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The Biggest Game in Town
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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
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Paperback, 192 pages
Published
February 1st 2002
by Chronicle Books
(first published 1983)
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I love love love this book, and wrote a large piece on it for Card Player in 2006 after interviewing Alvarez by phone):
Al Alvarez & The Biggest Game in Town:
How An English Poet Penned the Best Poker Book Ever Written
Twenty-five years ago, an English poet, critic and avid poker player named Al Alvarez flew across the Atlantic to Las Vegas, checked in at Binion’s Horseshoe Casino to watch the World Series of Poker, then sat down and produced the best poker narrative ever written: The Biggest G ...more
Al Alvarez & The Biggest Game in Town:
How An English Poet Penned the Best Poker Book Ever Written
Twenty-five years ago, an English poet, critic and avid poker player named Al Alvarez flew across the Atlantic to Las Vegas, checked in at Binion’s Horseshoe Casino to watch the World Series of Poker, then sat down and produced the best poker narrative ever written: The Biggest G ...more
A look at the key players in the poker world in the late 70s early 80s. Almost liked it. Can't put my finger on why it's not a 3-star, because there was something about it I did like. The characters and the city seemed to be made into caricatures of themselves, but then again, maybe that's truly how they were. Maybe I'm comparing it to the Stuey Unger book that I liked so much and this wasn't that.
Didn't think I was going to enjoy a book about Vegas… I just got back and was sick and tired of the place. But Alvarez writes about the place in such a way that almost made me want to go back next week.
Frequently described as 'the best book about poker ever written' and I won't argue with that. It's quite good.
Great character sketches and dialogue. Would have been interesting to have had a follow up on where they all went...
A Brit decides to write a book about the Poker scene in Las Vegas in the 1980, and in doing so paints a complex picture of the personalities that dominated Poker at the time.
The story of Binnion's World Series of Poker and the characters that play in it. I learned a lot about poker.
Great read if you are interested old time poker with the legends.
This book is very similar to The Noble Hustle: Poker, Beef Jerky, and Death, but is not contemporary. I enjoyed being taken back to the 1980's casino days through the author's vibrant prose, though it wasn't always flattering. The vignettes about famous poker players gave these figures life. I want to read his other book, Poker: Bluffs, Bets, and Bad Beats.
Short and fun. Just a poker book. Game has changed a lot (written in 1982).
In 1983 Al Alvarez wrote a book called The Biggest Game in Town. It was both a history of poker and an account of the 1981 main event which was won by Stu Ungar. Alvarez was and is a great writer of both poetry and prose, and was also Sylvia Plath’s close friend and editor. He knows how to put words together and he also knows a lot about poker, being a long-time player himself. The combination of writing ability an deep knowledge of his subject makes The Biggest Game in Town, in quite a few peop
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The first half was very interesting, a study of the gambling personality. The second half not so much.
A. Alvarez, The Biggest Game in Town (Houghton Mifflin, 1983)
[originally posted 14Aug2000]
Someone who's not involved in the wonderful world of gambling may look at Alvarez' spirited and slightly surreal view of the World Series of Poker 1981 as a study in caricature. "No one's like this," I can hear them saying. "No one's really that obsessive over this kind of thing. It's just a game, right?"
Let me tell you something, and this is coming from the perspective of a guy for whom $64 on a pick six t ...more
[originally posted 14Aug2000]
Someone who's not involved in the wonderful world of gambling may look at Alvarez' spirited and slightly surreal view of the World Series of Poker 1981 as a study in caricature. "No one's like this," I can hear them saying. "No one's really that obsessive over this kind of thing. It's just a game, right?"
Let me tell you something, and this is coming from the perspective of a guy for whom $64 on a pick six t ...more
"Las Vegas is no more a place for childhood than it is a place for sensibility. It is a town without grace and without nuance, where the only useful virtues are experience, survival and money. "In Vegas, they weigh you up in gold," said Jack Straus. "They call it the golden rule: the man who has the gold makes the rules." (Page 40)
The Biggest Game in Town gives you the 1970's history of the World Series of Poker, held at Jack Binion's Horseshoe Casino, along with small biographies of some of the ...more
The Biggest Game in Town gives you the 1970's history of the World Series of Poker, held at Jack Binion's Horseshoe Casino, along with small biographies of some of the ...more
Great book that really gets in to the psychology of those playing at the absolute top end of the poker spectrum; the kind of people who can win or lose hundreds of thousands of dollars on the turn of a card without batting an eye.
Both exhilarating and depressing, The Biggest Game in Town is about a gritty Las Vegas of the late 70's and early 80's- before the rise of the shiny mega-casino- and the chain-smoking, overweight, bizarre personalities who are compelled to live in the desert to match w ...more
Both exhilarating and depressing, The Biggest Game in Town is about a gritty Las Vegas of the late 70's and early 80's- before the rise of the shiny mega-casino- and the chain-smoking, overweight, bizarre personalities who are compelled to live in the desert to match w ...more
Last year I read Positively Fifth Street, a book about poker whose author entered the World Series of Poker and described the experience. The inspiration for that book was this book, widely regarded by poker players as one of the best poker books ever written. This goes to show you that poker players should stick to cardplaying and leave the bookreviewing to people with taste. This book is not nearly as energetic or enthralling as Positively Fifth Street. You don’t end up wanting to play poker;
...more
This is my second poker stories book in a couple of years, after "Positively Fifth Street", and I am going to slow down my rate. This one, written before Positively, felt pretty similar. I did notice a different style in this one though - it really stood out for me. I think because I read that the author is a poet, I was looking to see how this was unlike other similar books that were written by journalists / magazine writers. This one felt like, of all things, a soundtrack album. There were the
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Another poker classic on my Shelf of Honor. A. Alvarez was a close friend of Sylvia Plath and was best known (prior to this book) as the author of a study/contemplation of suicide, "The Savage God."
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Alvarez
This book is also about the World Series of Poker (see my comments about Positively Fifth Street) but written about 20 years before James McManus's account -- in the days when the participants numbered in the dozens, not thousands, and the $10,000 ent ...more
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Alvarez
This book is also about the World Series of Poker (see my comments about Positively Fifth Street) but written about 20 years before James McManus's account -- in the days when the participants numbered in the dozens, not thousands, and the $10,000 ent ...more
Jul 26, 2015
David
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommended to David by:
Bought it cheap: remaindered or used
This edition is hardback.
This brief book on poker players in Las Vegas, especially the 1981 World Series of Poker, was interesting, but I think I gave it away . . . not something I thought I'd ever read again. The writing reminded me of one of those long New Yorker articles. Which is to say the writing was good but somehow lightweight. It would be of much more interest to a confirmed and avid poker play.
Let's call it 2.75 stars.
This brief book on poker players in Las Vegas, especially the 1981 World Series of Poker, was interesting, but I think I gave it away . . . not something I thought I'd ever read again. The writing reminded me of one of those long New Yorker articles. Which is to say the writing was good but somehow lightweight. It would be of much more interest to a confirmed and avid poker play.
Let's call it 2.75 stars.
Great travel writing-esque review of the 1981 World Series of Poker...
Written by someone from the UK, the perspective of the outsider looking in to the Vegas of that era is a novel way to see Glitter Gulch, than other histories of Vegas I've read.
Definitely, written for those with an affinity for poker and the major players whose personalities come out so well in the anecdotes and interviews Alvarez includes.
Written by someone from the UK, the perspective of the outsider looking in to the Vegas of that era is a novel way to see Glitter Gulch, than other histories of Vegas I've read.
Definitely, written for those with an affinity for poker and the major players whose personalities come out so well in the anecdotes and interviews Alvarez includes.
Nonfiction. A writer and amateur poker player from Britain swoops into Las Vegas for three weeks to observe and write about the characters of the game and their fates at the 1981 World Series of Poker.
If you like poker, you will like this book.
One other note: This book will not help you become a better player. It's not a book of strategy or techniques, although the pros in this book do reveal some insight into their thought processes.
If you like poker, you will like this book.
One other note: This book will not help you become a better player. It's not a book of strategy or techniques, although the pros in this book do reveal some insight into their thought processes.
Insightful and thought provoking. As a poker enthusiast i loved this book, the endless poker stories and industry overviews. Alvarez did very well to give an unbiased view to the Vegas scene and the immense highs and lows of the gamblers life. Probably a more enjoyable read for the other degenerate gamblers out there like me, though still a great introduction to the subject if you're an outsider.
Well worth the read.
Well worth the read.
Surprised me with its quality. Embraces the romanticism of poker while still exploring the deep underlying dysfunction of its heroes. Fun. How much of the world described is gone though? Most players probably don't carry weapons as a matter of routine anymore.
Written by a foreigner, so there's a lot of neat observations about America and the narratives we enjoy spread throughout.
Written by a foreigner, so there's a lot of neat observations about America and the narratives we enjoy spread throughout.
A slim volume that had some great moments with the characters in the 1981 World Series of Poker. Unfortunately, it was a bit too slim, and the author never really gave enough time to any one player. Still, worth a read if you're interested in some of the early years of the WSOP.
Faultless prose, solid content, nicely culled imageries and dialogues. The book meanders a bit (what essayistic project doesn't?), but I like that the picture of Las Vegas Alvarez painted for me; he managed to inform without judge, which is impressive. (Sociology; 200+ pages)
Oct 28, 2016
Jon
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
3-by-western-whites,
1-by-men
Short and well-written. If you want a feel for what the poker world was like in the 80s this is a pretty solid place to start.
It is a bit rambly, and Alvarez is a bit too obsessed with linking everything back to literature. Overall though, worth a read.
It is a bit rambly, and Alvarez is a bit too obsessed with linking everything back to literature. Overall though, worth a read.
Really well-written account of the 1981 World Series of Poker and a treatise on poker in general. Alvarez's prose is superb and his descriptions of the game's history, characters, and tournament action paints a romantic picture of America's true passtime. also, a quick read at 18o pages.
Arguably the best book on written on high stakes poker. Has some interesting Las Vegas history as well. If you like this I would recommend "Positively Fifth Street"; a blend of the telling of the Ted Binion murder intertwined with the authors experience playing in the WSOP.
May 03, 2007
Tony
added it
This is easily the best of the books on poker that I’ve read.
One of the better poker books I have read. Not too in-depth or technical but a decent, quick read.
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Al Álvarez is an English poet, novelist, essayist, writer and critic who publishes under the name A. Álvarez and Al Álvarez.
Born Alfred Álvarez, he was educated at Oundle School and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he took a First in English. After teaching briefly in Oxford and the USA, he became a full time writer in his late twenties.
From 1956 to 1966, he was the poetry editor and critic f ...more
Born Alfred Álvarez, he was educated at Oundle School and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he took a First in English. After teaching briefly in Oxford and the USA, he became a full time writer in his late twenties.
From 1956 to 1966, he was the poetry editor and critic f ...more
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