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112th out of 170 books
—
162 voters
Double Down: Reflections on Gambling and Loss
"So each night begins. One of us picks up the other and we drive into the Mississippi darkness, headed for a place where everything is different." This first nonfiction book by Frederick Barthelme, author of BOB THE GAMBLER, and his brother and colleague Steven is both a story of family feeling and a testimony to the risky allure of casinos. Within a year and a half, the a...more
Hardcover, 208 pages
Published
November 22nd 1999
by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
(first published 1999)
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Think this is one of the most smugly ignoble books I've ever read.
Their father is undoubtedly one of the most unpleasant people it has ever been my misfortune to meet in print, a sad, needy, attention seeking little man who bullied his family mercilessly. Steve and Rick are two pussies, utterly unheroic figures. Father never grew up and neither did they. Seems to me they feared and hated him and took revenge by effectively involving him in their gambling - he was with them in the casinos to all...more
Their father is undoubtedly one of the most unpleasant people it has ever been my misfortune to meet in print, a sad, needy, attention seeking little man who bullied his family mercilessly. Steve and Rick are two pussies, utterly unheroic figures. Father never grew up and neither did they. Seems to me they feared and hated him and took revenge by effectively involving him in their gambling - he was with them in the casinos to all...more
I have no interest in gambling per se, but this looked like a well written and quirky memoir. The first-person-plural narration--the only time I'd seen that before was in The Virgin Suicides, and there it was a gimmick, but here it's because there really are two narrators--is a surprisingly successful experiment. My enjoyment of this was all the more surprising given that I can't sympathize at all with the impulse not only to gamble all one's money away but even to gamble some of one's money awa...more
Dec 19, 2011
Ensiform
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
gaming
The authors, two writer brothers who teach at the same university, slipped into a gambling fever, losing a quarter million dollars in the years following their aged parents’ deaths. This is a lucid, compelling book: the sense of addiction, the timeless, weird feeling one gets when gambling, is brought vividly to life. There’s also some measure of self-analysis: the brothers conclude that guilt and grief fueled their two-day-long losing sprees, and they appear to aptly judge themselves. They are...more
An interesting look at compulsive gambling, from two thoughtful writers who have been there. It's an urge I've never experienced, though I know people who have. The Barthelme brothers provide the interior view, and put it in the context of their own family history, which they believe predisposed them to their shared addiction. Maybe the most fascinating dynamic is that two rather ordinary people can react to loss (of their parents) with such reckless gusto. That makes the book a cautionary tale....more
The fascinating story of Frederick & Steven Barthelme and their three year gambling splurge in Mississipi casinos. Both brothers teach at the University of Southern Mississipi and are well educated men who find themselves spiralling downward!
From back cover:
"When both of their parents died within a short time of each other, Frederick and Steven Barthelme inherited a goodly sum of money. What followed was a binge during which they gambled away their entire fortune-and more. And then, in a cru...more
From back cover:
"When both of their parents died within a short time of each other, Frederick and Steven Barthelme inherited a goodly sum of money. What followed was a binge during which they gambled away their entire fortune-and more. And then, in a cru...more
It is never interesting to read about two detached rich men who pretend to be actual people with actual problems. Let us not forget that this shit really happened and why did I waste my time reading this trash?
Wow, this book is awesome. It's about two brothers who are gambling addicts. The book not only gives tremendous insight into this disease, but it also shows how the brothers found ways to feed it.
Two brothers with a gambling addiction is discussed amid a background of family relationships. Fascinating. Guilt over their dying parents is addressed.
The writing about gambling is really good - there's a certain clarity that really shines at times. There are a few other things going on here: the brothers confront the applicability of the teachings of their strong-willed father in their grown up lives, react to the death of their parents, and briefly explore the ennui of being middle class intellectuals without children. There's also the story of their court case, which has lots if potential, but gets abruptly dropped at the end, which is a bu...more
This is an oddly endearing book from two guys who know who know how to write.
While I wish it dealt a little less with the family stuff and a little more with the gambling, this was a great read. I was also unsure about how some of the legal issues turned out. However, I'm a gambler and these guys nailed exactly what it's like to be a gambler. Their attitudes toward the casino were spot on, and I found myself laughing (to keep from crying) out loud in some of the descriptions of the game of blackjack.
Decent book about 2 presumably well-educated and responsible brothers who are compulsive gamblers in the gulf coast. As I recall, they are college professors who have otherwise normal lives, but can't control the gambling...
A brutal de-glamorization of gambling, makes me never want to enter a casino again. Not that I hang at 'em much now.
Hated it. My entire book group hated it. 6 years after reading it (our 2nd book) we still laugh about how bad it was.
May 16, 2013
John
marked it as to-read
May 02, 2013
Leslie
marked it as to-read
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Barthelme's works are known for their focus on the landscape of the New South. Along with his reputation as a minimalist, together with writers Raymond Carver, Ann Beattie, Amy Hempel, and Mary Robison, Barthelme's work has also been described by terms such as "dirty realism" and "K-mart realism."He published his first short story in The New Yorker,and has claimed that a rotisserie chicken helped...more
More about Frederick Barthelme...
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