Book Recommendations..???

Right...id say im relatively new to poker. I pretty good with the math side of things & would like to think im pretty good overall, even if im am just an amatuer amongst millions of other like minded ppl.

So, ive seen threads about books & heard ppl saying "have you read..." etc & would like to know two things really.
1) Before investing in a shelf load, do u think its necessary for anyone looking to advance in poker to be purchasing these "must reads"..?
2) Could u pls give me 1 or 2 (or as many as u like), names of books u think would be of use to me. NLHE & PLO please

Nice one - Mik

Tournaments or Cash?

There's a post in here somewhere from AlienGenius that lists his library and recommendations.

My quick recommendations -

PLO, Jeff Hwang's Pot Limit Omaha
Cash game NLHE - Ed Miller's books, esp Small Stakes No Limit Holdem and Professional No Limit Holdem
Tourneys - Harrington on Holdem (3 book series)

Fresh in my mind, since I just posted this in two other threads today.

dammit, knew i missed something out

both if u can recommend both, preferrably cash pls...thx

excellent...thx slycbnew

Cash NLHE

Ed Miller - Professional No-Limit Holdem (Small Stakes No Limit Holdem is very good but its $100)

Harrington on cash (2 book series)

Theory of Poker

TBH there really isn't much more out there that's worth reading. Once you read 10 - 20 books you will realise that they are essentially saying the same things and they are pretty well covered in these 3 books.

Nice 1 Stu

That was my underlying thought...that 99% of them must in the end be saying the same thing. from asking around, i seem to be getting the same recommendations on the whole, so ill definately give those few a go.

See u on the tables

For NL HoldEm, I just finished reading Phil Gordons "Little Green Book". Thought it was a good read and much easier to follow than Harringtons series. I've started Doyle's Super System a couple of times and just find that there is way too much to follow, and reading other reviews, a lot of people find it the same as me. Give Phil's book a try, you can get through it in a couple of hours and its easy to go back and check on certain scenarios.

i would say harrington vol. 1, 2, & 3. and a must read doyle's super system #2. gl on the felt.

I am reading Doyles book right now, it is classic, good advice what can you say. I also am reading Phil Hellmuth Jr,s play poker like a pro. better written for beginners, very clear and explains a lot - very easily understood.

I should state my above recomendations are coming from a relatively new player, less than one year really paying attention to play and getting more and more time and wins every day.......

Doyle's books are considered 'Bibles' in some circles.
Harrington's books are really excellent as well.

Read Phil Gordon's first, since it is the easiest to get through, especially if you are new to poker.

Not being familair wit Phil Gordon's book(s) it seems the little green book gets the nod for the first one to read?

Start with Phil Gordon's Little Green Book. About the best fundamental text I've ever come across.

Avoid Super System unless you're planning to play high-stakes mixed games. There's literally dozens of better books if you're playing micro-low-medium stakes NLHE cash games.

harrington on hold em

OzExorcist said:

Start with Phil Gordon's Little Green Book. About the best fundamental text I've ever come across.

Avoid Super System unless you're planning to play high-stakes mixed games. There's literally dozens of better books if you're playing micro-low-medium stakes NLHE cash games.

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What poker book doesn't take ideas or concepts that originated in Super System?

dwolfg said:

What poker book doesn't take ideas or concepts that originated in Super System?

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It is an outdated book

Stu_Ungar said:

It is an outdated book

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Some sections could be anyway. I really enjoyed Caro's section on five card draw and Chip Reese's section on seven card stud.

dwolfg said:

What poker book doesn't take ideas or concepts that originated in Super System?

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Most of them. But so what? It doesn't make Super System a good book for a $10NL player online, or even a $2/$5 player live or $200NL online player because the NLHE section of Super System assumes you'll be playing for high stakes against predominantly weak-tight players.

Plus with Super System you're shelling out a lot of money for a lot of content that you're probably never going to use. Seriously, how many five-card draw action goes on these days? If you've got the first book Sklansky's whole section on stud high-low is useless because nobody plays the game without a low qualifier anymore.

I've got nothing but respect for Doyle. Seriously. But Super System has little if anything to do with any game you, I or anyone else here is likely to play any time soon.

Any of Harrington's books. I read Harrington on Cash Games recently, very good. Only downside is it's not aimed at online poker, but is a good grounding in cash game play. His tournament books ain't bad either!

slycbnew said:

Cash game NLHE - Ed Miller's books, esp Small Stakes No Limit Holdem and Professional No Limit Holdem

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Small Stakes Limit Hold'em is amazing, and playing low level limit games has already made me a much more confident NLH player. Check that one out!

thx for all ur replies..!

Already been said... but Miller's SSNLHE together with Sklansky's NLHE: TAP are all you really need for cash... best two books out there imo.


Go with Harrington if you want to play tournaments.

the foundation of modern poker is outdated?

dwolfg said:

the foundation of modern poker is outdated?

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I'll ask again: how many games do you play in where the stakes are relatively high and the majority of your opponents are weak-tight?

If the answer is "not many" then for all intents and purposes yes, Super System's NLHE section is outdated.