I’ve read a ton of books through lockdown and particularly enjoyed Harrington on hold em 1 and 2 and Phil Gordon’s little green book. Both gave a solid grounding of basics, although even as a novice I know some concepts are dated it is easy to understand and useful in starting to consider situations
I also loved 30 day course and Sit n Go by Collin Moshman very focussed and gives a clear strategy.
Struggled with Slansky’s Theory of Poker (I will probably be flogged for saying that!!!) and Ed Millar The Course.
Elements of poker was fascinating and great to read but not quite as educational and Jonathan Little’s books were good as audio books with the information coming thick and fast.
Lots I haven’t mentioned but thinks it’s time to end the book review and play the game!
I like all of those. Except The Coarse and only because I have not read that one.
Really depends on what you are trying to improve. General poker, the above are all great and I have used Dan Harrington Vol 3 many times to get my head back where it needs to be.
Little Green Book is the best for a fresh beginner. Its an easy and fun read that gets you introduced to basic concepts without overwhelming.
On the flip side, Sklansky's book Theory of Poker is a very dry and strenuous read, but full of great information. You really need to (and I recommend doing this with any poker book anyway) break it down into small parts. Read, apply, reread, reapply, and repeat until you really bang home the concepts.
The Mental Game of poker is great if you need to learn to control all the emotions and thoughts that come into poker.
Another great book is The Middle Zone by Annie Duke. I know, people seem to really dislike her and I am not saying her and her brother have had the cleanest pasts. However,she still put together a great book that really targets how to handle those marginal situations where we tend to lose the majority of our chips. Take advantage of Covid, put on a full mask so no one sees you and buy the book.
