Author: Matt Lessinger
Publisher: Warner Books
Twenty years ago, Mike Caro wrote the book on what to look for in a players movements, gestures, and facial expressionstheir tellsto determine if they were bluffing, and it remains one of the bestselling poker books of all time. But what Caro didnt do was teach players how to bluff. Enter Matt Lessinger, a professional poker player and columnist, who in THE BOOK OF BLUFFS shows players how to get their opponents to foldno matter how strong a hand theyve been dealt. Lessinger reveals how, with the correct timing and artistry, bluffing will allow a player to win while holding an inferior handthe very essence of poker.
Author: Bob Ciaffone
Publisher: Bob Ciaffone
This poker book is a collection of articles about the various skills needed for playing good poker. Several poker forms are discussed, including limit holdem, no-limit holdem, and pot-limit Omaha. It is oriented toward the intermediate and advanced poker levels.
Bob Ciaffone has been a professional poker player for most of his life. He is the author of several other poker books, and writes a regular poker column. He spends a lot of time teaching poker, and his students have won over two million dollars in tournament prize money.
Author: David Sklansky
Publisher: Two Plus Two Publishing
The Theory of Poker by David Sklansky discusses theories and concepts applicable to nearly every variation of the game, including five-card draw (high), seven-card stud, hold ’em, lowball draw, and razz (seven-card lowball stud). This book introduces you to the Fundamental Theorem of Poker, its implications, and how it should affect your play. Other chapters discuss the value of deception, bluffing, raising, the slow-play, the value of position, psychology, heads-up play, game theory, implied odds, the free card, and semibluffing.
Author: Lee Jones
Publisher: Conjelco
For the last ten years, Winning Low Limit Hold’em has been the reference standard introduction to Texas Hold’em. Experienced hold’em players give this book to their friends who want to learn the game. Recently updated and expanded to include coverage of online poker and no-limit hold’em single-table tournaments, this is the one book that you need to start your hold’em career. “I always thought poker was a game of luck. After reading Lee’s book and applying the techniques recommended, it was as if I were in The Matrix. It all came clear to me. I simply saw the truth at the poker table.” – Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari, Winner, 2004 L.A. Poker Classic and 2004 World Series of Poker $2000 Pot Limit Hold’em event. “I wish this book had been out when I started playing hold’em, because it is a great way to learn the game. If you want to put yourself on the path to becoming a top hold’em player, Lee’s book is the place to start.” – Greg Raymer, Champion, 2004 World Series of Poker.
Author: David Sklansky
Publisher: Two Plus Two Publishing
Tournament poker is different from standard ring game poker. From a distance, it may look like a typical poker game, but there are many factors that can lead to proper strategy that is very different than what most players, (including good poker players), are familiar with.
Yet some people excel at tournament poker. This is not luck. These are players who have a good understanding of what the proper strategy adjustments are, and when they come into play. It is not a coincidence that the same players make it to the final table far more than their fair share.
This text is the first book ever written that explains tournament strategies which only a small number of players have mastered. It assumes you already know how to play poker well, but aren’t knowledgeable of tournament concepts and when and where to use them. Some of the ideas discussed include the effect of going broke, The Gap Concept, how chips change value, adjusting strategy because the stakes rise, all-in strategy, the last table, making deals, The “System,” and much more.
Author: Phil Gordon
Publisher: Simon Spotlight Entertainment
Phil Gordon plays poker with the best players in the world. He has won — and lost — in tournaments and cash games around the globe, all the while studying the game and learning from every hand dealt. As the resident expert and cohost of Celebrity Poker Showdown, Phil has quickly become one of the most sought-after teachers of No Limit Texas Hold’em. It’s a tough game. But anyone can become a winning player with the right amount of courage, patience, aggression, observation, and, perhaps most important, dedication to becoming a better player.
After fifteen years of keeping notes on the things he’s learned, the greats he’s played with, and the celebrities he’s taught, Phil Gordon has poured every single thing he knows about No Limit Texas Hold’em into this little green book. Taking a page from Harvey Penick’s bestselling book of golf wisdom, Phil plays the role of both teacher and student, offering up insightful tips on how to think about poker and how to develop a singular style of play. Through philosophy, psychology, strategy, math, and the knowledge gleaned from playing poker with everyone from T. J. Cloutier and Phil Ivey to Hank Azaria and Ben Affleck, Phil breaks down the game into enlightening instructional tidbits and illustrative anecdotes that inspire the kind of persistence and motivation necessary to improve your game.
Authors: Ed Miller, D.Sklansky, M.Malmuth
Publisher: Two Plus Two Publishing
For today’s poker players, Texas hold ’em is the game. Every day, tens of thousands of small stakes hold ’em games are played all over the world in homes, card rooms, and on the Internet. These games can be very profitable — if you play well. But most people don’t play well and end up leaving their money on the table.
Small Stakes Hold ’em: Winning Big with Expert Play explains everything you need to be a big winner. Unlike many other books about small stakes games, it teaches the aggressive and attacking style used by all professional players. However, it does not simply tell you to play aggressively; it shows you exactly how to make expert decisions through numerous clear and detailed examples.
This text presents cutting-edge ideas in straightforward language. It is the most thorough and accurate discussion of small stakes hold ’em available. Your opponents will read this book; make sure you do, too!
Author: Bob Ciaffone, Jim Brier
Publisher: Bob Ciaffone
Middle Limit Holdem Poker discusses holdem strategy for the $10-20 through $40-80 levels (the middle limits). The book discusses over 400 hands, nearly all taken from actual play. This extensive use of practical examples has set a standard for poker writing that many subsequent poker books have attempted to emulate.
Bob Ciaffone and Jim Brier are both professional poker players and poker columnists. Ciaffone has several other poker books to his credit. In 1987, he captured third place in the World Championship tournament.
Authors: David Sklansky, Mason Malmuth
Publisher: Two Plus Two Publishing
Texas Hold ’em is not an easy game to play well. To become an expert you must balance many concepts, some of which occasionally contradict each other. In 1988, the first edition appeared. Many ideas, which were only known to a small, select group of players, were made available to anyone who was striving to become an expert, and the hold ’em explosion had begun. It is now a new century, and the authors have again moved the state of the art forward by adding over 100 pages of new material, including extensive sections on “loose games,” and “short-handed games.” Anyone who studies this text, is well disciplined, and gets the proper experience should become a significant winner. Some of the other ideas discussed include play on the first two cards, semi-bluffing, the free card, inducing bluffs, staying with a draw, playing when a pair flops, playing trash hands, desperation bets, playing in wild games, reading hands, and psychology.
Poker books should not be seen as an expense, but rather as an investment – one that’s absolutely critical for improving your game. They enable you to obtain information and knowledge in just hours or days that otherwise could take years to learn on the tables. If you walk away with just one good idea from a book, it will return the cost of its initial purchase many times over. And it’s not just books. DVDs, websites, podcasts, TV shows, and magazines exist by the hundreds and are a wealth of information.
Still not sure? Start by checking out your local library. Poker has become so popular in recent years that many libraries now have a wide selection of material on the topic.
There are hundreds of poker books, and the number is growing every day. Of course, no one is capable of reading all of them. Based on advice from the most respected poker book reviewers, over the next few days, the blog will feature must reads for every serious poker player.
