Theory & Practice of Gamesmanship [Paperback]

Stephen Potter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2010

The Art of Winning Games Without Actually Cheating. A tongue-in-cheek manual on polite psychological warfare with humorous anecdotes about billiards, chess, tennis, golf, and other sports.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stephen Potter was educated at Westminister School and Merton College, Oxford, where he took honours in English. A lecturer in English Literature at London University, he joined the BBC as a writer-producer, becoming a book and drama critic after the war.

Product Details

• Paperback: 125 pages
• Publisher: Moyer Bell and its subsidiaries (January 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559212233
• ISBN-13: 978-1559212236
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #190,983 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Sports > Miscellaneous > Essays
  • #5 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Sports > Miscellaneous > Reference
  • #10 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Entertainment > Humor > Sports

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute classic, and a must read!, December 11, 1999

By 

David S. Rose (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Theory & Practice of Gamesmanship (Paperback)

Stephen Potter's series of semi-tongue-in-cheek works (Gamesmanship, Lifemanship, One-Upsmanship) are among the funniest and most accurate books of their type ever written. They have been justifiably in print for over 50 years, and deserve to be discovered by yet another generation. These are not 'how to' books, although they purport to be dispatches from the 'Lifemanship Institute'. Rather, they are exquisitely dry and droll riffs on the games people play in interpersonal [non-romantic] relationships, set in early- to mid-twentieth century England. If you like things such as Parkinson's Law, or The Peter Principle, or even the works of Evelyn Waugh, you will get a real kick out of these. Try the current omnibus reprint edition which includes all three works. It's the kind of thing that either (a) you will be quoting for the rest of your life, or (b) you just won't understand why anyone would find it even the least it amusing. I'm obviously in the former camp.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Potter Was Great - Hysterical Stuff!, January 14, 2000

By 

"fronker" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Theory & Practice of Gamesmanship (Paperback)

'Gamesmanship' is the first and (in my opinion) best of the inimitable '_manship' series that Stephen Potter wrote in the early 1950's. Other works include 'Lifemanship', 'One-Upmanship', and 'Supermanship'. What makes this so funny is the absolute deadpan style. The text is buttressed with ample illustrations, diagrams, charts, and a thorough index.

I shall never forget the great gambits, ploys, hampers, such as Nice Chapmanship, Jack Rivers Opening, Simpson's Statue, Snooker-player's Drivel, the author's 'Potter's Opening', to name only a few.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this perfect little book, June 4, 2006

By 

Konrad Baumeister - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Theory & Practice of Gamesmanship (Paperback)

I came across this at some rummage sale, and once I started reading it I was instantly hooked on Potter's dustbowl-dry wit and bought all his other books. Each is outstanding, but this is still the best. For the uninitiated, this has nothing to do with playing games; it has everything to do with attitude, games people play with and against one another in life, and poking fun at our egos and self importance...and the egos and self-importance of others. There's no explaining Potter's humor - you either love it, or you don't get it at all. I love it. Even the 'diagrams' are absolute screams. Only Wodehouse was as funny or funnier than Potter.