example, only the honor cards are counted.   Even a lowly jack is worth one more point than any of the intermediates.
 And yet, these middle cards add a richness to a bridge hand that gives it much more trick taking potential.  Just take a look at the following four hands:

1.  ♠ A84       2.  ♠ A109      3.  ♠ A54       4.  ♠ A108
     ♥ KJ8           ♥ KJ10          ♥ KJ2           ♥ KJ9
     ♦ Q98           ♦ Q109          ♦ Q43           ♦ Q105
     ♣ AK96          ♣ AK109             ♣ AK42          ♣ AK98

 All four hands count in at the exact same 17 high card points, yet even a beginning bridge player will know that hand # 2 is the best of the lot; hand # 4 next best;  # 1 is third best; and # 3 is the worst of the lot.  This is clearly because hand # 2 has a wealth of intermediates, while hand # 4 is not too far behind # 2, but has more nines than tens.  Hand # 1 has more eights than nines or tens, and hand # 3

contains absolutely no intermediates. So why are tens, nines, and eights so overlooked? Could it be laziness on the part of the average bridge player? Perhaps, but it should come as no surprise that the most successful bridge players always pay the greatest of attention to the middle cards, and in so doing, gain many wonderful results at the table.
It is my hope that readers will never look at eights, nines, and tens in the same way after reading this book. And this is nothing but good. Intermediates hate being ignored and undervalued. They are there to serve any bridge buff who chooses to see their value and use it. Now it’s time to take a magical tour of Intermediate Place. Your bridge will undoubtedly improve. The little intermediates will make sure of it.

Nearby and ready for download is the book’s introduction and a sample story.