Mahjong: House Rules from Across the Asian Diaspora

by Nicole Wong

Mahjong is one of the first English language books to break down classic Chinese Mahjong. Readers learn game setup, rules, common hands, strategy, and scoring through beautiful illustrations and photography, but the book also showcases mahjong culture, past and present, through essays and vignettes on the history, design elements, and communities that have been built around mahjong—and how to build your own. 

A bonus essay breaks down the mahjong hands in the pivotal scene from the 2018 hit Crazy Rich Asians, and the author’s own family history and anecdotes are sprinkled throughout to tell a story of diaspora through mahjong (one that’s full of common shared experiences with the clacking of tiles as its soundtrack). 

With Mahjong as your guide, date your inherited or thrifted sets, identify the version you learned to play, refresh your memory of the rules or learn them for the first time, and start to write your own house rules—just don’t forget the snacks.

Genres: Nonfiction, Asian American

176 pages, Hardcover

Published April 8, 2025

Reviews

[Jennie Hasty]

2026 Reading Challenge: related to one of your hobbies

This was a very fun read! I loved learning more about the history of traditional Chinese mahjong and everything it means to the Asian community.

[Kate O'Donnell]

“Everyone is making sense of the rules in their own way. It’s what I’m trying to do, too.”

This charming book dives deep into mahjong through the frame of Nicole Wong’s family history and house rules. Family anecdotes paired with stunning photo arrangements and drawn game examples make the book very rich. There are moments in which the rules lack perfectly clear language (the winds section for example) and sometimes I wished for more “why” details (why would gaining the 5 of bamboo matter for specialty hands more than say the 4 of bamboo for example), but the book still does a strong job speaking to multiple audiences — the inexperienced and the expert, those raised in the game and those starting from scratch. I reccomend leaving the book out for guests to flip through, the photo spread on 84 and 85 is too beautiful to miss.

[Charlotte Chan]

Obsessed with this and her own family story of mahjong. And now I finally understand scoring omg.

Recommend for any beginners! It also has stunning photography.

[Emily Zhao]

a beautiful “coffee table book” that I read all the way through. so accessible, well researched, reflective, and GORGEOUSLY designed.

mahjong has a lot of variations which can make it intimidating to pick up and difficult to explain. these variations have a lot of cultural depth:

“Chinese Studies scholar Juwen Zhang [says] that this diversity within a unified concept speaks to a larger truth about how culture is created. That as people we can feel unified and connected through a common activity while retaining a broad range of diversity and flexibility within it. The practice and tradition of playing mahjong in everyday life are significant and can be studied in the same way we examine the foods we eat and the clothing we wear.”

[Katy]

I bought this book for all of my besties for Christmas this year! We are fast becoming a mahjong family and this book is the perfect reference tool. It’s also a really cute, aesthetically pleasing coffee table book. She talks about the history of the game, has some personal family anecdotes, explains the game and how to play, talks scoring and strategy, and even has a cute section on snacks and how to host a mahjong night. The inside back cover has become a common reference for all of us in the family learning - ranging from my 8 year olds and 9 year old all the way to my siblings.

[Teya M]

Bought this book directly from Nicole and I can’t stop playing now! I used this book to learn and to teach friends and family (so I would have more people to play with haha). We all play every week now and my parents bought their own copy to teach their friends too! Nicole’s deep history into how the game was spread worldwide felt like a connection to a part of Chinese culture I didn’t know! This book is now my house rules and I can (kind of) keep up with the Asian aunties.

[Thayer]

A fun mix of practical rules, history, and personal story telling! It is also a fun “coffee table” book with fun photos and visuals. Great gift for a beginner to Mahjong or a seasoned player!

[Allison Hill]

Aesthetically pleasing and informative! I loved reading about the Wong family traditions regarding Mahjong and the history of the game. I can’t wait to learn myself!

[Zak]

I picked up this book because I wanted to read about the game from the perspective of an immigrant family. Like Nicole, I grew up with my parents, aunties, uncles, and grandparents playing. (My cousins and I learned to fall asleep to the clacking of tiles!) A lot of her family anecdotes paralleled my family's.

As someone familiar with mahjong already, reading this is a great refresher and you'll find comfort in hearing about another family's stories. You'll get to step a bit deeper into the game and it's interesting to learn about your family's variation in the context of the larger diaspora. (We play HK style.)

If you're new to mahjong, Nicole's explanation and diagrams are the simplest and easiest I've ever heard. I wish 7-year-old me had her explanation instead of getting groans from my aunt when I got a rule wrong. Scoring, the hardest part of the game, is explained simply in this book.

[Sewingdervish]

Finally, I feel like I understand! I loved the author's commitment to accepting all styles of play. It felt like a book that wants to help you build community.

[Tonya Sudiono]

Nostalgisch, mooie vormgeving, ik wil spelen.

[applekern]

New obsession unlocked

[Bookworm]

My familiarity with mahjong is really the matching game that was (is?) common on computers and maybe as an app today. The traditional game though? Pretty much only through movies like 'Crazy Rich Asians', so I was excited to see this new book.

This was born out of a site called The Mahjong Project, where the author had been documenting her family's history, rules, experiences, etc. around mahjong. In the book, Wong expands upon that: the history of the game, the rules, the variations, how to play, etc. It's a highly readable and interesting look at the game where Wong looks at everything from the tiles to how the game has changed and adapted as the diaspora took the game with them around the world.

Some of the funniest parts of the book is the author's discussions of the more personal nuances when it comes to the game. From the food they eat to the "trash talking" that's involved, which is something that only come out of a having a long history with such a thing. Overall you get a pretty good overview of the game (or so I thought) without being too bogged down on details.

I was pleasantly pleased with the book. I have read other books about other games like Monopoly, etc. but appreciated this as a book that was not too academic nor was it too "personal" with too much biographical information or anecdotes, etc. As I had never previously heard of the project prior to the book so I could not say if this was just the website repackaged as the book but overall I thought this was a great read anyway.

If you have an interest in mahjong, are interested in games, this aspect of Asian culture, etc. this might be a good pickup. It is an "easy" read that reads pretty quickly. I am not sure if I would feel comfortable playing with a bunch of Chinese or Asian aunties/grandmas/etc. but I enjoyed getting a deeper look at the game anyway.

Borrowed from the library and that was best for me. But this would certainly make for a really great gift for the right reader, someone interested in gaming, etc.

[Alec Liu]

Overall, I felt like the book was not long enough for what it was trying to do and it was surprisingly short on info about all the different variants. I thought it would be more of an anthropological project where rules for all sorts of variants, many of which hadn't even been rendered in English, would be shown. Instead, we mainly got descriptions of one type of Mahjong followed with some brief history lessons. The variant I play, Shanghainese-style mahjong, is fairly common (given that it's played in Shanghai) but wasn't mentioned at all in this book.

That being said, it was an interesting enough introductory primer but I would recommend anyone interested in Mahjong just find some people to teach them or watch a video instead since learning from a book is difficult.

[Natalia H.]

A visually stunning book that provides excellent instruction and background on Chinese Mahjong. Not American mah jongg, Chinese mahjong. Finally, the answer to all of my mahjong questions laid out thoughtfully, comprehensively, logically, and in a hard-bound book that would be a proud addition to any coffee or are table. Truly a gem! No more flimsy, self-published, awkwardly spaced booklets. This IS THE BOOK. The colored pages and stunning photography make for an incredibly engaging, enjoyable read. The author’s family history with this game add so much heart to the learning process. It feels like she invited me to her family’s mahjong night. This book is a priceless journey! Buy without hesitation is you want to learn Chinese mahjong.

[Meg Lindsay]

The photography and design of this book are stunning! Seriously obsessed with all the photos. I love how it's not just a rule book, though it contains rules (and lots of the exceptions and variations that go along with them). It's wonderful to see the author's personal family history and then read through and imagine all the various families and places where other deviations have occurred. Sets a really lovely perspective. Grateful to have this as a jumping off point as I dive into learning the game!

[Albert]

this is one of those books I'd imagine you'd keep on your coffee table because it's so pretty and you can start reading from any random page. Bought a copy from Nicole and appreciate how much care she put into some of the history (some spreads on various vintage sets, a historian who studies this (I guess there are historians who study this?))--humbly speaking about the experiences of people she's talked to and interviewed.

[Iris]

Great overview of Mahjong! It gets super tactical in how to set up and play the game. It even goes through the variants of mahjong and how their setup or gameplay is different (but I do wish this went into a bit more detail - this part felt a bit rushed through).

My favorite parts of the book were the personal anecdotes that resonated despite having grown up around Hong Kong mahjong. I even learned that some of the scoring my family does pulls from Singaporean mahjong!

[Hannah]

Great read, and a good gift book! Practical guide for mahjong learners (or experienced players looking to mix up with a different regional playing style), interwoven with touching and interesting family history and notes on playing styles across the diaspora. Gorgeous photography too - book feels very luxe.

[Matthew Hylton]

I have been loving Nicole Wong’s new book on Mahjong. While I am relatively new to the subject, Nicole’s writing is inviting, welcoming and thoroughly enjoyable. I feel like I can get a sense of her history, but also the history of so many more told through the variations of gameplay. The book itself is visually stunning. It has been a really fun read, and I highly recommend it.

[Joseph]

This is a great way to start learning about mahjong. Just as the author said, the rules can vary greatly between variations and some families may have their own version, too.

It is best to check what variation your family, local community, or country plays first before reading this book. Some aspects from the book may or may not apply to you.

[OliviaHF]

Never occurred to me how games travel across continents and how they evolve in specific locales. Really well laid out, very visually pleasing. A great book for anyone who wants to learn the game or just learn about its origins.

[Heather]

I’ve been curious about the game for 30 years, ever since a neighbor had a weekly game. I’d watch her friends park outside her house and wander in. It felt like a great mystery I wanted to inch. Thanks Nicole for unwrapping the mystery for me.

[Andi :)]

Beautiful inside and out - I’ve wanted to learn to play mah-jong for a while and Nicole Wong makes it a lot less daunting and I felt a bit more connected to Asian American heritage as an adoptee. Hoping to own the book one day, but love my local library for having a copy for me to borrow :)

[B Zimp]

Came with a Mahjong learning kit. While the game is still confusing and this isn't a complete guide, this was the most beautiful, readable, and best source to jump into learning a centuries old game with the lore to go alongside

[Sarah]

A fantastic combination of memoir, instructions, and history for the game. Focused on the Asian tradition, this book made the game seem much more approachable. Borrowed from the library, but I may end up buying this one.

[Christine Hoang]

Got really obsessed with Hong Kong-style mahjong, and this book did a great job explaining the background while bringing together all the common house rules in one place. Highly recommend it as a reference book and a great coffee table book!

[Karol K]

loved it

[Mary Chong]

Colourful pages and good stories about family time with mahjong.

[Leah]

Super interesting and helped give a lot of insight into what I’ve been taught by family members!