I read a lot of poker books and for the past few months I have been writing little "mini reviews" on them. Hopefully these will give you a broad idea of what each book has to offer and can help you choose which book to buy.
I have also created a little ratings system to simplify things as between this site and others I have many many mini reviews floating around.

The level is the level of player I believe will get the most out of the book. The Reading Difficulty suggests wether a particular writing style was an easy read for me or if I felt that I was constantly reading thing 2 or more times to fully grasp the concept. Organization has to do with how the book is organized, mainly will the book be easy to reference or will you have to re-read it to find what you are looking for. Usefullness is pretty obvious but there are a few factors. Mainly: is the information right and can it be applied at the table or in simulation and make an impact on your game.

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Level: Beginner
Reading Difficulty: 2
Organization: 8
Usefullness: 7 (for the beginner looking to branch into other games.)

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I don't care for Phil Hellmuth, his attitude annoys me, but the book would definetly be a good read for a beginner looking to get into other games. I never considered Hellmuth a mixed games guy but his advice on Omaha Hi/Lo and Stud in his book was pretty spot on. The Pot-Limit Omaha Hi section and Stud Hi/Lo sections aren't too bad either. As far as his Limit Hold Em section is concerned I think Phil gives way to aggressive of a strategy. I think if you played Limit Hold Em like Phil suggests you may find yourself in some bad spots and you could lose some money. It isn't all bad, but it is definetly a highly aggressive strategy he portrays in the book. I would definetly read the section, but I would never play Limit Hold Em by this book. I personally am bored by NL sections and since it has been a few weeks since I have even read the book, I can honestly say that I cannot remember anything particularly exciting or new in the NL section. Nothing bad, but nothing shocking.

One thing I should mention which Phil introduces in this book are his animal types. The Jackal (loose aggressive), the Elepahnt (calling station), the Mouse (tight, conservative) and the Lion (the pros, rare). He uses them througout the book to explain how different players react in different situations. It is a good system. So for example he may say "you are in late position when a jackal raises and a mouse re-raises, what do you do?" It really helps that by labeling the players so simply he in a sense "gives you a read" on that player and you can then act accordingly. I like the way he incorporates the animal types.

So basically I was very suprised! Simple but effective. His book is no Theory of Poker, there is nothing super ground breaking or shocking, and that is why I suggest this book for the beginner. He gives a very simple glance at the basic aspects of the strategies for these games which I think can be very valuable to the beginner. Simple strategy without being overwhelming, I was very suprised with Phils book to say the least as I was expecting another NL Hold Em book and ended up with a back to basics lesson in other games.

I reccomend this book to the new player. To be more precise, I reccomend this book to the NL player who is trying to branch out to other games. While there is very little "highly advanced" strategy in the book the basics he puts forth on the Stud and Omaha games are great for the player looking to expand thier game knowledge. I see this book as a good jump off point for that player. With a little basic knowledge on all of the most popular games, I am suprised to say that Phil did a good job here.

This book was my very first book i ever read on poker. I like Hellmuth a lot and respect his game a lot. It is by far a simple read.

The theory in this book is by far not the best you will get. But The chapter on the animal types is how I currently teach new players. It is so simple yet effective.

"Play the polayer not the cards" Is very well demonstrated here

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Kickboyswoop

wow,

Thanks for taking the time to provide our members with such a detailed review.

I'll have to take a closer look at this book espcecially for the player profiling.

Looking forward to more of your mini reviews. Very nice.

Thanks again,
Jason

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I'm Not Lucky, I Have Good Karma !

Like I said though the book is more for the beginner. I had heard of the animal types well before I ever bought the book and really liked how he used them throughout the book to add more depth to the situtaions he describes. To the player who has been in the game for a while most of what Phil writes about is a little on the "duh" side but to a new player it can be very valuable information.

My preference:

Harrington on Hold'em: Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments (Strategic Play) by Dan Harrington and Bill Robertie

The book covers all the way from beginner to advanced player strategy and has become a pokerbook bestseller.

Play Poker Like the Pros was also my first poker read. It was good in that it put forth the game in a simplistic way that beginners should be able to understand. I moved from there to the Harrington on Holdem series which was much more technical to me, and somewhat more difficult to understand as a beginner. I learned much from both of these reads, but what was amazing to me was the breadth of knowledge I had attained after reading the books for the 2nd time, a year after I had first read them. WOW! Also astounding was the new information I picked up reading them the 2nd time around. And the points and lessons which were as clear as mud the first time around were so understandable and clear as day when I read the books for the second time.

My point being if you're fairly new to the game and have read these books, reread them and see if you don't also find the reads better the 2nd time around. If you haven't read them yet, you should.

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ertrauma


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As my father always said, "Son, choose your sword wisely for some day you may find you must fall on it".

The Harrington series is the best, for tournament No-Limit Hold em. This book is not hte best for Tournament No-Limit Hold em but is great for beginners looking to get into other games.

I honestly think that due to the popularity of NL Hold em tournaments the Harrington series have become the most influential and beneficial poker books you can read. I believe that if you have not read these books and play NL Hold em tournaments you are throwing money away but this review is of Phil Hellmuths Play Poker Like the Pros, not Harrington on Hold em.

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"You will succeed far more by capitalizing on your opponents mistakes than you will by the greatness of your own play." --- I am not sure who said this but it is a great quote and piece of advice.


Colorado Players Click Here

Good advice about reading the books again a year or so later.


Jason

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I'm Not Lucky, I Have Good Karma !

I have a permanant book mark in the animal type section of the Hellmuth book.

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Kickboyswoop

Yeah I have read quite a few of my books 2 or 3 times. SS2 has all of the pages curled up and the cover has fallen off of 2 of my harringtons. My books don't sit for long.

This is why I prefer buying books over borrowing them or getting online copies. I refrence them a lot.

__________________
"You will succeed far more by capitalizing on your opponents mistakes than you will by the greatness of your own play." --- I am not sure who said this but it is a great quote and piece of advice.


Colorado Players Click Here