Poker for Dummies
by Lou Krieger, Richard D. Harroch

List Price: $16.99
Our Price: $3.87
You Save: $13.12 (77%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions

Book Summary Information

Book Reviews of Poker for Dummies

Book Review: Don't buy it unless you already know you like it.
Summary: 2 Stars

The book sets itself out to be like a general encyclopedia of poker. While it certainly purports to cover many different games and many aspects of the game, I found that it did not go into much detail at all about how to actually play the games.

For example, in the Texas Holdem chapter I was expecting the author to compare many different ways of playing the game and the approaches of different professionals and the pros and cons of different strategies. Instead he lists the table of opening hands he says you should play in different positions and makes pretty much no comment on why you should do this except to say that the standards are somewhat loose. Then he writes 1.5 pages about how to play on the flop, turn, and river. Wow, after a lesson like that I'm ready for vegas.

The title is "For Dummies" and I have no clue about even the first step in a poker game, I didn't even know hand rankings, and I found it hard to follow. The author will often use slang that I don't understand in an attempt to explain a key concept.

The home poker chapter was especially bad. He listed about 7 games you can play on one page. I'll leave it to you to infer what depth of coverage you can expect on those games. He made no mention whatsoever of what hands you should expect to win on in baseball, excpet that really good hands are quite common. Gee, thanks. I've played baseball before buying the book and I know there's no way you're going to understand how to play it at home after just reading the 5-sentence paragraph he wrote about it.

The author is a poor writer too. Sometimes it's hard to tell what he's talking about.

I'm not good at poker, so maybe this book has some wisdom to impart to a more skilled player, but I doubt it since it has very shallow coverage. Like I said before, I didn't read the whole thing so I didn't give it a fair chance, but I had seen such good reviews on the internet that I thought I'd go ahead and buy it. That should tell you not to trust net reviews- the author of the book is probably writing them.

Hellmuth's book costs the same and it was much easier to follow and had more in-depth information. Plus Hellmuth won the world series 7 times so it's just cooler to own a book written by him. I've never read any other poker books, so there could very well be better books than Hellmuth's, but I don't see much reason to buy Poker for Dummies.

The only part I've used so far are the chapters where he tells you what books and software you can buy to learn. I'd suggest that you pick this thing up in the book store, find those chapters and buy one of those other books instead.

Summary of Poker for Dummies

Maybe you?ve never played poker before and you don?t even know what a full house is. Poker For Dummies covers the basics. Or perhaps you've played for years, but you just don?t know how to win. This handy guide will help you walk away from the poker table with winnings, not lint, in your pockets. If you?re a poker expert, you still can benefit ? some of the suggestions may surprise you, and you can certainly learn from the anecdotes from professional players like T.J. Cloutier and Stu Unger.

Know what it takes to start winning hand after hand by exploring strategy; getting to know antes and betting structure; knowing your opponents, and understanding the odds. Poker For Dummies also covers the following topics and more:

• Poker games such as Seven-Card Stud, Omaha, and Texas Hold'em
• Setting up a game at home
• Playing in a casino: Do's and don'ts
• Improving your play with Internet and video poker
• Deciphering poker sayings and slang
• Ten ways to read your opponent's body language
• Playing in poker tournaments
• Money management and recordkeeping
• Knowing when and how to bluff

Poker looks like such a simple game. Anyone, it seems, can play it well ? but that's far from the truth. Learning the rules can be quick work, but becoming a winning player takes considerably longer. Still, anyone willing to make the effort can become a good player. You can succeed in poker the way you succeed in life: by facing it squarely, getting up earlier than the next person, and working harder and smarter than the competition.

Foreword by Chris Moneymaker, 2003 World Series of Poker Champion.

Poker Books

• Subjects > Humor & Entertainment > Puzzles & Games > Poker