The Jacks Book & The Jacks (Classic American Games Series , No 4)

Hot on the heels of the red-hot The Yo-Yo Book & The Yo-Yo comes The Jacks Book & The Jacks. Packaged with all the equipment a kid needs – 14 metal jacks a red rubber ball and a cloth pouch to carry and store them in – its the fourth title in the series that celebrates great American childhood games. And whether its called Jacks or Huripapa Cincos Marias Maakgep Abhadho Iguni or Zhua San it just may be one of the oldest and most universal games ever. Archaeologists believe Cro-Magnon ancestors originally played a version of Jacks to hone the hand-eye coordination necessary for hunting and fighting. Ancient Greek and Roman kids played knucklebones a direct predecessor of modern Jacks. Over the years the jacks in Jacks have been pebbles bones seeds little bags of rice and of course the metal and plastic jacks we know today. Illustrated throughout with black-and-white photographs The Jacks Book moves from basic rules fundamentals and dos and donts to the classic American games – Eggs in the Basket Pigs in the Pen Jacks on the Rooftop Five Finger Challenge and more. There are variations: “weird” Jacks; instructions for making international jacks (such as the bags of rice used in Singapore); Jacks songs and trivia; eight other activities to do with jacks; and a knucklebones recipe. Jacks is play-it-anywhere play-it-anytime fun. Just follow the bouncing ball.