The Biggest Game in Town [Paperback]

A. Alvarez (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2002

Called "the best book ever written on poker" by players and critics alike, The Biggest Game in Town is a sought-after classic thats finally available in print again. Acclaimed author A. Alvarez delves into the seedy, obsessive world of high-stakes Vegas poker, where "the next best thing to playing and winning is playing and losing." Uncovering an exotic underground rich in ambiance and eccentricity, The Biggest Game in Town is "a magnificent book " (San Francisco Chronicle), a real one of a kind.

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

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 188 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (February 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811834344
• ISBN-13: 978-0811834346
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #560,520 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Picture of Poker 1983 AD, March 18, 2002

By 

Kim I. Eisler (Bethesda, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Biggest Game in Town (Paperback)

I know this book is 20 years old, so its not particularly surprising that most of the anecdote and stories seem old. Its all about Johnny Moss and Nick the Greek and Amarillo Slim and Doyle Brunson. Naturally there's a new posse in the world of poker today, Men the Master Nguyen, Phil Hellmuth , Poker Dick Cook. and the brilliant Russell Rosenblum. The world of the world series of poker has changed much since this book was written in 1983, there remains a question even about how much longer Binions will host the world series and the there is a real possiblity that Bellagio will even buy the trademarked name. This book advertises itself as a timeless cult classic, and as a period piece from 25 years ago, A. Alvarez captured a time and place. I wonder how much of this however will resound as novel to the poker player of today. When Alvarez mentioned Stu Unger winning the world series, it left me wanting to read about how stu ungar moved from world champion to dying in a run down Vegas motel room. Or when he talked about Ted Binion running Binions, the mind flashes to the fact that binion has since been murdered .Plenty of good advice in here for hold em play, of course the problem in gambling isn't usually knowing what to do, its being able to do it, to fight fatigue, to fight temptation to play too many hands, to summon up the courage to pitch aces when you know they have been cracked. The problem with the gamblig genre is that there just arent that many good books out there. Too many agents and publishers think they won't sell and bookstores tend to look down on gambling books as being anti-literary. Snobbery in the bookstore world is a real problem, as anyone who has ever asked a proprietor if they carry the Racing Form on their mag rack will quickly find out.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delicate and Hypnotic., October 6, 2004

By 

Bernard Chapin "Ora Et Labora!" (CHICAGO! USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Biggest Game in Town (Paperback)

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.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The seminal work in the field., August 9, 2003

By 

Bart King (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Biggest Game in Town (Paperback)

It takes the insights of a foreigner to really lay out Las Vegas in all its bloated glory. Alvarez has an economical yet beautiful way with words that captures a time and place nicely. Though the Vegas he writes of is long gone (for example, the only kids' attraction in the early 1980s was Circus! Circus!), this book is not just a snapshot of bygone times and tournaments. It is particularly interesting in its portrayal of Doyle Brunson, as well as other players of the era. Great stuff!