Poker Nation: A High-Stakes, Low-Life Adventure into the Heart of a Gambling Country - Hardcover

Bellin, Andy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060199032 ISBN 13: 9780060199036

Publisher: Harper, 2002

Synopsis

“Poker Nation is a travelogue to the quirky world of competitive poker, an exploration of poker obsession and addiction (not necessarily the same thing) and a primer on mathematics, poker lingo and technique. Entertaining and accessible.” —USA Today

Journalist and poker fanatic Andy Bellin takes readers on a raucous journey into the shut-up-and-deal world of professional poker. From basement games to the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, you'll look over his shoulder as he learns to count cards, read a legendary player's body language, hang in there when the chips are down, and take his beatings like a man. Even if you don't know the difference between a flop and a river card, Bellin keeps you in the game with his portraits of the colorful players, dreamers, hustlers, and eccentrics who populate this strange subculture. Along with learning what goes on behind the scenes in illegal poker clubs, you'll get great advice on how to play Texas Hold'em, today's game of choice for big-money players.

About this title

About the Author

On his way to a master's degree in astrophysics, Andy Bellin made the fatal mistake of falling in love with poker. Leaving graduate school at age twenty-two, he has played semipro poker for ten years. His writing has appeared in such publications as Esquire, Details and Maxim, and he is an editor at the Paris Review. Bellin lives in New York City, where there are no fewer than four underground poker clubs within a mile of his apartment. You can find him at one on almost any given night.

From the Back Cover

If you look around the table and you can't tell who the sucker is, it's you.

On any given Friday night, hundreds of thousands of Americans--men and women alike -- pile into kitchens, garages, and backrooms to play their weekly poker game. From basement games in the suburbs to illegal gambling clubs in New York City to the high-stakes World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, Andy Bellin has anted up with some of the world's greatest players. In Poker Nation, he takes us on a raucous journey into the shut-up-and-deal world of professional poker.

Even if you don't know the difference between a flop and a river card -- or you do know exactly what it means to have "the nuts" -- Bellin is your ace in the hole as you navigate this uniquely American terrain. Look over his shoulder as he learns to count cards, read a legendary player's body language, hang in there when the chips are down, and, yes, take his beatings like a man. Watch what goes on behind the scenes in illegal poker clubs found in every major city in the country. Meet the colorful personalities and skewed psyches of the players, the dreamers, hustlers, eccentrics, and hucksters who are all part of this strange subculture.

Part memoir, part exposé, part how-to (or how-not-to), Poker Nation takes a frank and funny look at one of America's enduring obsessions. It's a sure bet.

Reviews

In a partially autobiographical account of his unusual life, journalist Bellin, a lapsed astrophysics student who left science for his true calling of professional poker, introduces us to the world of legal and illegal poker games and the cast of strange characters who can be found therein. Along the way, he offers some very good advice on how to play "Texas-Hold 'Em," today's game of choice for big-money players. His breezy, easy-to-read style allows one to enjoy the thrill of the game vicariously (in clubs from New York to Las Vegas) as well as the company of some vivid if not entirely trustworthy companions. However, he does not glamorize this high-stakes game, and his accounts of the psychological toll it takes on addicts would hardly encourage one to want to try the life of a professional poker player. Recommended for public libraries. Harold D. Shane, CUNY, Baruch Coll.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harper
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0060199032
• ISBN 13: 9780060199036
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 272