Top 10 books

[cormacie]

Hi,
I'd like to know your views of the best books out there. From starting to perfecting (not that it's possible but, trying to) basically, what are the essential books and how good are they? Thanks:)

[PittFan]

Well, I can't give you 10, but there are 4 out there that I know of which are almost universally acclaimed.

Theory of Poker, Sklansky
Hold Em for Advanced Players (21stC), Sklansky/Malmuth
Tournament Poker for Advanced Players, Sklansky
Winning Low Limit Hold 'Em, Lee Jones

Some people don't like Jones' book, but it's more beginner-accessible than Sklansky & Malmuth...the perfect 1st read. With a little experience and study, though, you'll graduate to 2+2 to take things to the next level.

[Stew]

Here are my ten, pretty much in order:

Theory Of Poker
HPFAP
Tournament Poker for Advanced Players
Pot-limit/No-limit Hold 'Em (Ciaffone/Reuben)
Winning Low-Limit Hold 'Em (Jones) - great starter book
Poker Essays I,II and II
Championship Satellite Strategy (Mcevoy/Daugherty)
Championship NL/PL Hold 'Em (Mcevoy/Cloutier)

[uuDevil]

My Top 10 Poker Books:

1. Holdem Poker for Advanced Players, by David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth
I saw how deep the water could get. At the top of my reread list.

2. Theory of Poker, by David Sklansky
Defines the conceptual universe of poker.

3. Winning Low Limit Holdem, by Lee Jones
It got me started playing better.

4. Middle Limit Holdem, by Bob Ciaffone and Jim Brier
For better or worse, it showed me where the monsters might be hiding.

5. Internet Texas Holdem: Winning Strategies from an Internet Pro, by Matthew Hilger
Along similar lines to Middle Limit Holdem-- lots more examples.

6. Inside the Poker Mind, by John Feeney
Many good essays on the psychology of poker.

7. Super System, by Doyle Brunson, et. al.
Doyle's no-limit section makes it worthwhile.

8. Gambling Theory and other Topics, by Mason Malmuth
Particulaly for understanding variance and bankroll requirements.

9. Tournament Poker for Advanced Players, by David Sklansky
How tournament poker differs from ring game play.

10. Improve your Poker, by Bob Ciaffone
Outstanding essays, especially the one on bluffing.

Honorable Mention: The Evolution of a Poker Player, by Steven James
A strange, incomplete, flawed little book, but the appendix got me started thinking more clearly about the value of starting hands.

Honorable Mention: (not a book): Twoplustwo.com
Gave me some confidence that most of the time, I do know what I'm doing. Also helped me get out of the weak-tight mode (on-going).

Maybe half of these are "essential," but all are worthwhile. FYI, I mostly play limit Holdem and I'm not an expert-- just a purely recreational, marginally winning, low limit player.

Lastly, I would be very disappointed if Ed Miller's upcoming book did not end up on this list.

[jdl22]

These are my 10 favorite books. Note that this varies depending on my mood and how much reading I have time for:
10. Homage to Catalonia - George Orwell
excellent true account of the Spanish Civil War

9. The Game of Their Lives - can't remember the author
recounts the greatest upset in the history of sports. No no the miracle on ice but the US national teams defeat of the mighty English in the 1950 World Cup

8. Death in the Afternoon - Ernest Hemingway
all Hemingway books are good, especially those about bullfighting

7. Hand of God - Jimmy Burns
biography of the most interesting sports figure and the greatest footballer ever Diego Armando Maradona (who played for my Sevilla btw)

6. For Whom the Bell Tolls - Ernest Hemingway
Hemingway's greatest novel. Covers the Spanish Civil War from a fictional perspective. Fantastic reading. I highly reccomend buying this book with the money that S&M make you as per their suggestion in HPFAP

5. Fever Pitch - Nick Hornby
follows an Arsenal fans journey from the days when Arsenal were mediocre (obviously now that they have Reyes they are the best team in England)

4. Positively 5th Street - James McManus
follows authors journey to the final table of the WSOP main event as well as the Ted Binion murder trial and other goings on at the shoe and in vegas in general - great reading

3. It's Not About the Bike - Lance Armstrong
follows the cancer survivors journey from deaths door to the top of the podium at the tour de france

2. The Theory of Games and Economic Behaviour - John von Neumann and Oscar Morgenstern
this book basically started game theory as a field. Much of it is outdated but it is still a must have on the shelf if not a must read.

1. Principles of Mathematical Analysis - Walter Rudin
Certainly the best analysis book ever written. Possibly the best math book overall.

Oh you probably wanted poker books. I would say if you're just starting out you should get these books in this order:
WLLHE(winning low limit hold'em) by Lee Jones
good introduction to the game, his advice will probably have you playing break even poker

Psychology of Poker - Alan Schoonmaker
good introduction to the mental side of the game. Walks you through your motives for playing and how they affect your play which every (new) player should understand

Hold'em Poker - David Sklansky
This book is both introductory and advanced at the same time. He has excellent advice on starting hands and the discussion of flops you like and flops you don't is worthwhile if you're learning. There are a few advanced concepts and the some concepts are outdated because of the different blind structure when it was written (yes I have the "updated version" which is pretty much just footnotes telling me what part of the text is outdated) but it is also quite useful for the beginner.

By the time you get through those you are ready to graduate to the big three advanced books:

Something about using winning strategy at lower limits (I'm sure the real title will be posted if it hasn't been already) - Ed Miller, David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth

This book is as yet unpublished. Apparently Ed, a frequent poster here, is nearly finished with the writing end. This book will describe how to win as much as possible in games where people limp too much and take hands too far. If Ed's posts here are any indication this book will be the low limit book.

Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players - David Sklansky and Mason Malmuth

This book is advanced and tends to cover bigger games with better opponents than the other books mentioned. While some concepts and strategies aren't applicable to lower limits with bad players many are and this book is beneficial even at the lower limits full of fish.

Theory of Poker - David Sklansky

Similar to HPFAP, this book is fairly advanced. The book is designed to go into the theory behind certain plays in poker. It is quite good. I would reccomend you get this now if you find math and or game theory interesting because you will be find it enjoyable even if you aren't sophisticated enough to apply the concepts yet.

wow that post got way too long. Sorry.

[The WET BEAVER]

Top 10 books:

1. Holdem Poker for Advanced Players
2. Theory of Poker
3. Hold'em Poker by David Sklansky
4. Poker Essays II
5. Inside the Poker Mind
6. Poker Essays III
7. Middle Limit Holdem by Bob Ciaffone
8. No Limit and Pot Limit by Bob Ciaffone
9. Poker, Gaming, and Life
10. Real Play by Roy Cooke

[The WET BEAVER]

Top 5 Garbage books:

1. holdem excellence by lou kreiger
2. more holdem excellence by lou kreiger
3. poker tournament strategies by sylvester suzuki
4. championship limit holdem by cloutier/mcevoy
5. winning holdem by ken warren

[Syntax]

One book which I belive is great for starting out players that no one ever seems to reccomend is "Fundamental Secrets to Winning Poker" by Mike Caro. In Gambling Theory, I believe Mason gives this book a 9.

[BugsBunny]

My top ten, in no particular order:

Theory of Poker by Sklansky and Malmuth

Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players by Sklansky and Malmuth

Improve Your Poker by Bob Ciaffone

Middle Limit Holdem by Bob Ciaffone and Jim Brier

Real Poker II The Play of Hands by Roy Cooke

Internet Texas Hold'em by Matthew Hilger (this should replace WLLH by Jones as *the* starter book)

Inside the Poker Mind by John Feeney (If you're a beginner I might replace this with "The Psychology of Poker" by Alan Schoonmaker)

Poker Essays II By Mason Malmuth

Poker Essays III by Mason Malmuth

Super System by Doyle Brunson

Super System is mostly outdated, but covers so many games it still belongs in your library. There's a lot in there that is applicable across games as well in terms of general concepts. The only sections that are probably still applicable are the Stud and NL sections. If you play in a home game where draw is still played, or Hi/Lo with a declare, then those sections will be useful as well.

If you're interested in Big Bet poker then the NL section in Super System becomes a must read. Also "Pot-Limit & No-Limit Poker" by Stewart Reuben and Bob Ciaffone.


I Suspect that Ed Millers new book will soon get added to that list. Also Bob Ciaffone is coming out with a new No Limit book, probably in the fall, that I suspect will become must reading for that game. The excerpts I've seen so far are really good.

The above is, obviously, Hold'em centric but with some non-holdem information available as well.

[BugsBunny]

It's a good book and would probably have been next on my list. Definitely top 15.

[MrGo]

Why don't people recommend Poker Essays I? I haven't read it, but is it not worth reading, as opposed to II and III?

[MEbenhoe]

Not a top 10 but I think these 8 books are definite essentials for any poker player.

Super System
Theory of Poker
Mike Caro's Book of Poker Tells
Sklansky on Poker
Poker Essays I,II,and III (I'm counting these as one book)
Fundamental Secrets of Winning Poker
Zen and the Art of Poker
The Psychology of Poker

Purely Hold em books:

Hold em for Advanced Players
Winning Low Limit Hold em
Hold em Odds Book - Mike Petriv
Championships No Limit and Pot Limit Hold em

7 Card Stud books:

7 Card Stud for Advanced Players
Winning 7 Card Stud - Ashley Adams
7 Card Stud - Konstantin Othmer

Other Books:

Championship Satellite Strategy
The Secrets to Winning Big in Tournament Poker
Tournament Poker for Advanced Players
High-low Split Poker for Advanced Players
Winning Omaha/8 Poker

I have to admit I obviously overlooked some books but that was about as good of a list as I could come up with. Good luck with your reading.

[avatar77]

My top 10 are:
The theory of poker - David Sklansky
Improve your poker - Bob Ciaffone
Caro's book of tells - Mike Caro
Caro's fundamental secrets of poker - Mike Caro
Winning Low Limit Holdem - Lee Jones
Hold'em Poker for Advanced Players - David Sklansky
Middle Limit Holdem - Bob Ciaffone
Pot Limit and No Limit Poker - Bob Ciaffone
Championship No Limit and Pot Limit Hold'em - Cloutier
Winning 7-Card Stud - Ashley Adams

This is based on books I have so far read but I am planning to include the following to my collection based on the positive reviews I am hearing:
Internet Poker by Matthew Hilger
Realpoker II - Roy Cooke
Psychology of Poker
Inside the Poker Mind

[BugsBunny]

It's definitely worth reading. I just think II and III are better. The original isn't bad by any means. If it had been a top 15 list then I would have definitely been on it.

[nicky g]

In no particular order, and with a PL/NL bias (don't really play limit)

Theory of Poker - Sklansky
HPFAP - Sklansky/Malmuth
Pot Limit and No Limit Hold'em - Rueben/Ciaffone
Improve Your Poker - Ciaffone
How Good is Your PLO/PLHE (count as one) - Reuben
O8/7CS8 For Advanced Players - "Crazee" Ray Zee (Why isn't that his nickname? It so should be).
Tournament Poker FAP - Sklansky

That's not ten but I think they're amongst the best. I've not read any other 2+2 books, mainly because they're largely about limit which I don't play too much, but I'm sure many others should be in there. The Poker Essays series are next on my reading list and I imagine they should be on the list.

Both Winning Low Limit Hold'Em and Starting Out in Poker 9Reuben) are very good but I don't think as beginners books they rank as great (not to mention they both have their flaws).

[chrisjp]

I just purchased Matthew Hilger's Internet Texas Holdem: Winning Strategies from an Internet Pro

It is #5 on uudevil's list. A wonderful book. I highly recommend it.

I also want to second dev's comment about twoplustwo.com

[carlosblack]

Here is another vote for Internet Texas Holdem. I am a beginner player and a very avid book reader. I have read everything I have been able to get my hands on and this book stands out. It is the only book I would recomend outside of the 2+2 library.

I am not sure who Hilger is and the starting hand section is too confusing and probably targeted at specific games. The pot odds chapter (which is finally placed at the begining of the book!) makes the book worth it by itself. Going over different types of flops was an eye opener for me.

The icing on the cake are the large number of _good_ examples for each chapter. I would be a much better player if somebody made a book of just examples like these.

[pittlaw]

Here's my list, in no particular order:

Theory of Poker
Hold'em poker for advanced players
Improve your poker
NL/PL Poker
Inside the poker mind
Winning low limit hold'em
Omaha Hold'em Poker
High Low split poker for advanced players
Tourney poker for advanced players
NL part of Super/System (for those days I feel like being really agressive)

[Mano]

1. Principles of Mathematical Analysis - Walter Rudin

When I took my first analysis class many years ago, my professor claimed if you shook this book and all unimportant information fell to the floor, the only thing that would fall out would be the page numbers. Of course Rudin's Real & Complex Analysis book goes deeper and is more advanced.

[mosta]

[ QUOTE ]
9. The Game of Their Lives - can't remember the author
recounts the greatest upset in the history of sports. No no the miracle on ice but the US national teams defeat of the mighty English in the 1950 World Cup


[/ QUOTE ]

My impression was that W Germany over Hungary in 1954 and Uruguay over Brazil (in Maracana) were bigger upsets--?

[RollaJ]

What is the best book for strategy you should use against all the people who have memorized HPFAP and TOP? Is there a better one than just using HPFAP and TOP?

[sin808]

At that point, do you need a book to tell you how to play (or the theories behind plays)? I would think that once you've digested the top authors books and succesfully applied the material that one would be able to expand upon that themselves thinking of plays that would succesfully counter the 'textbook' plays that others will be making. At what point do you start to explore the game without the guidance of an 'authority'?

At least I think that makes sense. /images/graemlins/crazy.gif

[Mackas]

Most people have covered all the great books to improve your game. For a bit of light reading on the side try:

1. Positively Fifth Street by Jim Mc Manus
2. Big Deal by Tony Holden
3. Poker Nation by Andy Bellin
4. The Education of a Poker Player by Herbert O Yardley
5. Poker Wisdom of a Champion by Doyle Brunson

I got more pure enjoyment out of these than the others and they kept me interested in the game while I was learning which has got be as important as anything else. The more you love the game the more likely you are to keep reading the 'important' books and keep playing, which is the only way to improve.

For those who haven't read them already I would read 4 & 5 whenever and read the others in the order 321, that way they keep getting better and you'll love them all.

GL

Mackas