Books are one of the best choices when it comes to learning something new, as they introduce us to new ideas, provide in-depth knowledge on a topic, and boost memory and intelligence skills. And this can’t be any truer when it comes to gaining knowledge and information on gambling.
So, from the fascinating story of MIT graduates who made fortunes by leveraging their casino math skills to a comprehensive gambling guide by one of the world’s best card experts, here are the best gambling books that you must definitely read.
Scarne’s New Complete Guide to Gambling – John Scarne
Born in 1903 in the American state of Ohio, John Scarne was a magician, author and well-known card games expert. Scarne started his career as a magician, but he went on to become famous as a card specialist. Throughout his lifetime, the American writer authored several books on the card and gambling-related topics. And Scarne’s New Complete Guide to Gambling is one of them.
In this guide, Scarne touches down on almost every aspect of casino gambling, including gameplay rules, house edge, payout odds and playing strategies. Also, it reviews and analyses all types of casino games and sporting events that are available at any good online live casino. So, no matter what casino title or sporting event you prefer to wager on, you’ll get to learn something valuable from the book.
Gambling 102: The Best Strategies for all Casino Games – M. Shackleford
Gambling 102 is another great book on all things gambling. Its author, Michael Shackleford, is highly renowned for his in-depth analysis of the mathematics of casino gambling. So, it’s no surprise that you can find some good playing strategies in his book.
Shackleford describes his Gambling 102 book as the one that allows players to play Roulette games and all other casino titles effectively. And yes, it does have correct assessments of odds, betting systems and several other things for each casino game. Just note that Gambling 102 assume that you have some prior knowledge about casino gaming, so you may want to conjoin it with a more introductory book if you are a complete beginner.
Bringing Down the House – Ben Mezrich
Bringing Down the House is a true story of six MIT students who won millions from Las Vegas casinos by using the Blackjack card counting strategy. While several writers have authored numerous books on this too-good-to-be-true story, none of them is as thorough as Ben Mezrich’s book.
In Bringing Down the House, MIT graduate Kevin Lewis narrates how he and his team develop a card counting strategy to have an edge over the casino. Although the main focus of the book is on the gripping story of MIT’s greatest mathematical minds, you’ll get to learn the basics of card counting as it’s so comprehensive. Interestingly, Bringing Down the House is often credited to have inspired people to play online Blackjack, though it’s not possible to count cards at online casinos.
Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling – David G Schwartz
Today, most of us enjoy placing wagers on Baccarat, Blackjack, Roulette and other popular online casino games. But have you ever wondered about the origins of these casino games and how gambling has evolved over time?
If you’re curious to know about the history of casino gaming, then you must definitely read Roll the Bones by David G Schwartz. In this book, David takes readers on a fascinating journey from the birth of gambling in the Stone Age to its evolution into mobile casino sites in the 21st century. Also, the latest edition of Roll the Dice focuses on how gambling became a multi-billion dollar industry in the past three centuries.
What’s more, it has stories of several famous gamblers who made fortunes or lost all their money due to gambling. These include Voltaire who won over 10 million francs by devising the lottery and Dostoevsky who lost all his fortune by playing mindlessly.
Other popular casino gambling books
Besides these, there are several other gambling and gambling-related books that are worth giving a read. Here’s a look at some popular casino gambling books:
- The Biggest Game in Town – Al Álvarez
- Positively Fifth Street – James McManus
- The Dark Side of the Felt – Tyler Nals
- All Bets Are Off – Arnie Wexler
- Burning the Tables in Las Vegas – Ian Andersen
- The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Gambling Like a Pro – Stanford Wong
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas – Hunter S. Thompson
