Poker Books

which books do you lot recommend as ive heard harringtons are ok but what do you think.

thanks!

Probably lose respect among my peers here but I have not read Harrington on Holdem.

However many, many folks on here say all three volumes are excellent and I will pick them up soon for sure.

Of the books I have read, Phil Gordon's Little Green Book was really good. Its pretty short but sweet and is very easy to understand as long as you are not a complete newbie.

I am sure others will chime in with their thoughts but this will get the ball rolling.

I will agree on Phil Gordons book. It is an easy reading book that has simple explanations that all can understand. I actually use his book as a refresher book because of the easy and informative sections. The Harrington books are good because they go into examples which make you think about what is going on in a hand and makes you use your own thought process too. Other than those the first thing to come in mind would be any one of Sklansky's books. Very informative with lots of detailed info.

It depends what game you want to improve on (stud? hold em? tournament style? cash game?).

Slansky's Theory of Poker is a good one to get started with + there is a discussion thread on that particular book you can reference.

The first and only book I've read, so far, is

"Illustrated Guide To Texas Hold'em: Making Winners Out Of Beginners and Advanced Players" by Dennis Purdy.

It's geared toward limit rather than no limit but it teaches alot of good stuff like calcuating odds, analyzing hands, etc. Been a while since I read it but I think it was every chapter was a poker hand and he would play it out for you and then ask you wheter to bet, fold, check, etc. Then he would provide the answer and say why.

I think i read the whole thing in one day, no longer than two days. It was a good read.

Well, I would agree with some of the books above. But those that have seen me post before, would know that I would be remiss if I didn't stand by the Dan Harrington series (Harrington on Holdem). I think there are many good and several great books out there, and I personally rank HoH 1, 2, and 3 as some of the best. IMHO. Again, that's not to say you shouldn't read other authors, because you should as it will give you better insight into different views on how to play the same game.

And I know some will be upset with me for saying this, but by and large, stay away from Dumbass Brunson's Stupid System (either volume). You're simply better off burning the cash. Spend it on some other books.

Jack Daniels said:

And I know some will be upset with me for saying this, but by and large, stay away from Dumbass Brunson's Stupid System (either volume). You're simply better off burning the cash. Spend it on some other books.

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As far as Texas hold em goes, I would agree with you. But, it's a great book if you want some helfpul tips and stragedies if you want to play Stud, Stud hi/lo, draw poker and Lowball.

ss?

My list of recommendations:

https://www.cardschat.com/poker-strategy.phpbooks

I wrote that list in May, and I already feel it's obsolete because so many books are published, but it's a good start. If it's Hold 'em you're interested in, I will without hesitation tell you that "Getting Started in Hold 'em" by Ed Miller is the best book (I've read) that you can get.

I think a lot of people skip that book because they want the "advanced" strategies, or whatever. I could go on for quite awhile about my thoughts on that, but I'll just leave it at "they're making a mistake."

/FP

I just started reading Small Stakes Hold 'em by Millar/Sklansky/Malmuth right now - so far an interesting read. The book is well written and very easy to understand.

All of Harringtons books, Theory of poker, Holdem for the advanced player and all of David Apostolico's books.

What's up with Stupid System?? Haven't read the whole thing but I've gleaned a few handy nuggets from it so far.

Here are the best books to read in my opinion.

There are three levels:
Begginer: super systems 1 and 2 (brunson), The theory of poker (sklansky), Harrington on hold'em vol, 1 (harrington) play like the pro's (hellmuth)
medium: phil gordon's little green book. (gordon) Championship Tournament Poker, (McEvoy) harrington on hold'em vol. 2 (harrington)
Advanced: Hold'em poker for advanced players (sklansky) ace on the river (greenstein), Mike Caro's book of tells (Caro), The pshycology of poker (Shcoomaker)

Must Reads: all of them thats why they are hear.

don't stop there read everything you can, then form your own style and opinion of how to play.

Jack Daniels said:

And I know some will be upset with me for saying this, but by and large, stay away from Dumbass Brunson's Stupid System (either volume). You're simply better off burning the cash. Spend it on some other books.

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t1riel said:

As far as Texas hold em goes, I would agree with you. But, it's a great book if you want some helfpul tips and stragedies if you want to play Stud, Stud hi/lo, draw poker and Lowball.

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Bombjack said:

What's up with Stupid System?? Haven't read the whole thing but I've gleaned a few handy nuggets from it so far.

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I figured I'd catch a little flack for posting this, which is why I prefaced a little acknowledging that. Fact is, in my opinion, I don't like the man, the way he plays, or the way his ghost writing is done. I personally don't see any value in what he puts out. I can get the same info elsewhere in just as good or better a format and it will be from someone I actually respect (yes, I know, blasphemy). Yeah, I know about his wsop bracelets and all the money he's won. That doesn't change things for me. I think part of the problem is that he feels he is entitled to it and everyone that drools over him just enables that more. Like when people clap and give him standing ovations when you gets knocked out of a tournament. Please. When I present my opinion, I include the good with the bad. I'm sure there are people out there somewhere that don't like Dan Harrington or his books or something. They are entitled to that opinion.

And that is really all what that is about.

I agree Brunson has a superiority complex and expects everyone to worship him. 20 pages on your life story and how you nearly but not quite became a pro basketball player, along with half the family photo album, isn't necessary in a book about poker.

In a lot of these, it's not specified if the book is for limit, no limit or both.

I'm looking for some books best for No Limit cash games. Like a lot of people recommend Hold 'em for Advanced Players, but that's only for limit, right? Just wanting to know which of these recommendations (or any books that haven't been mentioned) apply best to NL cash games.

HPFAP is for limit, yes. HoH1 and No-limit Hold 'Em Theory and Practise are the two best books for NL cash games I found. Phil Gordon's Little Green Book comes highly recommended as well, but I haven't read that yet.

F Paulsson said:

Phil Gordon's Little Green Book comes highly recommended as well, but I haven't read that yet.

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Gordon's Little Green Book, and how his Little Blue Book as well, both appear to be very Harrington-esque. Very example oriented with narrative around them. I haven't purchased or read them entirely, but I've perused them sitting at Barnes and Noble. I'm considering adding them as I like the writing style in general and it would give another perspective to things. Also, I did find that Phil took the time to actually tie some examples in his second book back to the first book, so there is a level of cumulative affect going on between the two. You don't need both, but I am intrigued by the idea and way he's done it.