Gambling Books

The title of my review is a quote from the book, which I gave to my son as a gift for his 21st birthday. He's very happy with it and has already read most of it. The quote is one he took from the book which really spoke to him...practice doesn't make perfect...it makes permanent. Essentially, practicing the WRONG thing won't make you perfect, but it will make a permanent behavior. Since my son's goal is to be a professional dealer, this was a perfect match for him!

This item was in amazing condition and shipped extremely quick. I can't ask or anything better. Wish every order was like this. Thank you!

Have you always dreamed of being a Poker Dealer?
If you read and study this book, it is only months away for you. My husband was told to buy this book by our Casino Poker Supervisors. He was told to read it three times and then study and practice what is in this book. He has been playing poker most of his life but this book helped him turn his hobby into his job. He worked only 4 days as a Poker Dealer and now he is a Poker Supervisor and Dealer. This book helped him learn the skills to fulfill his dreams and it can do the same for you.
Become a Poker Dealer with this book by reading and practicing what the author Dan Paymar give you. His tools really work. Good Luck.

I'm a student right now in poker school and this is the book we are using for class.

It covers everything from the proper mechanics of "pitching" (dealing cards the proper way), flops, sidepots and controlling the table.

I've read the book multiple times. I highly recommend this to prospective poker dealers and even long time dealers that have developed some bad habits in their game.

I got a job as a poker dealer and had have a few errors that weren't quite covered in my "introduction course" by my employers, plus I wanted to be as professional as I could so I decided to buy this book.

The overall structure of the book is somewhat confusing since you can find repeated lines all over the book, and several subjects are covered in several chapters so you can't really know all you need to of, say, blind structure, until you've read most of the book. This however is not that bad since you are most likely to read the whole thing in a couple of sittings. I actually read it in 2 days during breaks right at work.

The obvious lack of illustrations is also a bit of a problem but the explanations are clear enough.

There are some problems that you will find frequently during your job that the book leaves to the floorperson's decition and gives no information as to what their call might be, it would've been nice to know some options on those subjects.

In spite of these issues, the book is excellent at procedures and gives you the tools to be a true professional, my performance has improved a great deal and the players really appreciate a professional dealer.

Overall the book is great, I have it as a reference and when problems arise that need understanding by the players we can actually take the book and show the proper procedures.

i spent 10 bucks for the book read it i made $660 the first time playing slots.......i say i made my money back....$660 stars,,,,

The way that this book is set up is that the author gives you a series of questions, and then the answers. Personally I did not care for this format. Part of the problem is that by the time you get to the answers, it is easy to have forgotten the exact wording of the questions. I think that it is ok to have a quiz after the information is presented, like some of the Dummies and Idiots books might do, but I did not care for the quiz first format. If you know NOTHING about slots, this is not a good first book to read.

Some of the chapters were more interesting than others, and more useful. I did not really care for some of the chapters about the different manufacturers of the machines, and thought that it was pretty difficult to take a quiz on this information.

Many of the themes are repeated over and over, such as how the machine is random. Sometimes this becomes a dead horse that is beaten. I know there are a lot of misconceptions about slot machines, so maybe this is neccessary.

Overall a good book, but I preferred Break the one-armed bandits better. Perhaps that is because I read "Break" first, and it was such a ground breaker. This book even quotes "Break" a few times.

I have to disagree with the previous reviewer ... a book doesn't get any easier to follow than this one. The start of each answer paraphrases the question. You can easily browse through, reading the answers as a series of essays on slots, without ever taking the quizzes. To me, breaking down the volume of information into short, digestible essays makes this one of the most user-friendly books on slots around. It goes beyond Break the One-Armed Bandits with information on video slots and slot clubs. Definitely a must for slot players.

I agree with Karl from New York that this and Scoblette's Break the One-Armed Bandits are the two best slot books on the market. I've read just about all the slots books so I know. What sets Grockowski and Scoblette apart is the fact that these writers can write. They are professional writers who know how to interest a reader. The information is accurate, the anecdotes fun and informative. Grockowski's book is filled with insights and stories. I love the way he tests your knowledge before he answers and elaborates on his information. His other book, The Casino Answer Book, is also a very fine book. I read that about a year ago. In a field, gambling writing, where semi-literates have dominated over the years, it is refreshing to have some good writers appear.

Book informed me of a few things I wasn't aware of but didn't much cover the small Indian casinos prevalent in our area which is all we play in. Would possible be O.K. for anyone that travels around some.

So I got 3/4 of the way through this book and realized I'd read it like 20 years ago! That either means it was so forgettable that it made no impression at all on me, or so entertaining that I read it with renewed enthusiasm the second time. It could also mean that all Dick Francis books are so similar, you can't know whether you've read one before. Or maybe my memory is just going.

Anyway, if you've read Dick Francis books before, you know what you're getting: characters of all kinds (smart, cynical, narcissistic, unethical, upstanding, sexy, earthy...), intrigue, horses and racing, twisty plots despite some heavy-handed foreshadowing...

In this case, we have a banker who's been promoted facing whether to make a gigantic loan to a breeder who wants to buy the great colt Sandcastle outright and put him to stud. The breeder has it all figured out, and everything would be fine, but of course it isn't. All sorts of interesting characters criss-cross in the perpetration and getting-to-the-bottom of same. We learn lots about a lot of things: racing, breeding, pharmacology, banking. We feel very clever when we figure things out ahead of time (of course I shouldn't feel so clever, because I'd READ the book before!). We root for the good guys and hiss at the bad guys. Mostly just great fun.

I have to say the unrequited-love story subplot was kind of silly. Besides that, it was a fun little read. Helps if you like horses.

BANKER by Dick Francis is one of our all time favorites, maybe because we have a New Zealand friend who is an investment banker under the British term, which is very different from the American concept. A more unlikely hero than Tim Ekaterin seldom exists in mystery/suspense/thriller fiction, but Mr. Francis carries the character through many trials to a surprising finish. Now that is class or the style of a master storyteller.
Financing the purchase of a champion horse is Tim's first step outside the box of his world, which is the only safe move he makes in this rapid pace story.
Nash Black, author of WRITING AS A SMALL BUSINESS and SINS OF THE FATHERS.

I've read more than a dozen Dick Francis mysteries. Most are good, some are great, a few are not quite up to par. But this one definitely stunk. Instead of a tightly written 200 pages, it was 300 repetitious, boring pages. The main character was a cipher and his "love interest," a married woman, just happens to become free at the very end of the book. How contrived can you get? Prior to that, in the last 60 or so pages Francis lived up to his best plotting self, although the main character's near death experience was not original. Oh well. I bought it for 50 cents at a book sale and wasted only a few hours reading it, so I can't really complain.

We have read every Dick Francis novel, some forty (!) in all. We marvel at the author's ability to endear the lead characters to the reader within just a few pages. While our hero is always a man, it is always a man men would like to be like, and woman would like to find! Ted Ekaterin is no exception -- while he works in an investment bank, making daily decisions on big business loans, he is all of humble, courteous and pleasant, sensitive, caring, personable and smart. No wonder he is successful, even if his family founded the institution in question.

One of Tim's loans is to syndicate a champion racehorse getting ready to perform at stud. From this development we learn not only a good deal about investment banking but the inside of the horse breeding business, especially from a financial viewpoint. When the offspring start to show birth defects, irregularly, our hero is suspicious enough to practically start living at the stables to unravel what is going on. When the horse owner's daughter, with whom Tim has developed an affectionate plutonic relationship, is murdered, the mystery gets really serious. Are the TV celebrity horse "healer" and herbal remedy specialist and his "cooperative" veterinarian bad guys or victims? Can Tim's pharmacist "girlfriend" help trace some important clues? Will the horse farm and Tim's reputation survive?

An interesting sub-plot, one presented in poignant prose, concerns Tim's boss Gordon, who is slowly losing the war with Parkinson's disease, and Gordon's wife Judith. While it's not clear how it got started, Tim and Judith find themselves in love, but are too honorable to ever act on their feelings. Toward the end of the book, when Gordon's health is in serious jeopardy, will Tim and Judith get the chance to unite?

Francis is known for relatively non-violent mysteries, with pleasant leading characters, and enough suspense to entertain, even if at a level less than the thrills and chills of writers like Patterson or Sandford. Nonetheless, we love his characters, and never fail to enjoy his stories. "Banker" is indeed one of our favorite books of all time.

Dick Francis is a formulaic writer, which is to say that one has a pretty good idea of the shape of the novel before one even cracks open the cover. While this would be a death knell for longevity for many, it hasn't been for Francis. This arises from the fact that his characters are so memorable and the milieu in which he casts his tales so rich and well defined that we totally forget that some of the plot mechanisms feel familiar.

Banker is a tale of a young British investment banker involved in a syndicate financing the stud career of a well know champion race horse. After the deal is sealed there arises a problem--it appears the horse is genetically defective. Our Banker suspects this is not entirely a natural phenomenon and starts investigating. As always with Francis, this leads to intrigue, violence and murder.

Francis' ability to skillfully enter into a wide array of worlds in his novels is another strength--the world of investment banking is brought into sharp focus in a way that makes it interesting--not terminally boring, as one would imagine.

Banker is one of Francis' very best works--the characters are vivid and compelling, the mystery here is more refined than usual, the suspense builds very nicely.

If you haven't yet tried Francis, this would be a great book to start with. It will set you on the path to a lot of great reading!

It is easy to understand the analysis of numbers and position of numbers frequencies as reference for determining lotto numbers. I feel the combinations and wheeling systems are too complicated for beginning lotto players like myself.

This is an interesting book, and seems to make sense but doesn't really tell how to adapt the "wheeling" technique for five-wheel lottos. Acceptable value for the price.

I did find some facets of the book very interesting such as conducting frequency analysis on numbers to see which ones show up most often and which numbers are overdue. The book does contradict itself, though, when it tells the reader not to indulge in Powerball because of the odds, yet the book dedicates several pages to playing Powerball. There are several examples of wheels in book that are interesting -- but in my own game playing style, I've made some modifications to these wheels to reduce redundancy. My advice to those that enjoy playing the lotto/lottery is: DEVELOP YOUR OWN PLAYING STYLE -- and work on developing your intuition, especially if you are a receptive to the concept. My gut feeling told me that the next round was going to draw low numbers and numbers that have shown up 4 and 5 times in the last year. So these were the type of numbers I wheeled. I didn't win but my numbers were very close to the winning numbers. I felt a sense of satisfaction because I improved my odds of winning, my decision making skills, and my ability to make an educated guess based on looking at the numbers rather than purely guessing. And these are just some of the reasons I play the lotto/lottery. The bottom line is this: KNOW YOURSELF AND KNOW WHAT WORKS FOR YOU. AND GO FOR IT WITH GUSTO! No matter what, you'll always come out a winner with that attitude.

Time and time again people play the lottery, but fall short
because some do not use any methods, but just pick whatever number comes to mind. Winning is about luck, and strategies
not just about picking whatever number.
The book has several chapters that talk about the ways, the
different ways one may improve on his game, Your lotto game.
It does not matter what game it is: Powerball, Texas Lotto, The Virginia Lottery because the literature will help you with what you want, and that is strategies. All you have too do is read the book plain and simple; i believe it is a small book because another Version of this book came out and is a litte bigger,but the author is still Professor Jones.

One method that will stick with you is the Frequency number theory. This Frequency theory talks about which number comes out the most in the lottery. The methods are simple to read, and are not time consuming as other books that offer strategies that you may think are good but are nothing but one thing: JUNK & PURE CONFUSION.
Regardless of what one or any one says, we all want too be one thing:...Millionaires, with hot cars, houses, and the opposite sex wanting...us.

I also recommend lotto books on the Canadian Lottery, for more methods. But this book by Professor Jones is recommended. Mom and Pop or seven eleven store customer lotto players have more of a chance in winning with this book as compared to just throwing your money away...Best of luck to all Lotto players of all states. Book is recommended.

Time and time again people play the lottery, but fall short
because some do not use any methods, but just pick whatever number comes to mind. Winning is about luck, and strategies
not just about picking whatever number.
The book has several chapters that talk about the ways, the
different ways one may improve on his game, Your lotto game.
It does not matter what game it is: Powerball, Texas Lotto, The Virginia Lottery because the literature will help you with what you want, and that is strategies. All you have too do is read the book plain and simple; i believe it is a small book because another Version of this book came out and is a litte bigger,but the author is still Professor Jones.

One method that will stick with you is the Frequency number theory. This Frequency theory talks about which number comes out the most in the lottery. The methods are simple to read, and are not time consuming as other books that offer strategies that you may think are good but are nothing but one thing: JUNK & PURE CONFUSION.
[...] Book is recommended.

Barthelme's new book is fantastic. Rich in detail like his earlier "Two Against One," and chilling in its ability to paint the down and out life of its characters.

I just finished this book last night, ten years after it was first published. A friend recommended it and since I was a huge fan of Double Down by the same author, I immediately purchased it and read it in one night. The characters are all very likeable, colorful, but never particularly struck me as real and I couldn't tell you why. Barthelme writes beautifully, no doubt about it. His prose is detailed, descriptive and certain scenes are easily visualized, even for a person who has never been in that part of the country. I agree with the reviewer that the most exciting part of the book is when Ray and Jewel are actually in the casino. At one point when Ray is there by himself and bankrupting his future, my palms were sweating and I felt like I was right there with him. The book was wonderful until the last chapter, which felt endless and despite all the descriptive prose, incomplete. But by that time, I no longer cared how it turned out for Ray, Jewel and RV. Had it not been for the last chapter, I would have given this book five stars.

Gambling that brings you on the riverboat and gives you a glimpse of WHY people do it w/o maudlining out in a 12-step quagmire, ennui that doesn't make the book drag, hilarious man versus teenager (as funny/insightful as richard ford got it in Independence Day), interesting take on close/distant couples, and Mississippi like it is-- channel surfing, fast food eating, forget the mimosas and petticoats. And Piggly-Wiggly for one and all.

The night after I finished this book I found myself before a slot machine in a small casino. I had a feeling and put a quarter in. I won and won again. I stuffed the quarters in my pockets but there were no buckets available. When I lost two quarters in a row I left. Unfortunately this was a dream and I awoke empty handed. Bob the Gambler is a beautifully observed, enviably perfect novel by a master who doesn't seem flashy because he stays within his means. It is also a surprisingly, even surreally loving story. The novel centers around the fissioned nuclear family of down-on-his luck Biloxi architect Bob Kaiser, a plump transplant moved by the Mississippi coastal decay before it was invaded by "gussied-up Motel 6 hotel rooms [and] an ocean of slicked-back hair," his pretty, witty, and wonderful wife of nine years Jewel, who is tough and stable, and yet the first to thirst for casino action, Jewel's daughter RV, an amazingly rendered, very sweet fourteen year old mid-90's teenager whom Bob adores, and Frank, the family dog. All the principals, as well as Bob's mother, whom we meet later in the book, are expert at the art of the cryptic tough-talking but secretly loving epigram. One of the great charms of this book is the depths of love of the family members both concealed by and revealed by their fragmented banter and quips. There are some wonderful moments and descriptions of daily life and teenage rearing, the euphoric swirl of casino gambling, and the decrepit Mississippi coast. The lasting impression one is left from this book, aside from the controlled brilliance of Barthelme's prose, is in my opinion a meditation on the meaning of money vis-à-vis love. Bob's wife's name, Jewel, is a token of facets of wealth unobtainable by any number of markers or wild infatuation-like risks; theirs, an irreducible love that includes and absorbs others (such as RV) in its understated wake, is the multicolored antithesis of liaisons such as those between David Duke (who make a cameo appearance)-and a sprightly young thing-of any coupling that can be price tagged, exchanged, or discarded. The casino and noncasino lights that surround Jewel, in her preternatural (and perhaps ultimately unrealistic, or at least extremely rare) stability, enact a preciousness beyond money and its temporary accumulations. They symbolize the nonmonetary values of the gift of being, the privilege not of accumulating but of existing-of the privilege of being alive, a spectator of phenomena in a world whose mortal decay, far from being its downfall, guarantees the preciousness of the light show it displays. Anyone who has taken junkets to Atlantic City may have noticed how on the flight there everyone chatters; they are full of excitement on hope. The way back is different. Everyone, or almost everyone has lost. They are quiet-until the plane lands, at which point they clap. Why? Because, although they have lost their money, they are newly appreciative of the far more precious gift of being alive. That is the mini-miracle, the lottery ticket, the stiff Barthelme hits for us in this wonderful paean to human frailty and true, tough love. In a way, Barthelme, his heart bigger than any red chip, says in this book the exact opposite of comedian Steven Wright's quip, "You can't have everything, where would you put it?" Barthelme says (with mathematician Paul Erdos) you do have everything, you have it all, already-you are infinitely rich.

I read this book as soon as it came out, have recommended it to friends, and just now purchased another copy as a gift. It's one of the best books I've read in years. The characters are so acutely observed, the dialogue so on target, that I got carried away with it. The well-written gambling scenes made my hands sweat at points. And the ending -- the ending is absolutely perfect.

Simple to read, even for me that I dont understand some english words. Great explanation about the premium player segment. Thanks to the authors, wich I reckon they put maximum effort to make it.

An invaluable primer on casino management. This book should be on the shelf of every executive in the gaming industry.

"Casino Operations Management" is the best book on the market now focusing on operational issues that confront casino managers. It is arguably "too much" for an undergraduate course, but the book is highly recommended for casino managers who want to strengthen their understanding of what makes a casino really tick. Those simply interested in in-depth knowledge of the industry's operational issues will also find the book helpful.

Good overview of casino operations. It covers Indian gaming as well as Nevada and mentions where there are difference. I am the controller and I wish it had more accounting /finance.

This book is a must read for everyone entering the casino business. It's a clear reference, and it shows derails some myths about gaming operations.

I've purchased this book for the second time having sold my first one. I will not sell it again. For every room shown in this book and there are many---there is instruction, patterns, etc. for almost each detail item. No big furniture making instruction, there's a lot of polymer clay making and although not new, many tips for a novice, like me.
Lots of photos and clear instruction makes this an invaluable book for the mini maker/lover. Get it now because online (if you can find it), hardback copy is going for $60-$105....can't believe it. Yes, it is that good! Sue Heaser's books are following close behind.

While this may be a good place to start if you are new to the dollhouse hobby, on the whole I was dissapointed with this book. The instructions are simple, and easy enough to follow, and there are neat little pictures to photocopy, but the projects themselves are not as high quality as those from many of my other dollhouse books. Great for those who are dabbling with the hobby, but for more experienced mini fans, I would give this one a miss.

I took this book out of the local library because I am in search of projects to build in a larger scale (about 1:3.5) and wanted to get ideas from the dollhouse hobby. It is so lovely to see the photos of all the different completed items put together in a scene, it gives one lots of good ideas and inspirations. Many of the designs are made simply so that they can be copied exactly by the amateur, or expanded upon by the expert. Doll house making is such a varied art, and there is room for many styles. "The Artist's Workshop" chapter is also rather amusing, and "The Illustrator's Studio" is cute. Those and the Conservatory are the ones I personally would most be looking to emulate.

I think there must be some petty gossip and whatnot going on in this miniaturist hobby. There are some exceedingly immature reviews that have been posted below and I hope that amazon gets around to removing them. What do these persons want, some kind of textbook to copy exactly so that everyone's work will look alike? Such a lack of professionalism only makes the hobby at large look bad to the rest of the world. This is a fine book and I would love to see any of these things "live" at a show.

Yet another excellent volume to add to your Miniature Library. This book also by Kath Dalmeny, is perfect for those wanting to make their own accessories instead of the commercial items available. Lots of very useful templates to take the guesswork out of those boxes, crates, labels etc. Ideal for those who like constructing things!

This book is packed with the most amazing craft projects, Kath Dalmeny's attention to detail simply breathtaking. I have her next book and if you want to make your own dolls house furniture, rather than buy it in a store these are the books for you.

The stuff may be a bit European looking to American eyes but that simply adds to the charm. Is she English? I guess so with cricket bats and the like maybe she can get over here and produce an American version with mini bleachers and baseball bats!

To the reviewer from Chicago, if you can do better then I look forward to YOUR book!

My recommendation is buy the book, get inspired and try your hand.

This book is must for your poker collection if you are serious about improving the math part of your game. Portions of it are a little more complicated then some have suggested but nothing overwhelming.
There are also many great tables dealing with probabilities of specific scenarios occurring.

This book shows you the mathematics behind poker in great detail. This is an advantage, but a disadvantage as well.
You really should have a strong interest for mathematics and some background on calculation probabilities. If not, the book, even though written in an easy-to-read manner, will be hard to understand for you.
What you also should know is that to redo the calculations yourself, you will need, besides a calculator, additional software. So for some sections, you should be sitting in front of your computer when reading the book.

I have never seen a poker book describing the mathematics of poker in such a detail. Whereas many of us just use the simple 2/4 rule for calculating pot odds, the author shows us the mathematically correct way to do it.
Whereas this is theoretically interesting, I often missed the practical use or generalisation of the results.

The reason why I gave this book 3 instead of 4 stars is from a sentence in the foreword: The author says that his mother, who neither understands much of poker nor of mathematics, was able to read and understand this book. And this I definitifely cannot comprehend.

This is my new favorite poker book. It took my poker thinking to a new level.

Most books give you general rules of thumb. For example, they recommend continuation betting 1/2 to 2/3 of the pot. To follow up they might give an qualitative explanation saying "it give you 2 ways to win..."

However, Tony Guerrera explains poker problems qualitatively and quantitatively. By going thru the problem mathematically, you really go deeper and start to understand what's going on under the hood. He also teaches you a framework to solve poker problems/situations yourself. In fact, at the end of chapters he gives you homework to solve yourself. Highly recommended to players who want to improve and are willing to spend the time to do homework and study (reading the book more than once).

Odd that this book hasn't had many reviewers. I guess it won't win any popularity contests, but the book gave me more poker tools than any TwoPlusTwo book has.

Just finished the book and feel it is an excellent analytical tool. The author has given the reader an excellent framework for decision making. Other books I've read have not covered the subject as thoroughly as this book did. The emphasis is on reading your opponent's past play and then using that information to assign probability to current holding. I think the book is a useful addition to your poker library.

Tony Guerrera takes the science of poker to a new level. Recommend for all players!

I don't think this book offers anything new for neither the top professional poker player nor the CEOs of the Fortune 500. However, anyone else in between will surely come away with at least a few common sense gems of wisdom which can be applied in our everyday lives. The stories about the colourful poker characters and crabby old office ladies are somewhat interesting. It is when the author explains how to understand and benefit from their motives is where the value of this fine read shows through. Apparently the author has a lot more sage advice than he does hair. I plan on re-reading this at least once a year.

A Certified Public Accountant and former President and Chief Financial Officer for three Arizona-based companies, Tom Schneider found that his background and experience in business and management were readily adaptable to playing and winning at poker. Becoming successful in going up against some of the most accomplished players in some of the biggest poker games around, Tom became and professional poker player (and the host of Texas' first televised poker tournament) for the last four years and has finished "in the money" four times at the World Series of Poker. Now he brings together in the pages of Oops! I Won Too Much Money: Winning Wisdoms From The Boardroom To The Poker Table (also available in a paperback edition, 1933285389, $16.95) all the hard earned wisdom he's learned in business, in poker, and in life to provide aspiring poker players with wit, humor, and "life lessons learned" that will enable poker players to become better at playing the game and living their lives .

Review by Bette Daoust, Ph.D. for Reader Views (3/06)

In my estimation I am not a gambler but in reality after reading this book, I recognize the signs of a true gambler at business. Some of us go to the poker table while others play the game of business. No matter which way you go, you are always taking risks and perhaps even educated risks. Poker is about knowing when you have a positive edge and when you should recognize where you stand at all times. Business is no different. Tom Schneider opens the eyes to the similarities between how we work the business game as a parallel to the game of poker.

His wisdom comes from deep experience and is not just giving platitudes about what we should be doing. His insights ring true. This book will help the reader to strengthen their game in either world because you will be more aware of the nature of other people in the inside the game.

This book packs a lot of information into an easy read - wisdom everyone should tap into.

I bought this book because more than a few reviewers gave it 5 stars. The author must have called in favors because as poker or business advice it is hard to imagine anyone taking his "wisdom" seriously. He constantly hypes his previous business positions and seems to address his audience as if they are high school drop-outs on drugs. Bad advice is somehow acceptable if it also includes bad humor. Here are some examples:
"Winning Wisdom #7: The telephone is the best invention of all time. Use it"
"Winning Wisdom #9: If you won a bronze medal at the last Olympics in the 100-meter dash, no need to tell that seventy-year-old man about it before you dust him for $5,000 at the local high school track."
"Winning Wisdom #10: When you get fat, dumb, and happy, leave the dumb part out."
"...but 90 percent of the time a decent player plays, he has a win at some point during the play. Yet that same player may only have a winning percentage of 60 percent at the end of the night. He's not a good quitter."
"Winning Wisdom #18: You'll be in the spin cycle several times in your life. Don't make big decisions while you're in it..."
"Winning Wisdom #20: Anyone can be the best. You just have to do the right thing."
"If there is one thing that I would like women to learn from his book, it's not to complain about your weight or looks to your fat, ugly friends."

Come to think of it, this book IS laughable.

Tom Schneider doesn't tell us too much we don't already know in his new book. But he reminds us of important things we maybe don't pay attention to enough. I finished his easy to read book in a couple of evenings. The writing style is almost like a wizened old uncle telling interesting stories. Never heavy handed or hard to decipher he reveals truths about life and business through clear clean parables.
This is a book you will enjoy and enjoy giving friends.

I don't know what the other reviewers are smoking, but this is one of the worst Blackjack books I have read. Might as well take your 10 or 15 dollars and just throw it away. This book is almost 100% just random babbling, all words and no numbers. A HUNDRED AND NINETY PAGES INTO THE BOOK, BASIC STRATEGY IS THE ONE AND ONLY THING HE HAS ACTUALLY COVERED. I was disgusted when I looked at the page number and saw 190, realizing all this idiot had done was talk about what he was going to teach for over half of the entire book. He stretches five word sentences into page and a half long explanations to fill up space, and he does it quite well. This book is ridiculously stupid, I STRONGLY suggest reading almost any other book.

Gambling is an iffy proposition without some real knowledge. To learn one must play 100 times (+) and hope that LUCK is in the house or things can get depressin real fast or one can go to the source of knowledge. This book teaches the unitiated some fundamentals and strategies with wich to approach the table with a fair amount of confidence and with the right bankroll, for they say that without the proper amount of cash you are bracing yourself for defeat. Mr. Royer strikes as one of the good guides, he certainly knows his subject and his overall writing is quite enjoyable. After reading Mr. Royer's book I went to Las Vegas (my favorite!) and put into practice what I had learned from this book. I had my bearings about me and it lasted the better of 2 solid hours, in which in a 5 dollar table with the right conditions (Favoring the Player as much as possible, but of course!!)I won 185 dollars, after having lost and won my fair share of both. The point I am making is that without the book I definitely would have lost much more and not won anything. I gave him 5 stars for 4 did not quite do the job.
I walked out a winner and realized that this is something I am actually enjoying. I always favored dices but Blackjack is a lot of fun!

This book by Victor H. Royer is one of a great books about Blackjack. If you are serious about knowing the real truth of what Blackjack is all about, then you must have this book.

Here you will find not only a terrific history of this great game, but you will find invaluable information about how the game is actually played in the casinos of the 21st Century. What you may have heard about Blackjack in the past, or perhaps read as recently as the last century, is no longer the case. What you see on TV about the various Blackjack card counting systems is also no longer possible under the majority of situations and circumstances, such as are the real truth of the modern casino.

What you should know is Royer's tiered wagering method, and his new Modified Basic Strategy - MBS. If you want to give yourself the right chance to win money, then this is the book for you. It will pay for itself many times over in just your first trip to a casino.

My comment is not only about this great Blackjack book, but also about the reviewer identified as "munkmunk." All readers of that person's review of this book, or any other, should take note of what he says in the opening line to his review of "Playing Blackjack as a Business," by L. Revere, also posted here at Amazon. In that review, titled by "munkmunk" as "Sexist, thief, egomaniac?", the first line of his review says:

"Not being "of age," and therefore not playing in a casino, I cannot say how much money one could make with these strategies."

By his own admission, "munkmunk" is not of legal age to gamble. Therefore he is unable to understand the real world of the casino, and how and why strategies in this book, and the other by L. Revere, are applicable to those environments. Being so obviously out of touch with the reality of the world of Blackjack play in the casino, since by his own admission he cannot so legally play there being too young, this makes it plainly obvious that this young person merely has some anger of his own to grind, and seems to enjoy lambasting good books and the hard work by their authors. Amazon should perhaps be more careful, and not allow underage persons to so shamefully misunderstand books of these adult subjects.

Additionally, we should all remember that the real world of the in-casino blackjack play is nothing like the "theoretical" world of the statistician, or mathematician. Furthermore, we should also understand that the minds of the very young often cannot grasp realities in either the "theoretical" or the "real world," and thus have significantly skewed opinions on something whose intended purposes obviously escape them, and whose principles are far too advanced for their undeveloped minds to as yet conceive.

It should be obvious to everyone reading these reviews by the young "munkmunk" that they are a form of teenage angst, sadly directed at the authors of these good books on Blackjack.

This book is a serious work about a serious subject, and extraordinarily well written -- but it is written for adults who will play in real casinos -- and not for angry children with a computer and nothing better to do than to express their ignorance in a public forum like these postings at Amazon.

Read this book for yourself, and you will know why the other reviewers, including myself, have found this to be such a terrific, fresh, new look at a great old game.

I have all the blackjack books. While the mathematics are usually sound, and the theory is always accurate..these books never did what was most important....TURN ME INTO A WINNER!

I requested my yearly statement back from the Grand for 2003 and they show me at a net loss of $105. Thats for the ENTIRE year! Now consider that I always hide Green Chips and Black chips whenever possible before cashing in at the table to conceal my true winnings, and consider the 33 night of free hotel stays, the endless free meals, the free shows, the free trips on the casino plesure boat etc. and I was a BIG winner in 2003! My first winning year ever.

I owe all of that to Victor's Blackjack book. He offers a method of play that will actually allow you to win without counting cards, without risking getting barred from the casino, and without all of the mathematics involved in the card counting strategy.

The wagering differential is the most amazing concept I have ever seen. I logged most of my play from 2003...I shoudl have logged it all, but I didn't. But from my records I only had 3 losing sessions in 2003 at the Grand.

What more can I say. This book pays for itself.