Take Me to the River: A Wayward and Perilous Journey to the World Series of Poker [Paperback]

Peter Alson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 18, 2007

An overeducated underachiever, Peter Alson spent his post-college decades doing his best not to grow up. But having just turned fifty, this rambling-gambling bachelor decides it's time to settle down. So he pops the question to his longtime girlfriend, then hatches a plan to pay for their wedding -- involving poker and a trip to Las Vegas. Boarding a plane bound for the neon desert and the biggest game in town -- the 2005 World Series of Poker -- this inveterate gambler and bad boy stares down his past and his future while competing for over $56 million in prize money.

Take Me to the River is a hilarious, wrenching, full-tilt Vegas exploration of one man's obsession with poker and the lessons it has to offer -- about probability and luck, good fortune and bad, patience, perseverance, and -- most fitting for a man with marriage in his near future -- commitment.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Alson's crystalline prose takes us through a risk-lover's garden of terrors and earthly delights during the course of his comic, at times moving quest for luck, love, and the new American dream. Take Me to the River is, without question, one of the finest poker books ever written." -- James McManus, bestselling author of Positively Fifth Street

"Alson writes like he's making a late-night long-distance call from a phone booth in the middle of the desert, with his head buzzing as he digs into his pockets for more change. His transparent prose is ferociously honest and deceptively simple." -- Matthew Klam, author of Sam the Cat and Other Stories

About the Author

Peter Alson is the author of the highly acclaimed memoir Confessions of an Ivy League Bookie and coauthor of One of a Kind, a biography of the poker champion Stuey Ungar, and Atlas: From the Street to the Ring: A Son's Struggle to Become a Man. Alson's articles have appeared in many national magazines, including Esquire, Playboy, and The New York Times Magazine. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Alice, and their daughter Eden.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Atria Books (September 18, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743288378
• ISBN-13: 978-0743288378
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,179,527 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Peter Alson is the author of the highly acclaimed memoirs CONFESSIONS OF AN IVY LEAGUE BOOKIE and TAKE ME TO THE RIVER; and coauthor of ONE OF A KIND, a biography of poker champion Stuey Ungar, and ATLAS, the autobiography of boxing trainer and commentator Teddy Atlas. His articles have appeared in many national magazines, including Esquire, Playboy and The New York Times. He has written screenplays for Paramount and various independent producers, and his TV pilot, NICKY'S GAME, starring John Ventimiglia and Burt Young, appeared in the New York Television Festival and the Vail Film Festival. He lives in New York with his wife, Alice, and their daughter, Eden.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Honest. Muscular prose!, July 17, 2006

By 

Jiminy Durrell "Jiminy Durrell" (Edinburgh, Scotland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Take Me to the River: A Wayward and Perilous Journey to the World Series of Poker (Hardcover)

First, I have to confess that I have an aversion to betting and gambling of any sort but I could not put down Confessions of an Ivy League Bookie. Peter's new book is a triumph of story telling (and I hate card games of any kind!) His observations are pure genuis, and his candor is admirable. If Peter Alson wrote a book about cars or spaceships or furniture building- other topics of disinterest to me- I would read them, knowing he would engage me... the language is the story, and Peter's perspective carries you away.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Contemporary Rogue, July 14, 2006

By 

Stephen C. Chao (santa monica, calif) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Take Me to the River: A Wayward and Perilous Journey to the World Series of Poker (Hardcover)

Peter comes from a good family. Letters are in the blood. Has a good education. Thankfully, he never lets any of that interfere with his singular pursuit of a rogue's tale. Few authors can capture the simultaneous snob-and-gutter appeal of poker like Alson. It is a fine read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great poker memoir, October 11, 2008

By 

Dulcibelle (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Take Me to the River: A Wayward and Perilous Journey to the World Series of Poker (Paperback)

I love reading poker memoirs. It doesn't matter to me whether the author wins or loses - or even if the memoir is completely true - I just love reading about the gambler's life. And Alson's account is one of the better ones I've read. It doesn't hurt that Alson is coauthor of the Stu Unger biography One of a Kind - and knows his way around a poker book. He doesn't get so caught up in the actual game that the book is nothing but dissection of hand after hand, but includes enough information about what happens away from the table to make you feel that you're really getting to know him.