136 Ready-to-Use Mahjong Strategies and Tactics

<p >"...What strikes me about <strong >this</strong> book, anyway, is the extreme clarity, focus, and conciseness with which Kurono conducts their miniature lessons. You gotta understand: riichi is pretty complex to write about. Every Japanese mahjong text I’ve ever read in translation has been <strong >dense at minimum</strong>. As such, the author’s simple and approachable style is a real achievement unto itself. Every page or two has Kurono zooming in on a single topic, often using practical examples of a plausible hand you might pull in a real match. The longest they're ever on a subject is two pages, with most of these lessons taking only a single page.</p><p >Kurono’s straightforward approach is matched by the book’s English translation. English-language riichi strategy frequently expects the reader to have already memorized a thesaurus’ worth of mahjong jargon for even the simplest concepts, like a double-sided wait (ryanmen) or the player sitting across from you (toimen). Use enough riichi terminology in one sentence, and it ceases to be recognizable spoken language at all: after all,<strong > kamicha dealt into my jigokumachi kanchan riichi because he was pushing a bakahon too hard</strong>. Some of this is force of habit, some of it is otaku gatekeeping..."</p>