false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171679462m/113537.jpg 113537 8 In 2000, novelist and poet James McManus was sent to Las Vegas, innocently enough, by <I>Harper's</I> magazine to write a story about the World Series of Poker held annually at Binion's Horseshoe. But then, as so often happens on trips to Sin City, something kind of ... happened. Rather than becoming an objective report, McManus's article evolved into a memoir as he put his entire advance on the line, got lucky with his cards and won a spot in the competition, and came much closer than anyone expected to winning the darn thing. The result, <I>Positively Fifth Street</I>, is just as dazzling, exciting, and disturbing as Vegas itself. <p> McManus details his battles not only against his opponents but also against "Bad Jim," the portion of his own personality that needs to get in on a poker game in spite of both common and fiscal sense. Besides telling his own story, he relates the considerably more unpleasant tale of Ted Binion, whose grisly death was blamed on Binion's former stripper-girlfriend and her ex-linebacker beau. In the hands of a lesser author, the pursuit of these separate through lines of poker and the seedy personal lives of wealthy casino heirs may have lead readers to wish the author had picked just one subject. But under McManus's careful watch, they're really pretty similar: steeped in adrenaline, mystery, deception, and skating on thrillingly thin ice. Each story underscores the other, a neat little "narrative as metaphor" device, while also painting a vivid picture of Vegas casino life. Poker, as anyone who has lost at it will tell you, is an intricate game and it's nice to see a top-notch author and player relate its finer points in an entertaining style that will appeal even to non-players. The author's hilariously self-aware and at times self-loathing style make <I>Positively Fifth Street</I> a fun read. But beyond that, his account of nearly winning the biggest poker tournament in the world and subsequently watching as the verdicts are announced for Binion's accused murderers makes for a great story. Even if it wasn't the one he was sent there to write. <I>--John Moe</I> 109310 2003 Positively Fifth Street total:605|5:123|4:250|3:182|2:35|1:15| 605 2246 729 82 3 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Wed Nov 04 07:00:43 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 07:01:15 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Thu Oct 09 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Oct 09 22:14:53 -0700 2008 Thu Oct 09 22:18:32 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Feb 13 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 08 12:03:11 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 07:29:02 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Wed Oct 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 28 13:32:57 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 28 13:43:22 -0700 2009 It didn't work.

His account of the murder of Ted Binion, he admits is fictional.
That starts the book, and you don't get the trial results till the end.

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Jim McManus made the final table at the World Series of Poker.

That alone should make any poker player want to pick this book up and read it immediately...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Tue Aug 07 12:09:09 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 07 12:26:31 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Aug 13 10:37:51 -0700 2008 Thu Jan 15 12:29:13 -0800 2009
Ostensibly about both the World Series of Poker and a dirty murder trial related to it, the book is really more about what it's like to be IN the WSoP. And in that, it e...more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Wed Jan 09 17:48:21 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 09 17:49:08 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu May 24 09:55:57 -0700 2007 Thu May 24 09:59:53 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Apr 02 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Jan 22 16:17:55 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 22 16:23:22 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Nov 03 23:37:12 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 03 23:41:15 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Sep 01 09:51:34 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 01 09:59:24 -0700 2008 more...]]> 1 0 false false Wed Aug 20 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Sep 09 21:47:55 -0700 2008 Tue Sep 09 21:54:01 -0700 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=113537