Section

Games

Card and table games, where they come from and how to play them well.

• The last player loses: Durak, Old Maid and Black Peter

  Most games crown a winner. A small family of card games picks a loser instead, and the mood at the table changes.

• Hearts, acorns or cups: the playing cards you meet in different countries

  Ask for a deck of cards in Bavaria, Seville or Naples and you may be handed something you do not recognise.

• Card games for two: Durak, Gin Rummy and Cribbage

  Many card games feel thin with two players. These three work best that way.