Jeff Meckstroth and Eric Rodwell are considered by many to be the best bridge partnership in the world. They use a highly specialized version of Precision for their bidding. So, one might expect a book by one of them to be high level and complex. On the contrary, Meckstroth has produced a book that example after example of common decisions that club and tournament players face all the time. He continually points out why he makes the decisions he does, as well as showing how he finds those extra chances that help make him one of the best dummy players in the world. The 4S hand from match 7 was a revelation to me in how simple the correct line is, but was something I would never have come up with.

Chuck Badone, Winning Horseracing Handicapping 2/E (Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie, 1999)

Badone, the selections guru at the newly-opened Lone Star Park, wrote a book on handicapping long ago, during his days of giving seminars at Turf Paradise. When Lone Star opened, they reprinted the book with a number of revisions from Badone, as a kind of new-fan primer. Too bad they kept the gramatically painful title, but other than that, there's little that will steer you wrong here.

If you've already read the basic handicapping texts, you're not going to find terribly much here you haven't read before, though Badone does put a few things into new perspectives. This book isn't aimed at the well-read horseplayer, however, but at the new patron. Badone lays his material out quickly and easily, but without the pedantry that mars a number of books for beginning handicappers. He's extremely easy to read, and his section on class changes is the easiest-to-understand I've ever read (not to mention one of the most solid; it's not Jim Quinn's _Class of the Field_, but for the beginning player, it's great stuff). Highly recommended for casual and new fans of Thoroughbred racing...

Great book,lots of inquiring information.

Dave Feldman's colorful career as a handicapper, writer, owner, and trainer in Chicago comes to life in this fast reading book. The stories are interesting and provide insights as well for bettors. Dave's experience in thoroughbred racing gives him the authority to provide the horse player with some helpful tips on what to look for and to avoid at the track.

As a HUGE fan of Christina's books, I was very disappointed with this one. It was the first Christina Dodd book which took an effort to finish (usually I gobble them up in one sitting). All of the wit and charm of the "Governess" series was missing here. I found the main characters unlikeable (except perhaps to each other), and the plot line was ludicrous and unbelievable even by the standards of romance fiction. Like the reader above, I thought the quality of the editing was lacking as well. I actually checked the publishing date to see if it was perhaps a reissue of an early book, as the writing seemed very amateurish in comparison to her other books. On the plus side, the love scenes were fun to read, though it's not enough to allow me to recommend this book.

I always await Christina Dodd's books with great anticipation. For the first time I can say I was sorry that I even read one. The behavious of both of the main characters left a lot to be desired - but the repeated humiliation and put downs of Madeline by Gabriel and his manservant left a bad taste in the mouth. Not only did she accept everything at the hands of Gabriel - she accepted it as her due which came across as warped. Well - she wasn't perfect, but neither was his behaviour - yet somehow all of his atrocious behavious was ok because she LOOVED him. YUCK. Unlike other books by Christina Dodd there was no balance in this book at all. The ending seemed to be put together in haste, ending the story in a very unsatisfactory way. I would recommend giving this one a pass. I will think twice before rushing out to get the next in this series.

This story of a love/hate relationship between Madeline and Gabriel will keep you reading until you finish the book. I couldn't put it down. All the characters were fabulously developed and colorful and it was packed with more than enough action to satisfy. Christina Dodd paints such vivid pictures with her words that the reader is transported into the house party and feels involved in the entertainment and the intrigue. Beware the surprise ending. A lovely romance filled with twists and turns that will keep you tied up in learning and loving the characters. You will finish this book in one sitting and then read it all over again.

Don Schlesinger has a special ability to take theory and original work and make it more practical and understandable.

Chapters 1, 7, and 9 are excellent and chapter 10 is a book of its own.

This book contains some excellent technical and mathematical content and Don trys to solve many problems.

My only objections to this book is that most of the book is material from past Blackjack Forum articles and the author is a little biased on certain issues.

Overall, it is must reading.

This is definately not a book for blackjack beginners. It expects you to be proficient at basic strategy, at least one card counting system, and all the various rules variations. This book teaches you how to apply that knowledge in real world situations. The best chapters (IMHO) teach you how to accurately evaluate your risk and expectation for any set of casino rules. Unfortunately, the the rambling writing style is often difficult to follow and the graphics are weak. I still recommend it since I know of no other books containing this level of detail.

All serious blackjack players own this book. It is a good read and a frequent reference. Chapter 9, on risk of ruin, is important reading for serious gamblers. Ch 10 is a very good quick reference to find the relative favorability and win rate approximations for hundreds of the permutations of rules, number of decks, and betting strategies for blackjack games. I'm a professional gambler and I refer to this book often. It easily ranks among the five or six "must own" books in the field of blackjack.

Hello Mrs. Gail Howard,
I'm Terribly Sorry To Tell YOU That, but I've purchased YOUR Book long time ago..
( please check your archive-order forms ) to identify my self as a purchaser..............!!!
I'm not just wasting my time. What is my Personal Opinion Gail. I used your " great "....
systems and THEY NEVER BROUGHT ME any LUCK. Never so far Gail. Never....
Since I've purchased Mr. ILIYA BLUSKOV'S Book, I have won twice just now.Yes,
recently in the last month . I did found out , Mr. Bluskov's Book is much, much, greater
Book than yours Gail. Cost me a Lot LESS Money to play almost the same systems.....
as yours, because Each One system in Mr. Bluskov's Book was made with the possible
100 % Mathematical Minimum, plus his upgrade ( Winning possibilities ) 4 each system.
Please, check this out. Buy his book, and You'll FIND OUT the BIG DIFFERENCE !!
You should " work " a Bit More Over Your Systems in the book in comparison with
Mr. BLUSKOV'S GREAT BOOK. Thanks Gail. AND THANKS MR. BLUSKOV $

ANYONE WHO SAY'S THIS BOOK GIVES LITTLE IN HELPING SELECT NUMBERS IS EITHER BLIND OR DID NOT READ THE BOOK. I STARTED OUT BY READING THIS BOOK AND PLEASE BELIEVE ME, YOU LEARN A LOT. YOU WILL NEVER PLAY THE LOTTERY AGAIN LIKE YOU USED TO. YOU GET TIPS ON NUMBER SELESTION, HOW TO AND NOT TO GROUP YOUR NUMBERS, HOW TO FIND HOT AND COLD NUMBERS AND I COULD GO ON AND ON, BUT READ IT YOURSELF AND YOU WILL SEE.

I THEN BOUGHT GAIL HOWARD'S BOOK OF SYSTEMS AND STARTED TO WIN SMALL SUMS OF MONEY. I BOUGHT A COMPUTER FOR THE KIDS AND DECIDED TO GET HER SOFTWARE. I THOUGHT IF I COULD PUT A GROUP OF FRIENDS TOGETHER TO POOL OUR MONEY IN ORDER TO PLAY A LARGER WHEELING SYSTEM, WE MIGHT STAND A BETTER CHANCE OF WINNING A JACKPOT. SO, WE DECIDED TO PLAY THE FLORIDA FANTASY FIVE BECAUSE A FRIEND IN FLORIDA COULD BUY THE TICKETS FOR US. WELL THE SECOND TIME WE PLAYED A SYSTEM, WE WON 1/4 OF 1.6 MILLION DOLLARS. AFTER THE FIRST TIME WE PLAYED, I WENT BACK TO GAIL'S BOOK"LOTTERY MASTER GUIDE" AND BRUSHED UP ON MY TECHNIQUE. WELL I GUESS IT HELPED.

A FEW YEARS LATER, MY HOME STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA STARTED A CASH 5 LOTTERY. WELL I LIKE THE CASH 5 LOTTOS BECAUSE THEY ARE EASIER TO HIT AND YOU GET ALL YOUR MONEY AT ONCE. SO. I DECIDED TO PUT ANOTHER GROUP TOGETHER AND PLAYED AGAIN. IT TOOK A LITTLE LONGER THIS TIME, BUT WE DID IT AGAIN. THE JACKPOTS WERE A LOT SMALLER, BUT WE WON OVER 40 THOUSAND WHICH WAS PART OF A 250 THOUSAND DOLLAR JACKPOT. THERE WERE 6 OTHER WINNING TICKETS.

IT ALL STARTED WITH "LOTTERY MASTER GUIDE". I SUGGEST THAT IF YOU BOUGHT THE BOOK, GO BACK AND READ IT AGAIN. YOU'RE ALREADY LOSING SO WHAT HAVE YOU GOT TO LOSE EXCEPT SOME TIME. STUDY THE BOOK. GAIL HOWARD PUT A LOT OF TIME AND RESEARCH INTO WRITING THIS BOOK AND IT CAN CERTAINLY HELP IN MAKING YOU A WINNER. I'VE DECIDED TO COME OUT OF RETIREMENT AND PUT SOME MORE GROUPS TOGETHER AND TRY FOR MY THIRD WIN. BELIEVE ME. I'LL BE USING GAIL'S BOOKS AND SOFTWARE THIS TIME TOO. GOOD LUCK TO YOU. START USING WHAT GAIL CALLS SMART LUCK. READ HER BOOK AND YOU'LL FIND OUT WHAT SHE MEANS.

FRED GSCHEIDLE

I purchased "Lottery Master Guide" and " Lotto How to Wheel a Fortune". They are both fantastic books. I was " blown away" with the vast amount of tracking techniques that Gail Howard managed to uncover. I've been working for years programming my own system: I could have save a lot of time and effort if I had first found Gail's books and computer programs.

This is my first book on poker I have ever read. However, my copy is physically flawed. My copy goes up to page 176 and then repeats itself back to pp. 129-176! So, one-fifth of my book is duplicated. (This is the sixth printing dated May 2003) I bought this from the "used" section and by all appearances, it looked "like new". Oh well. Mistakes happen.

Of all the books written about Texas Hold'em this is the one to own. The language is strait foward, easy to follow, and with enough repetition that the ideas are forever burned onto you brain. This is an excellent read for beginners and intermediate players that should give you that edge that you need at the table. I have seen my game improve tremendously after reading this book.

Warren also packs the book full of charts and tables that are of use to all. There are charts with odds and percentages for any hand that you hold. Warren also breaks down how you should play based on your position at the table and what is in you hand and what has been bet so far. This is enough to help for a begginer sitting at a casino table.

Texas Hold'em is by far the best poker game and with this book you develope strategy and game play that is all your own.

One of the above reviewers gave the book a single star, stating that KW gives advice that encourages people to play low cards. In the edition I have (I believe it to be the 5th edition, 2002), KW states on pg. 51 "A Hold 'Em player who consistently plays low cards cannot be a big winner in this game". I respectfully disagree with that reviewer, who seems to have taken something out of context.

As I mentioned above, this book has something for just about everyone. KW starts with simple concepts general to poker and then specific to hold'em, ruminates on the all important nature of position, includes plenty of strategy advice, and covers advanced ideas such as pot odds, the art of the check raise, and bluffing/semi-bluffing. He also gives tips on how to play specific hands, although I'm sure he is by no means unique among poker authors with this one.

He backs up his advice with a number of different charts showing percentages, ratios, etc. He also includes a good section on playing short-handed.

To summarize, although you'd probably get mostly the same stuff if you picked other poker books at random, KW provides a comprehensive and very readable guide to hold 'em. It's not perfect, but in a literary genre in which authors try to outdo one another to give the best advice and the secret tips no one else does, this book stands out.

Having said all this, in an otherwise excellent book, the "stereotype" section (e.g., you want to play against beautiful women and people with tattoos, as these folks are never good at poker) is silly and superficial. Additionally, his advice that off-duty poker DEALERS are preferable to play against is just plain dangerous. Unless you are an expert, if you know your opponents to be dealers you should avoid that particular game altogether.

There is nothing new here in this book. Mostly play tight and raise often. Spends more time telling us about how great he is and less time giving any real insite into how to "PLAY LIKE THE PROS". He jumps back and forth too much and even forgets what situation he is refering to on occasions. In one part of his examples, Phil has you playing poker on the internet with a pair of jacks in the hole. His opponent, Jerry,checks. But, if Jerry does bet, then you must,"look for body language that might show confidence or fear". How can I check for body language when I`m playing over the net? Phil spends too much time having you develop your instincts rather than giving sound poker advice. You`re better off reading any of Lou Krieger`s books, "Hold`em Excellence or More Hold`em Excellence" or any of Ken Warrens Texas Holdem book instead of this book which tells you very little other than how you can never be as good as Phil is. Come on Phil. You haven`t discovered the cure for cancer here. You`re just a poker player.

Look, Phil is an annoying guy and some of that comes across in this book. But Phil is a great tournament poker player and that also comes across. And the reason I bought this book was to get an insight into how Phil plays and why he plays that way and to maybe find things I could use myself. In the two months since I've finished the book I've tinkered with using different strategies Phil suggests with good success. And on top of anything else I have now finished 1st in a 20 player tournament and 7th in a 30 player tournament at Luxors and 5th in a 300 player tournament at an online site. I honestly feel that my tournament play has gotten a lot stronger and I'm still improving. Thanks in large part to things I either read in this book or things that this book made me think about.

Hellmuth, a seven time world champion, and all around smart guy, provides a book that assumes the reader knows nothing about poker. The basics are explained with clarity. Then Phil discusses the math, game theory, and strategy in various poker games with an emphasis on Hold 'Em, the most complex (most interesting) and most popular form of tournament and casino poker. If you're already an Eagle (Phil classifies players according to type, such as the Mouse, the Elephant, the Jackal, etc. Eagles are birds capable of feathering their nests with millions of dollars from poker) this would be an interesting book for the insight it provides into the mind of another certified Eagle. If you're a beginner or intermediate with Eaglelike aspirations, this is the best primer around. It's not the only book you'll need to read, but it will teach you the language and strategies of poker. Then the manuals written for advanced players will make sense and you'll gain much more from them than if you just jumped in to one of them. One caveat: before you jump into a game for real money, finish the book. Don't get fired up after a chapter or two and hit the poker room at the Bellagio expecting to clean up. In poker, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. FINISH THE BOOK before you open your wallet.

Most of the information in her book is available on cable TV for free. She gives very little specific information regarding anything about how to play. If you want info on how to join a slot club, available free at any casino, then this book is for you. Otherwise, forget it.

I agree with the reviewer below that Jean Scott's book is good but not great. The downside is that much of her advice is of the variety of getting bumped for free mileage on airline, using coupons and sneaking food out of buffets in doggie bags. The gambling aspect is essentially look for video poker machines that are full pay and play the right strategies on them. I also think that Frank Scoblete's "Guerrilla Gambling" and Max Rubin's "Comp City" are far superior. Scoblete's book deals with all the games and strategies to cut the edge. It also has much better advice on how to get comps. Rubin's book is a hoot. However, Scott's personal stories are interesting and enlightening and it is a worthwhile book to have in a gambling library. There is no doubt that if you put the time and effort into getting comped as Ms. Scott does that you will get maximum value for your gambling dollar, although you will be using up an awful lot of time do do so.

While this book is an enjoyable read, and there is a lot of good advice given to casual players, I don't consider Jean Scott to be a "low roller." As she says, you need a bankroll of $3,000 to make her system work on 25 cent video poker. To me, that's hardly a "low roller." Also, there is no way when I'm on vacation that I'm going to spend 8 hours a day playing a machine. That seems more like work to me- I'd rather have a drink by the pool, or just wander the Strip. And taking food from the buffet in a doggie bag? Please!
All that being said, I'd still recommend this book. It will give you enough tips that what whatever gambling you do, you'll benefit. It's an easy read, and it'e also entertaining. Just don't think that by reading it you'll be getting suites comped to you. A free room or buffet now and then is about it.