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240 pages
List Price: $11.95
Buy new: $11.95
Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One
by Edward O. Thorp
Spotlight Reviews
The book that started it all!, November 23, 2002
Reviewer: K. Morris (Silicon Valley, CA)
This book started it all. Before this book, only a very few people knew about card counting, and most only had primitive systems. Thorp analyzed the game, ran computer simulations, and devised two effective strategies for beating the casinos at their own games.
Can you run out and use these systems today against the casinos? Sure, but over 30 years have gone by and there are now simpler more effective systems. But if you are naturally gifted at doing complex calculations in your head quickly, I think the 10 count system would still be wickedly effective.
Buy it for the theory and the stories. Then go out and buy a newer book with simpler more modern counting systems.
***** The Foundation of Card Counting *****, December 8, 2004
Reviewer: Richard York
"Beat The Dealer" by Edward O. Thorp is still difficult to beat. Even though it is now quite ancient by current standards, it is still right on target. Everyone who is serious about blackjack has read this book , has a copy of it tucked away somewhere and re-reads it from time to time. This book, with help from Dr. Thorp's: "The Mathematics of Gambling", is responsible for most of the Las Vegas casinos asking me to take my blackjack business elsewhere.
This book, as a follow up and summary of Dr. Thorp's technical papers, is truly the foundation stone for card counting. Although improvements have been made in card counting systems (see: Wong's "Professional Blackjack" or Ford's "How to Gamble at the Casinos Without Getting Plucked Like a Chicken") none has improved on the basic principles this book sets forth..
There is no better place to start an education in blackjack than by reading this book. Just remember, the pit bosses can read, too.
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624 pages
List Price: $29.95
Buy new: $19.77
Save: $10.18 (34%) |
Doyle Brunson's Super System: A Course in Power Poker
by Doyle Brunson
Spotlight Reviews
Still a Super/System, July 27, 2003
Reviewer: Mr. David Welsh (London, UK)
Brunson & Co. wrote this book in the mid 1970s and if your interest in poker as a game with a very rich and colourful history is anything like mine its well worth buying. The chapters where Brunson talks about his past are great background to understanding one of the all-time great champions.
As for the lessons in this post-graduate school of poker, some really are of historical value only. I suppose Caro's lecture on Draw might be of use in home games but Skalansky's on hi-lo has been out-flanked by time - the qualifier did for it. Baldwin's chapter on limit hold'em is also of no value - not only has the game changed (they used to play it with a single blind and antes from every player - to make things easier and quicker in gambling casinos they changed to the big & little blind structure) but there are five or so more books that today to a better job.
Two chapters retain value. Firstly, and often overlooked, is Chip Reese's chapter on Seven Card Stud. Its not particularly profound and I feel Chip gives away less than the others, but its still a very good starting place. Seven Card Stud hasn't changed much since the 1930s so this chapter retains value.
But the the real gem is Brunson's own chapter on no limit Hold'em. Its extremely interesting and given the greater freedom no limit gives the change in the game structure matters less. No limit is not a war of fine percentages like limit, it is a game of great psychological violence. Brunson's system is VERY aggressive. I think very few people would feel so comfortable playing so many connectors out of position in no limit games so they can stage all-in bluffs. You would need to be up against a very timid rock garden to play just as Brunson says. But it remains, undisputedly, the best guide to no limit cash games (but not tournaments - see Cloutier and McEvoy).
Buy it. You'll thank me.
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298 pages
List Price: $29.95
Buy new: $29.95
Internet Texas Hold'em: Winning Strategies from an Internet Pro
by Matthew Hilger
Customer Reviews
Good book for begining internet Hold'em players, December 22, 2004
Reviewer: M. Ross "poker player" (Tacoma, WA)
This is the first poker book I purchased. It made me a winning online player. This is a basic starting book.
Explains the importance of pre-flop hand selection and recommended starting hands.
Explains why some cards work well with more players in the pot. Explains what hands work well with one or two players in the pot.
Go over post flop play. How to play draws, slow playing, check raising, ect
Explains importance of position. Why you need to play more tightly in early position. Why you can be looser in late position.
These are all important in getting a basic understanding of how to play Hold'em.
I am no longer using just Hilgars strategy to play poker. I can say this gave me a good starting point on becoming a good poker player.
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304 pages
List Price: $19.95
Buy new: $13.57
Save: $6.38 (32%) |
Poker : The Real Deal
by Phil Gordon, Jonathan Grotenstein, Jon Favreau (Foreword)
Spotlight Reviews
The Perfect Place to Start Your Poker Education, October 25, 2004
Reviewer: D. R. Jeanclerc "Reader, Listener & Obsessive Observer" (All across Ohio)
There's no debating that poker is a hot topic these days, and because of it, there's a lot of interest in learning about it. In this quest, lots of people will head straight for the "... For Dummies" series because it's familiar - they'll be making a bigger mistake than going all-in on a 2-7 offsuit.
"Poker: The Real Deal" is a well-rounded, very informative, easy-to-read and immensely entertaining book for the poker newbie. It covers a wide range of topics on poker, from the development of its variations throughout history, to the basics of strategy, to the lingo and customs needed to not look foolish at a casino or home game. This breadth of topics make it worth reading even if you're a moderately experienced player, but the true value is held for the novice.
Strategy is what most people will be looking for, and the strategy section is a definite strength, discussing the calculation of pot odds, the importance of position and the basics of valuing your hand strength vs. your read on that of others at the table. Does it cover strategy as in-depth as Sklansky and Malmuth's books or the classic "Super/System"? Of course not - that wouldn't be appropriate for the book's core audience. But the great thing about this book is that it contains very helpful passages from those books and points you to them if you'd like to get more information. Let's face it - most of us are just looking to keep up with our home games and occasional casino vacations, and this book works as a single-volume bookshelf that more than fits the needs of such a player. But again, if you envision yourself flipping the boss the bird and staking your claim as the next Greg Raymer, then "Poker: The Real Deal" will help you find all of the additional information necessary to start.
Online play is also covered, and while it's a good chapter, it's also (understandably) rather biased toward's Phil's affiliated website.
Many will buy or give this book based on Phil Gordon's recognition from Bravo's "Celebrity Poker Showdown", and that's fine. His personal anecdotes add a lot to the readability of the book. Finally, it's even a physically attractive book printed on quality paper, even if it is a screwy size (very tall and narrow, making it more difficult than usual to hold open at the very beginning and end). Do you really want to host your first home game and have someone spot that atrocious yellow-and-black "Dummies" book on your shelf? Of course not.
If you're among the many who recently discovered poker via TV or the Internet but are buffaloed by the numerous books on taking your game to the next level, then your search is over - this is THE one book for you.
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