The goal
Collect the most books: all four cards of one rank.
Setup
Two to six players, one 52-card deck without jokers.
The deal
Seven cards each with two or three players, five each with four to six. The rest goes face down in the middle as the stock.
A turn
- The player left of the dealer starts.
- Ask one player for a rank you already hold: “Do you have any 7s?”
- If they have any, they must hand over all cards of that rank, and you ask again.
- If they have none, they say “Go fish!” Draw the top card of the stock. If it is the rank you asked for, show it and ask again; otherwise your turn ends.
Special cards
- Four of a rank is a book: lay it face up in front of you.
- Hand empty? On your turn, draw a card from the stock and ask for that rank.
Scoring
- Each book counts one. There are 13 books in the deck.
Winning
When all 13 books have been made, the player with the most books wins.
House rules
- Ask for a specific card. Instead of a rank, ask for one exact card: “West, give me the 7 of diamonds.” You still need a card of that rank yourself.
- Pairs (Australian Fish). Collect pairs instead of books of four, and put each pair down as soon as you have it.
- The turn goes to the asked player. After you go fish, the turn passes to the player who said “Go fish!” rather than to your left.
