Poker Books You Have To Read

Well, someday you may ask yourself why you don’t make it regularly into the prize money or even last table when playing tournaments. The answer comes in form of books. Until now your decision-making was purely based on gut feeling, experience, intuition and reading the table as good as possible but you didn’t know that there's also a technical side to poker, i.e. importance of position, calculation of Outs, Pot Odds and other concepts that are even more advanced.

Below is a list of poker books that we have read ourselves and wrote short reviews to give you an idea what they are about and who they are suitable for. Of course, there are more books but there’s also quite some trash out there you wouldn’t want to spend your money on. If you want more information about any of those books then please don’t hesitate to contact us.

The Theory of Poker

Theory of Poker, written by David Sklansky, discusses theories and concepts applicable to nearly every variation of the game. It introduces you to the ‘Fundamental Theorem of Poker’, its implications, and how these theories should affect your play. Those who read and study this book will leave behind those who don't, and many of today's top poker players will tell you that this is the book that really made a difference in their play.

Small Stakes Hold 'em: Winning Big with Expert PlaySmall Stakes Hold 'em:

Winning Big with Expert Play, by Ed Miller, David Sklansky, and Mason Malmuth, explains everything you need to be a big winner. Unlike many other books about small stakes games, it teaches the aggressive and attacking styles used by all professional players. In addition, after you learn the winning concepts, test your skills with over fifty hand quizzes that present you with common and critical decisions in Texas Hold'em. It is the most thorough and accurate discussion of small stakes hold'em available.

Tournament Poker for Advanced Players

Tournament Poker for Advanced Players, 21st Century Edition, by David Sklansky, is the first book ever written that explains tournament strategies, which only a small number of players have mastered. Some of the ideas discussed include the effect of going broke, ‘The Gap Concept’ (link to advanced strategies), how chips change value, all-in strategy, adjusting strategy when stakes rise, last table, and more. Please note this book assumes that you already know more than the basics of playing poker.

Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Volume I

Harrington on Hold 'em: “Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Volume I” by Dan Harrington is a book that will significantly improve your NL tournament playing skills. Here you will learn about starting requirements, reading the table, hand analysis, pre-flop plays and strategies, betting after the flop, and many other concepts. There are exceptionally well-explained example hands to show you in action what you’ve just learned. This is the best book ever written about NL tournaments and goes with Volume II, which was released in July 2005.

Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Volume I I

Harrington on Hold 'em: “Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments, Volume II” by Dan Harrington is the second book that starts where Volume I left off giving you magnificent insight into subjects like making moves, inflection points, short table strategies, heads-up play alongside many example hands that will show you how those stratagems work in practice. It is in conjunction with his first book the best ever written NL tournament reference. A 3rd Volume is currently in production, so watch this space for when it’s published!