The Essential Hand Foot Author:Harry Wastrack Canasta, the South American card game that reached the United States and became all the rage in the late 1940s and early 1950s is back, reincarnated and revitalized as Hand & Foot, a highly addictive new version that has been evolving for the past decade. "The Essential Hand & Foot" for the first time codifies the rules of the game, holding to t... more »he common basics and incorporating the best of the regional variations. While the original version of Canasta is still popular, most of the people who play it learned how over a generation ago. For two or more players, Hand & Foot is a new generation's edgier card game, filled with clenched teeth and moans and groans as players hope for the chance to play their Feet before someone else can go out, all the while avoiding the dreaded red threes. One needs only to sit through the first round to learn how to play Hand & Foot. After that first game, new players are hooked and foolishly think that they have it all figured out. However, read "The Essential Hand & Foot" to find out why some players consistently win using such ploys as "priming the pump" and the "honey pot," and why picking a pile containing red threes can sometimes be a good thing.« less