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#1
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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 ![]() |
#2
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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. |
#3
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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) |
#4
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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. |
#5
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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. |
#6
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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 |
#7
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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 |
#8
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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.
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#9
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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. |
#10
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It's a good book and would probably have been next on my list. Definitely top 15.
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