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The Biggest Game in Town Kindle Edition

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 187 ratings

“The greatest dissection of high-stakes Vegas poker and the madness that surrounds it ever written.” —TimeOut

Al Alvarez touched down in Las Vegas one hot day in 1981, a dedicated amateur poker player but a stranger to the town and its crazy ways. For three mesmerizing weeks he witnessed some of the monster high-stakes games that could only have happened in Vegas and talked to the extraordinary characters who dominated them—road gamblers and local professionals who won and lost fortunes on a regular basis.

Set over the course of one tournament,
The Biggest Game in Town is both the first chronicle of the World Series of Poker ever written and a portrait of the hustlers, madmen, and geniuses who ruled the high-stakes game in America. It is a brilliant insight into poker’s appeal as a hobby, an addiction, and a way of life, and into the skewed psychology of master players and fearless gamblers. With a new introduction by the author, Alvarez’s classic account is “probably the best book on poker ever written” (The Evening Standard).

“A classic . . . There is no better book on America’s national pastime.” —James McManus,
New York Times–bestselling author of Positively Fifth Street

“Magnificent . . . Beyond the straights and full houses, Alvarez has written a book about people who are extremely good at what they do, and about America.” —
San Francisco Chronicle

“Conveys an understanding of gamblers and their milieu that can appeal to someone who has never seen a casino.” —
Philadelphia Inquirer

“Thoroughly entertaining . . . both perceptive and literate.” —
The Washington Post

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

A large portion of this 1983 volume initially appeared in The New Yorker as a series of sketches of the cardsharps who annually descend on Las Vegas for the World Series of Poker. The players make for interesting portraits, and Alvarez lets them have their say. Anyone interested in gaming will enjoy this, but others might as well.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

"A classic . . . There is no better book on America's national pastime."--James McManus, Author of Positively Fifth Street

"Probably the best book on poker ever written."--
The Evening Standard (UK)

"A magnificent book. Beyond the straights and fullhouses, Alvarez has written a book about people who are extremely good at what they do, and about America."--San Francisco Chronicle

"[Alvarez] endows the game with all the desperate fun and wry futility of life itself."--New York magazine

"Conveys an understanding of gamblers and their milieu that can appeal to someone who has never seen a casino or doesn’t care to."--The Philadelphia Inquirer

"Thoroughly entertaining . . . both perceptive and literate."--The Washington Post

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002HHPVOY
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Picador (February 3, 2009)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 3, 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3720 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 191 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 187 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
187 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book an interesting and enjoyable read for poker fans. They praise the writing quality as remarkably well-written, with a poet's sense of distilled language. The stories range from interesting to funny, making it entertaining. Readers appreciate the author's insight into poker history and philosophy.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

17 customers mention "Readability"17 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book. They find it an interesting and enjoyable read for fans of poker and the city of Las Vegas. The book is considered a classic and the best of its genre. Readers appreciate the insightful writing style and poetic snapshot of a fascinating time and place in American history.

"...Alvarez is a great writer and the books is a very enjoyable read. As a poker player and a poker history buff, this book was very entertaining...." Read more

"...The Biggest Game in Town" as a beautiful and poetic snapshot of a fascinating time and place in American history...." Read more

"Quite simply, this is one of the best books I have ever read. My only regret is that it was way too short. Alvarez, simply put, is a great writer...." Read more

"...The writer, a British news reporter, has created a thoroughly entertaining book about describing the ups, downs and ... frankly ... the absurdity of..." Read more

8 customers mention "Writing quality"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the book well-written and insightful. They say it reads like a novel, with distilled language and no wasted words. The author is praised for his poetic sense of language and writing quality non-fiction since the era of print.

"...This book was a very enjoyable and easy read and one of the best and most entertaining poker history books that I have read...." Read more

"...Alvarez has been a literary editor, poet, and writer of quality non-fiction since at least the era of his friendship with Sylvia Plath, and..." Read more

"...Alvarez, simply put, is a great writer. You will not be surprised by his background as a poet after opening it because he writes masterfully...." Read more

"A remarkably well-written and insightful review of how high-rolling poker players view life and how they differ from the rest of us...." Read more

6 customers mention "Entertainment value"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book entertaining. They say the stories range from interesting to funny and insightful. The book is described as one of the best and most entertaining poker history books they have read.

"...a very enjoyable and easy read and one of the best and most entertaining poker history books that I have read...." Read more

"...words are wasted and the quotations are carefully selected and sometimes astounding (like Binion's equating gambling with all that is American)...." Read more

"...It's amusing to read about that period in today's context. Alvarez captures the old downtown Las Vegas atmosphere perfectly...." Read more

"...Stories range from interesting to funny." Read more

3 customers mention "Insight"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the author's insights. They say he writes philosophically about every important point.

"...book, Alvarez seems to touch just about every important point, philosophically, into what it means to be a professional gambler...." Read more

"A remarkably well-written and insightful review of how high-rolling poker players view life and how they differ from the rest of us...." Read more

"...will love "The Biggest Game In Town" as Al Alvarez is an insightful and wonderful writer who provides details the average person misses or..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2013
    If you are a poker history buff then The Biggest Game in Town by Al Alvarez is the book for you! This book was a very enjoyable and easy read and one of the best and most entertaining poker history books that I have read. Alvarez paints a vivid image of downtown Las Vegas circa 1981, the poker scene at Binion's Horseshoe Casino, and of the 1981 World Series of Poker. If you are interested in poker history, this is a great book for you.

    Alvarez is a British journalist and he took a trip to Vegas in 1981 to write a story about the 1981 World Series of Poker for the New Yorker magazine. Alvarez is a poker enthusiast and he spent about four weeks in Vegas that summer playing poker and covering the top poker players. Doyle Brunson is covered throughout the book and it seems like Alvarez was lucky enough to spend a lot of time with him. Besides Brunson, Alvarez covers many other top players of the day, such as Chip Reese, Jack Straus, and Stu Ungar. In addition to writing about the top poker players of the day, Alvarez writes vividly about the Las Vegas of 1981 and about some of its history.

    The book wraps up with Alvarez's coverage of the 1981 World Series of Poker Main Event. The book is 167 pages long and reads like a novel. Alvarez is a great writer and the books is a very enjoyable read. As a poker player and a poker history buff, this book was very entertaining. I love reading about guys like Chip Reese and Doyle Brunson in their primes. In poker, the game of the day and the strategy of the day often change, but many things stay the same. Reading about poker history and getting insight into some of the great players during their primes can only help you improve as a poker player. I am not so much referring to strategy or anything like that, but educating yourself about poker history helps provide some context and insight when you play in your regular game. I think reading about poker history is very important if you want to be a long term successful player. The Biggest Game in Town is a great poker history book!

    -Jason Rothman
    Editor at [...]
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2014
    Poker is a subject rarely treated with eloquence. Pool halls and card rooms rarely produce poetry, in spite of the poetic lives of their denizens. That's why reading A. Alvarez's "The Biggest Game in Town" was such a pleasure - and an essential in gambling lore.

    Alvarez has been a literary editor, poet, and writer of quality non-fiction since at least the era of his friendship with Sylvia Plath, and apparently, he has always been a part-time gambler. In 1981, his peculiar mix of talent and perspective inspired opportunity: no one had ever attempted a book like "Town."

    Given my background, I've always been interested in Vegas stories, and I have a perpetual thirst for stories from the era of poker this book covers. I have played poker with at least two of the people mentioned in this book, and my dad has maintained a near forty-year friendship with Eric Drache, one of the book's main personalities. Drache is one of the most fascinating persons poker has ever produced, and he is a certified legend in Las Vegas, adored by gamblers and non-gamblers alike. He was once called, "the sharpest guy in the gambling business" by none other than Steve Wynn himself. A Poker Hall of Fame inductee, I feel very lucky to know him. He's a man with a rare charisma in a world of the socially inept. And he is leaned on heavily by Alvarez for special insight throughout this book.
    I was particularly struck by something Drache says on page 75:

    "So poker is my only security. Some security, though Johnny Moss is a great inspiration:
    seventy-four years old, still playing every day, and still winning. Even so, I'm thirty-eight
    now, and I wouldn't want to think my next thirty or forty years are going to be spent in a
    poker game."

    To my eyes, that's perfect tragedy. Since I still spend a lot of time in poker rooms, I can tell you Drache is still playing poker nearly every day at the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles, and the boredom and unhappiness he expressed in 1981 seems to show on his face as he continues to "ante himself to death" to this day. That's tragedy enough alone. But the tragedy holds double resonance for me since I am about to turn 38 myself in September. Needless to say, I see the doom Drache saw in 1981 in my own life. And with the benefit of this book coupled with my own experience, I can see that it's a doom that most poker players seem incapable of avoiding.

    So hopefully I'll find my way out. I've seen many poker players die in the last ten years - nearly all of them in tragic circumstances. And I'm left to wonder, What does it all mean? It seems to me that it could all make a great movie one day, but that could just be my narcissism talking. What do you think?

    As for the book, Alvarez seems to touch just about every important point, philosophically, into what it means to be a professional gambler. Many of the books finest insights strike very close to the bone. They are mantras of the profession. They've become a sort of dogma. And they are largely the principles on which I was raised.

    I continue to work on my own writings on poker. I am keeping notes, jotting down ideas, processing things my dad has told me over the years, and interviewing the people who were there. And just as importantly, I am reading what's been written before me.

    Mainly interested in the seventies-era Vegas of Scorsese's "Casino," I appreciate "The Biggest Game in Town" as a beautiful and poetic snapshot of a fascinating time and place in American history.

    But I also see it as ominous warning.

    Los Angeles, July 30th, 2014

    I blog a rod pardey dot com
    3 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2004
    Quite simply, this is one of the best books I have ever read. My only regret is that it was way too short. Alvarez, simply put, is a great writer. You will not be surprised by his background as a poet after opening it because he writes masterfully. He has a poet's sense for distilled language no words are wasted and the quotations are carefully selected and sometimes astounding (like Binion's equating gambling with all that is American). The organization and flow of the work is tremendous and his 188 pages turned like 40. There's no way you'll put The Biggest Game in Town once you start it.

    No work better describes the "alligator blood" of the world's top notch professional poker players. His portraits of Doyle Brunson, Johnny Moss, and Jack Strauss will be with you forever.

    The sheer aggression of Hold 'Em becomes quite obvious as does the way in which our sexual drives, and just about everything else, become sublimated in those who are addicted to gambling. However, the allure of "action" is quite apparent and will make readers want to fly out to the World Series of Poker to experience the pagaentry for themselves. This is a rare and valuable offering.
    18 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2015
    A remarkably well-written and insightful review of how high-rolling poker players view life and how they differ from the rest of us. The writer, a British news reporter, has created a thoroughly entertaining book about describing the ups, downs and ... frankly ... the absurdity of Las Vegas, its denizens, tourists, and gamblers big and small. If you have any interest at all in poker, I recommend that you read this.
    One person found this helpful
    Report

Top reviews from other countries

  • Grant
    5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant book on poker!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 21, 2022
    Was recommended this by someone I've played against a few times. It really brings to life some well known players from '81

    One of the easiest and quickest books I've ever read and suspect I'll be re-reading it again in no time
  • Ravanagh Allan
    5.0 out of 5 stars Well-told Look at World of the the Main Game
    Reviewed in Australia on December 1, 2023
    I haven’t got a head for good poker-playing, but I dig the bourbon and cigars and everything that goes with the suburban version, and also the seedy, nefarious world around the elite level of it, so this was, for me, the best poker book I’ve read.
  • Camel
    4.0 out of 5 stars A good read.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 10, 2013
    A bit dated now, but if you like poker, then this is well written, absorbing, and simply a good read.
  • Julia Sydow
    5.0 out of 5 stars ... book yet but it arrived on time in an excellent condition. Highly recommend and from what I can ...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 4, 2015
    I'm not finished with the book yet but it arrived on time in an excellent condition. Highly recommend and from what I can judge so far, the content of the book as well
  • JP
    4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 19, 2017
    pressie

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