Books: Looking for some quick book help.

I received 5,000 bonus points from my bank for opening up an online checking account and just noticed they expire tomorrow. Just messing around I did a search for 'poker' and then 'internet poker' both turned up a ton of books. I figure I was planning on buying some books anyways so I mine as well get them for free. What are some great books to buy about poker, and/or internet poker?

Thanks!

[UATrewqaz]

1. They have a seperate forum that discuss books.

2. If you've never played hold'em before I would suggest

Getting Started in Hold Em, by Ed Miller
Winning Low Limit Hold Em, by Lee Jones

If you have played limit hold em before I would suggest

Small Stakes Hold Em, by Miller, Sklansky, and Malmuth <---- (this book should be considered a bible if you play to play low limit (say 3/6 and below) online, as following it will allow you to steamroll the competition)

There is also

Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players, by Sklansky and Malmuth

However it's advice is generally geared for good players who need to become great players to continue winning at higher limits.

And no poker player is complete without reading

The Theory of Poker, by David Sklansky

It talks about high level concepts that can be applied to any poker game, including hold em of course.

3. If you plan on playing NL tournaments then you can get

Harrington on Hold Em (Volumes 1 and 2) by Dan Harrington, and Bill somebody or another

4. If you plan on playing NL cash games then sadly there is not that much literature on the market yet, as NL cash games were relatively rare before the poker boom.

5. When you read all these books your head will be spinning with awesome information and you'll feel like God's next gift to poker and want to dive in immediately to crush the competition, however the variance in poker (hold em particularly) is VERY steep. A great player can go on a really bad losing streak when the cards are unkind (either bad cards or good cards that make expensive second best hands or morons who suck out pop you on longshots a few times in a row). This variance is actually what makes poker profitable, as it seemingly "rewards" bad play, thus encouraging bad players to continue to play that way. THus you must play many many many many hands of solid poker to actually "win"