5 Poker Books You Can’t Live Without

When I started playing poker (serious poker that is) a search of Amazon.com would yield one or two poker books on each form of poker. There was only a single book that covered No Limit Hold’ Em, Doyle Brunson’s Super System, which was fine because nobody played No Limit Hold’ Em except in tournaments anyway!

Nowadays there are so many books, written by so many authors, a lot of players have a difficult time deciding which book(s) to buy. In this column I will go over the five poker books every player should have on their bookshelf, regardless of the game they play.

Theory of Poker, by David Sklansky – The Theory of Poker goes over all of the basic poker concepts you will need to employ when you start your poker journey. This book covers everything from reasons to raise, to check-raises and semi-bluffs. Once considered an ‘advanced’ poker book, Theory of Poker should be one of the first poker books a player reads.

Zen and the Art of Poker, by Larry Phillips – Zen is the first, and only, book to cover the mental side of poker. When I say mental side I am referring to player’s motives and behavior—why people tilt and why you shouldn’t, why people play bad, and so on. Zen is a great book for any player experiencing a down-swing, or just to read periodically as refresher, since it includes many concepts that we tend to forget as our knowledge of the game increases.

Ace on the River, by Barry Greenstein – Ace on the River is the first book to make an attempt at uncovering all the obstacles a player will face if they expect to make money playing poker. Greenstein really lays it out for the reader, but is able to not come across as preachy. Ace on the River contains a lot of information you will not find in any other poker book, and has some very comedic passages that keep the reading light and not focused on the negative.

Super System, by Doyle Brunson et. al. – Super System makes the list because it is the best compilation of all the different forms of poker. With sound strategies from the poker world’s greatest players, Super System will help players get a feel for any of the games included within its pages. If Super System has one flaw it’s that the authors do not tone down their strategies from the high stakes games they typically play, so while the advice is extremely sound, it sometimes doesn’t apply to lower stakes games.

With the poker explosion, Super System has been rewritten and is now available as Super System II. I’d recommend a player read both eventually.

Caro’s Fundamental Secrets of Winning Poker, by Mike Caro—Perhaps the least known book on the list, Caro’s Fundamental Secrets of Winning Poker is similar to Theory of Poker in that it covers poker concepts and theory. However, unlike the analytical Sklansky, Caro takes a more common sense approach to teaching; which can be seen in sections like ‘Money flows clockwise’ and ‘General Winning Advice’. A quick, easy read, I would recommend this as a first book, since the content is rather basic.

Taken from Ruff Poker