It takes several months to read this book completely. This book does not drive you to go to casinos. However, the author emphasizes that money management is more important than knowing the rules of craps. John Patrick argues to the reader to have the feelings of "Bank Roll" and "Charting the table". Yes, that was really important lesson that I have learned from him. I recommend to buy this book if you want see it how the craps professional manages his winning! Thank you for reading my comments. From, wyse at Seoul, Korea.

Personally, I read the special 600pp edition of this book, available through the publisher, but I imagine this one is similar, and that the extended version is just that, extended. This is a great book because it stresses the most important factor in gambling, money management. There is no way, no matter what anyone says, no matter which system you play, to gain an edge on the house in craps. The best you can achieve is close to but not exactly 50-50. This book is the best I have read, in terms of money management. Some people may not like to hear the reality of gambling(IT WILL NOT MAKE YOU RICH! )but John Patrick's book is exactly that, REALITY! If you want a get rich quick scheme, don't buy ANY gambling books! If you want to minimize your losses and maybe come home a small winner, then this is a great book for you. What I like about John Patrick is that he doesn't preach a system, he simply gives you ideas, and states that any systems or variation is fine, as long as you know how to manage your money. This book is great for those who want to know about the reality of gambling. By far the best book on craps I have ever read!

I have read other books on craps and most of them spout the same methods. Patrick tells you other ways of betting while attempting to reduce your overall cash risk.
It is written in a humorous manner.
His mathematics are a little off but his ideas on how to play the game are good.
I highly recommend this book

The most valuable information in George's book is essentially how to be a disciplined blackjack player, which is most valuable indeed. Think about it though. If there was a guaranteed way for the average non-card counting Joe like you or me to win consistently at casinos, casinos would soon cease to exist. What about George's 78% win average? Well, that's according to him of course. But consider this: when you use his system you've had a "winning" session when you win 50% of your original stake. You've had a "losing" session when you've lost 100% of your stake. Therefore you can end up with a higher percentage of winning sessions than losing sessions, and still end up in the hole. George doesn't say he sees a consistent 78% monetary return on all his blackjack investments, just that he sees a 78% "win average." Plus, no betting system can gain or lose you money. How does one hand know what was wagered on the last hand?

However, I rate this book highly because of the many positive lessons it teaches about gambling in general. Although George's system cannot guarantee you will win money, it is still a system which requires discipline, proper playing technique, and a strict betting and money management formula. He emphasizes fundamentals that are paramount to having a successful ride at any gaming table: do not drink, don't bet hunches or feelings, bring only a certain amount (depending on table limits) to each table, walk when you win or lose a certain amount. If you can follow all George's disciplines, you will definitely increase your chances of winning. Hopefully you will have a good time as well and not walk away broke, having spent five times as much as you intended in half an hour.

George is an Everyman, and his short book is a good read. From reading his books and hearing him on talk shows, I think he has a great personality, and very much speaks to the average or casual gambler like you and me. He is a good writer for someone who is not a professional writer. The handy strategy cards can be simply torn out and taken to the blackjack table with you. If you're planning a trip to Vegas or Atlantic City, it can be a fun system to try. Who knows, you may get lucky!

This book has changed my entire perception of gambling in the casinos. I was willing to give this idea of George's a try. After all counting cards is suppose to be difficult and time consuming.With this book the reading is easy to follow and it's a system that allows you to grasp the concept very easily. I'm playing with the mathmatical odds that enable me to win at blackjack, not break the casino. you'll never beat the casinos,but you can win fairly consistently with this system.FIVE STARS is my vote

I'm a blackjack newbie ... and I KNOW this book will save me hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. George's system is easy to learn (unlike card counting) and remember. Plus, it's a relatively quick read, making it perfect to bring on a plane ride to Vegas or your gambling mecca of choice. If you're headed to the blackjack tables, get this book first! It'll be the best [money] you spend ... and with George's 78% success rate, chances are good you'll recoup your investment.

This book is written by a master teacher-- Mr. Harvey covers all facets of Blackjack, and makes it understandable both for a beginner, and for players who want to improve their winnings and enjoy the game. In addition to teaching you his system of playing,and handling bets ("money management"), he tells you how to choose a casino-- a good table--where to sit--even talks about tipping the dealer. I like his conservative approach about how long to play, when not to play, and when to leave. The Glossary and Index at the end make this an easy book to find information. This is a good gift for someone who likes to go to the casinos (it was given to me by a blackjack player who has been doing very well with Mr. Harvey's system).

Richard Harvey's book is a very comprehensive aid for the game of blackjack. Aimed mainly at the small-stakes player and the new player, the information is valuable to all who face the dealer in today's casinos. Information includes many new and different items that aid the player that I haven't seen in other books. Things as simple as how to pick a table...far more important than a lot of players realize. Then there's the "X Factor" which spells out a great deal of important things to be aware of during the course of play. There is a section on how to detect if cheating is possibly going on. Additionally, if you find card counting difficult then the section on card observation will be of great assistance in your game. This isn't in any other book I have read. There is a terrific section on a very no-nonsense money management plan that will be a tremendous help in maximizing good runs as well as controlling losses during down cycles. If you are a card counter this is the first blackjack book I have read that counts all the cards, not just the 10s and Aces. It really does make a difference. All in all after reading this book and trying out the strategies in real play I have had more success than previous recommendations especially in the area of how to deal with soft hands. If you are a small stakes player or not this book with its excellent graphics will make a difference in your play. It is one of the better investments I have made in the gaming world.

After spending three days reading this very easy to read book, I learned optimal basic strategy along with simple card-counting techniques. With a total of 14 hours spent in the casino after reading this book, I made a profit of more than 150%!

This is a mediocre legal thriller, and my first introduction to this author. While moderately entertaining, I probably will not seek anymore novels by this author, as the writing tends to be pedestrian and formulaic. I also found the character of the attorney, Nina Reilly, to be uninteresting and an embarrassment to women in the legal profession. Perhaps, this was in part due to the fact that I listened to the unabridged audio book, where the reader infused Ms. Reilly's character with a breathy, little girl voice, that made her sound just this side of stupid.

Still, the book had its interesting moments. The plot revolves around a young woman, purportedly of Washoe Indian descent, who calls herself Jessie Potter and has just won a seven million dollar plus jackpot at a Nevada casino. She wishes to maintain a low profile, as she has a deep, dark secret, so she retains Ms. Reilly as her attorney, seeking to collect the jackpot, while maintaining her privacy. Unbeknownst to Ms. Reilly and her client, someone else feels entitled to that jackpot and will stop at nothing, not even murder, to get it.

In constructing the plot, the author, through one of the secondary characters, gives an interesting account of how these jackpots are designed to work, as well as a bird's-eye view of the gaming industry. Moreover, the courtroom scenes are of some interest. Still, this is not enough to make this a top notch legal thriller, as the writing never rises beyond hack status. The plot was too pat and contrived, at times, and the characters remain two dimensional throughout. I found myself neither caring for nor very much liking any of the characters. This over rated book remains simply a quick, throwaway read.

Jessie Potter, a doomed young woman with a secret, and Kenny Leung, one of the more confused characters in fiction this year, leads to a casino jackpot and a need for Nina Reilly, in her seventh outing, to try to make sense of it all. Jessie defines the concept of self-sufficiency, and Kenny defines haplessness, despite his brilliance in the computer field, so their collaboration gives the book a light tone. The courtroom adversaries for Reilly are pretty ruthless, and used to a larger setting than what they find in Tahoe...it is hard to believe that Nina will prevail. Nina's independence, her relationship with her family (played down a little in this book), the spectacular scenery that is Tahoe, and the depressing world of casino gambling all play a role in this novel. Sandy, Nina's irrepressible secretary, is back, and is as feisty as ever.

I'm always fascinated by the concept of sisters who live at a distance (Pamela and Mary O'Shaughnessy) writing a series together. You really can't tell where one begins and the other leaves off, such is the seamlessness of their collaboration. Reilly has been incredibly entertaining in each outing, and although there are some pitfalls in this story, overall, it keeps you enthusiastic, entertained and happy with the outcome.

One issue with the series is the unresolved relationship between Reilly and Paul van Wagoner, her terrific investigator. This book continued the dance that is their life together. I'd like for O'Shaughnessy to resolve this one way or the other, and, at the end, it appears that a resolution may be under way for the next book.....but that is what you say each time you finish a Nina Reilly novel.

A really entertaining and worthwhile series with a great heroine!

Attorney Nina Reilly has made a living by taking the underdog cases, and her latest is no exception. Called away in the middle of the night by her friend and investigator Paul Wagoner, Nina meets her new client, a young woman going by the name Jessie Potter. Jesse explains she has just hit a huge slot machine jackpot, but the casino's management will not pay the winnings until she gives them her real name.

Desperate to keep her identity hidden, but wanting her winnings, Jesse will need the help of Nina.

Nina has come up with a brilliant plan, one that will enable her client to collect the winnings and keep her identity a secret. Unfortunately, things do not go as planned...

The gaming commission thinks the jackpot was rigged, and the man who was sitting in the slot machine' s seat prior to Jesse, feels the winnings are his, and will stop at nothing to get them.

What ensues is a legal battle, with something very dangerous at the core. Nina's client Jesse, harbors a dark secret, and needs the money for a good reason. The deeper Nina probes into her client's past she realizes she is withholding vital information, and time is running out for Nina because as the clock ticks a killer roams the night...a killer willing to do anything to get the jackpot.

'Writ Of Execution' is another fast-paced page-turner, in the long line of excellent Nina Reilly novels. The plot is well developed, and utterly engrossing. Page by page, the reader is sucked into the suspenseful, intricate web being spun, and when the court room scenes comes into play, it's as if, we the reader, are actually there in the jury box.

Perri O'Shaughnessy burst on to the literary scene several years ago, and since then they have been consistent with creating suspenseful, masterful legal thrillers, full of crisp dialogue, complex plots, and real characters all driven at an extremely fast pace.

A MUST read!

Nick Gonnella

When first learning about hold-em poker I bought this book along with a few others. This book is definitely geared towards someone who has little or no knowledge of hold-em poker at all. If you have played, know the rules, and the very basics of play, then this book probably won't add much. I've found the 1st Sklansky book on hold-em poker to be the best starter book. It's compact, but the ideas presented are immediately applicable and usefull. It provides basics of strategy on plays you can make, and also makes you aware of plays your opponent might be making on you. The Jones book is more basic, guiding someone through the first steps of the rules of hold em and playing at a table. Good for an absolute beginner, but for someone who has played even a little, probably not enough new info.

I had never played hold 'em until playing one night with some friends, who later referred me to an internet poker site. I played the play money tables for a while there but felt this wasn't as realistic since virtually everyone stayed in & raised excessively at the play money game.

My first experience with internet poker for real money resulted in my losing ($$$)in two different sessions (I made two separate ($$$) deposits last for approximately 20-25 hours playing time at the .50-$1 tables).

Then, after reading Jones' book & following the advice therein - I have now turned ($$$) into ($$$) & am still playing on that. (...) Three months prior I had never even played hold 'em. Hopefully, I'm on my way to establishing a reasonable bankroll & will be "cashing out" not "depositing in" from here on out, but I know I have a ways to go before reaching the higher levels.

Jones explains many of the fundamental hold 'em & poker concepts very well and I really liked the way he organized the sections of the book. I feel I now have a more solid foundation for future learning & a more sensible approach to advance in the game.

I highly recommend this book to all hold em players who have never done anything but just "wing it" before.

Lee hits the nail on the head for Northern California low limit Hold'em games, of course that's where he's from. This book is great for a beginner or an experienced player alike. Some $6-$12 games and up are too tight for some of Lee's ideas, but some loose games up to $10-$20 fit his strategies well. As usual, it depends on the players. Most other poker books teach you how to beat higher limit, tigher games. Those strategies don't work as well in the low limit games. Great book!

I am regularly one of the highest-rated players on Yahoo Hearts, and I bought this book some time ago to improve my game. It has some good ideas, but I was generally disappointed. There is too much discussion of trick plays, and definitely not enough on good solid fundamental play. The section on spade-suit management is pretty well explained-out, but I found the heart-suit management section lacking. (hearts do make up half the point total of each hand, after all). The style of the book is very home-spun, resembling a compilation of hearts tidbits, without a thorough discussion of principles involved in playing the game. At one point Andrews says offhand that one should generally slough minor suits before breaking hearts, but he doesn't say why, and under what circumstances you don't. The "hearts player's diary" was a big waste of paper and ink. There is a lengthy discussion of the 'partnership' version of the game, but the section on the -10JD game is altogether lacking (if that's what you want the book for), with only about 5 pages devoted to it. One of Andrews' 10 cardinal rules which nearly everyone online would disagree with is "Dump the QS on the first available player, unless your hand is absolutely safe". Rather, you save the QS for the low man at the table. The score of the game is always an important factor in determining your play (especially what hearts you pass), and this is not addressed at all in this book. Also not addressed is how to determine who has the QS, and manuever so the low man gets her. I also would've liked to see a section on how to shoot the moon, since this is an aspect of the game you cannot readily practice without torching your scores. This book does contain a few good ideas for the novice or intermediate player, but if another book on the subject becomes available on this site, I'd definitely suggest buying it before buying this one.

I read this book with open eyes, as a player I have won a fewtournaments, I have been blessed to have supervised tournaments thatincluded some outstanding matches. I have always had the greatestrespect for the Team Hearts Format, and marvel at the complexity ofthe game. I was so surprised to see mentioned LL, TD, and most of alleccy, 3 of the top players ever to be involved in any of the Heartsevents I have witnessed. The 15 hand match described with so muchdetail and emotions was the talk of the "Zone" for monthsafterwards. Joe Andrews adds humour and expert commentary that makesthis book entertaining and a must for the serious hearts player. Irecommend this book for beginners, intermediate and advance players,everyone will come ahead after reading it. I especially loved thevariations of the game and the discussion on setting up and defendingthe 'Moon'. The illustrated hands adds a professional look to thisbook far above most on this subject.

Happy reading to all and thanks Joe for another great book! Looking forward to reading your insights on Euchre and Whist; hoping they are as good as Hearts and Spades.

Just finished reading "Win At Hearts". I found this book to be very informative and I consider it my bible for the game of Hearts! There is great instruction that covers all aspects of the game including the basics, the passing of three (3) cards, spade suit management, how to plan and play difficult hands, various strategies and defensive play. These sections include intermediate and advanced hand analysis. The instruction that I got out of this book has greatly helped me improve my skills in playing this great game. Since reading this book, I know play at a much higher level and feel like I've got an advantage over good players! I'd like to thank the author (Joseph Andrews) for writing this book and sharing his great knowledge of this fun game with all of us! I highly recommend this book to both social and competitive players at all levels. Good luck and good Hearts to all.

At one point in POKER NATION, Andy Bellin describes the myriad ways a small-time poker professional tries to distract himself from the boredom of the game ultimately giving in to a life of drugs. "That's why there are no good poker movies," the pro says.

POKER NATION attempts, but ultimately fails, to bring out the excitement of playing the game.

Andy Bellin gives us a detailed tour of the world of poker. He takes us through his own experiences at the table, the world of the big-time and the small-time poker professionaly, a brief overview of poker strategy, running both legal and illegal card clubs, and interesting studies of the shady characters always looking for an edge.

Andy's brisk, simple, and descriptive writing paints the picture of a likable, somewhat shady, guide to the most American of games. The book kept me entertained during the two nights I read it.

Unfortunately, the details of life in the Poker Nation don't live up to the romance, and I left the book feeling sorry for its citizens. Once you start playing the game 40+ hours a week, it becomes just a job.

And who wants to read about the details of anyone's job?

Dav's Rating System:
5 stars - Loved it, and kept it on my bookshelf.
4 stars - Liked it, and gave it to a friend.
3 stars - OK, finished it and gave it to the library.
2 stars - Not good, finished it, but felt guilty and/or cheated by it.
1 star - I want my hour back! Didn't finish the book.

I loved the hell out of this book. There's hundreds of books about poker out there (and I've read a lot of them) but this is not a how to book. This is more of a travelogue through a parellel world filled with unique characters and a memoir of an interesting person with interesting tales to tell. Yes, you'll learn something about the game of poker, some things not to do, others to watch for. But what makes this a great book is that you would enjoy it even if you had never played a game of poker before in your life. Andy Bellin is a great writer, and a great writer can write well on any subject. This is a book that stands on its own terms for its humor and economy of style. I think most readers will have a hard time putting it down.

I am not an unbiased reviewer of this book. The author is my friend. But he is also the guy who taught me to play Texas Hold 'Em and other criminally fun poker games. So I can honestly report that this book captures all the energy of a poker table.
This is a special book. Part "how-to" manual, part history book, part road trip and part joke compendium, POKER NATION weaves the many tangled threads of a great game. Impressively, it's all these things without ever trying too hard. Bellin writes with such an easy, conversational style that the book feels like an old pal is telling stories. Meanwhile, he still manages to slip in painless little lessons and probability problems. By the end of the book, the reader is not only immensely entertained, but is a better poker player.
POKER NATION provides all of the action, thrill and brain rigor of a 10-hour visit to the Taj, without the secondhand smoke. Highly, enthusiastically recommended.

The authors, two writer brothers who teach at the same university, slipped into a gambling fever, losing a quarter million dollars in the years following their aged parents' deaths. This is a lucid, compelling book: the sense of addiction, the timeless, weird feeling one gets when gambling, is brought vividly to life. There's also some measure of self-analysis: the brothers conclude that guilt and grief fueled their two-day-long losing sprees, and they appear to aptly judged themselves. They are falsely and bizarrely accused of cheating the casino (they lose thousands in the night they're accused); their description of the indictment and booking, their sudden notoriety and helplessness at the indifferent, lying corporation that is the casino, is a scarily real morality tale. On the minus side, the book does engage in a bit too much of this analysis; it gets repetitive. Also, they drop the story of their indictment too early, leaving the conclusion (dismissal of the charges on the DA's request) unexplained.

If this book has a moral, it is that if you're middle class you get away with doing a lot of stupid things. The Barthelme brothers grew up in a close-knit family run by a loving mother and an arbitrary, authoritarian father. Growing up, they never really started families of their own. When the parents died, within a couple of years of each other, their gambling went out of control. By their own account, they blew a quarter of a million dollars in Mississippi riverboat casinos in less than two years. At the end, they were arrested on a trumped-up fraud charge which was later dropped. They kept their jobs and their girlfriends and they got to write a book about it all.

The Barthelmes are smart guys and they analyze endlessly the sources of their gambling "addiction" (which they think lies in their family somewhere) and the fascination of gambling itself (which actually has little to do with winning or losing). There is nothing new here, of course. Still, the Barthelmes keep the story moving forward and there's a lot in here about day-to-day life in a casino.

I'm not sure there is a moral here. It's not as if the brothers learned nothing; if anything, they learned everything there is to know about gambling. It's just that they process this information through the detached and ironic consciousness that comes with being too smart for your own good. You get the idea that if they inherited another quarter million, they'd do it all over again.

I wasn't sure if I trusted the Barthelme brothers to tell this story until fairly late in the book, when they attempt, for maybe the fiftieth time, to explain why they continued to gamble, even in the face of their mounting losses. "Winning is better than losing, but neither is the goal of gambling, which is PLAYING. Losing never feels like the worst part of gambling. Quitting often does."

Maybe it was their demanding father, the loss of their beloved mother, or the sudden influx of inherited cash that drove them to the casino night after night. Ultimately I don't think that matters, and I think a lot of words are wasted trying to figure that out. But the book comes alive as soon as the narrative reaches the casino doors, and it contains some of the truest, and loveliest, writing I've come across about the "gaming" culture of the New South.

WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT. I heard about this book and thought it would be really great. As it is marketed, it's an intriguing story. At first glance. Unfortunately, it takes forever to get to the story. First, Mr McManus engages in a lengthy and melodramatic rundown of the murder of a casino heir, Ted Binion, then tries to transition into his own story. While it's relevant background info since the World Series of Poker takes place at Binion's Horseshoe, JUST TELL ONE STORY, MAN! Even worse, McManus takes great liberties with some of the actual events related to the murder of Binion. He admits this. And then he cannot resist referring to himself and his dark side throughout the book as Good Jim and Bad Jim. A flourish I could have done without.

Perhaps McManus or his editor or publisher lost their nerve in regards to publishing a book JUST about his experiences in The World Series of Poker. Perhaps that was never their intention. HOWEVER, that's the only interesting stuff in the book. The stuff about the death of Binion is, for the most part, [annoying]. Particularly annoying is the clunky manner in which it is bolted on. And it's nowhere near as enchanting as the thought of a writer for Harper's going to Vegas, exchanging his expense money for chips, and then somehow making it all the way to fifth place. Plus, there is some really interesting information about professional poker players.

I thought this book had a lot of potential. A real bummer to not exercise more restraint, and focus on one story.

First, let me say that the story McManus tells is fascinating; a no-name in the world of poker making it big on the game's biggest stage is compelling for even the non-card player. You become addicted to his progress in the tournament and the words don't come quickly enough at times.
It is when McManus wanders from this story that I began to dislike the book; needless and sometimes annoying time is spent on his wife and their fantastic lovelife; awkward attempts to tie in the Binion trial; it all seems like forced filler that nevers gels smoothly with the main story. I would have stopped reading had I not been so intrigued by his Word Series of Poker run...
I congratulate the author on his incredible run in the WSOP but can only recommend this book to those readers with more than a passing interest in gambling.

James McManus went to the World Series of Poker to write a story and ended up at the final table, slinging cards with the best players in the world. Along the way, tidbits of how to play certain hands, the computer simulations the circuit players use to build their skills and the murder of Ted Binion are explored.

The world and rules of poker are a bit confusing to me. Then again I certainly did not inheirit the family gambling gene. I was still able to follow McManus's explanations of the game and the hands dealt.

The contrast between McManus's life in the casino during the World Series and his regular life with wife Jennifer is conveyed in their phone calls to each other. McManus is buzzing with excitement and the sheer amount of money being betted with each hand while Jennifer cares for their two small daughters.

But through out the hands dealt and the quirky players, the accused murders of Ted Binion get their day in court. The story of the casino heir with everything and the stripper is an interesting one.

To anyone who has played a hand of poker, visited Las Vegas or is a true crime fan, "Positively Fifth Street" is a fascinating look into another world.

I read the book in two sittings and enjoyed it throughly. The characters were fleshed out nicely and you could actually feel yourself rooting for them in some instances knowing all the while that a "normal" person would never have the guts to lay down the bets that they have made. Contempt and jealously were common emotions I felt as I read them, and as I am planning a trip to Las Vegas in the next few weeks I will be toting the book looking for autographs.

This is truly a very good read and if you have interest in sports betting and Las Vegas I can't see how you could go wrong in purchasing this.

THE ODDS... is a non-fiction account of sports betting in Las Vegas during the football and college basketball seasons in 1999/2000. It gives insight into betting from three perspectives: small-time, big-time, and the bookmaker. The book provides some information for the curious that is interesting and helpful in understanding how betting lines are made, the effect and purpose of moving the line, the impact of internet betting, and Congress' interest in abolishing betting on college sports.

The book also chronicles the agony, torment, and excitement of sports betting. Unfortunately, for those who are already living the gambler's lifestyle there's little in this book they don't already know. For those considering using sports betting as their sole source of income, they might think twice after reading this book. However, acknowledging that gambling is such a powerful drive, I'm afraid they'll want to find out for themselves. Good Luck!

I thought this was a very good book that not only gives you a feeling of being in Las Vegas sweating out the games or more precisely the bets, but it also educates the reader to the many changes in sports wagering with a little history lesson. I read it in only two readings because I could not put it down.

My biggest letdown from the book is when it ended. I wanted to read more! I wanted more true stories to feel the exitement of winning as well as the sickening feeling of losing a bet in the last few seconds of a game to a freak play.

The book leaves the reader thnking maybe I do not know as much as I think I do about betting sports. The games fall squarely on the lines so often it is scary. If the wise guys can not beat the lines studying information and trends as a full time job, how can I possibly do it over the long run committed to a family and working a full time job.

I only found a few editing mistakes where the team did not cover the spread but our guy was stated to have a winning ticket. Not enough to take away from the realism or to be too distracting. No gambler really tells the truth all the times. It would have been a little better if we knew how much the bettors really lost or won, the book was a little vague in that area. It only stated the our guys had had a very bad two months.

But to finish positively, It was a great read and one I will pass on to my best of friends.