Rating: 
Summary: Complete Waste of Time
Review: Title says it all...you have to wait till 5th street to even find something interesting to read.
Rating: 
Summary: Murder, Sex, Poker -- What else is there?
Review: I'm a recreational poker player, and also very familiar with the World Series of Poker. In addition, I also work from my home, and during the Ted Binion murder trial, I got to see most of the very dark and seedy tale of how two people tried to murder and rip off a Vega$ legend, even if that legend was somewhat of a drug addicted, sex addicted, money addicted loser. All men can sympathize with Ted Binion on those last three, even though most of us don't ever want to be even one of them. Okay, maybe one of them... ha haWhat could be more Vegas than this: A highly dysfunctional casino heir meets a beautiful, sexy, stripper from the midwest who knows how to get anything she wants from a man. They have kinky sex together, do drugs together, and parade around Las Vega$ together, until the seductive stripper get's bored with that. And then she gets greedy, real greedy. So, she enlists yet another man to help her kill the casino heir and steal the heir's silver that is buried in the Nevada desert. If you're already excited, BUY THIS BOOK NOW! McManus takes you through his miraculous trip to the final table at the World Series of Poker, while intertwining the Ted Binion Murder and trial, the author's personal life, and the many interesting happenings that have occurred in the Binion family over the last generation. The Binions are making the their 'last stand' among corporate giants in Las Vegas. And like our own families, they are disfunctional and catty at times, but they are still a family trying to make things work, and we can all relate to that. I devoured the book, but I must admit there were slow times in the middle, especially the coverage of the author's family and personal life, but the book was far and above the best non-fiction poker book to come out in 20 years. If you liked Poker Nation or The Biggest Game in Town, YOU'LL LOVE THIS BOOK!
Rating:
Summary: Mixed Bag
Review: Be forewarned, about half of this book is devoted to the Binion murder case, with about a half devoted to poker. I was expecting more poker action and what it's like to play the wsop. I didn't really care for the Binion material.
Rating: 
Summary: This is a good book (I'm bluffing)
Review: WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT. I heard about this book and thought it would be really great. As it is marketed, it's an intriguing story. At first glance. Unfortunately, it takes forever to get to the story. First, Mr McManus engages in a lengthy and melodramatic rundown of the murder of a casino heir, Ted Binion, then tries to transition into his own story. While it's relevant background info since the World Series of Poker takes place at Binion's Horseshoe, JUST TELL ONE STORY, MAN! Even worse, McManus takes great liberties with some of the actual events related to the murder of Binion. He admits this. And then he cannot resist referring to himself and his dark side throughout the book as Good Jim and Bad Jim. A flourish I could have done without. Perhaps McManus or his editor or publisher lost their nerve in regards to publishing a book JUST about his experiences in The World Series of Poker. Perhaps that was never their intention. HOWEVER, that's the only interesting stuff in the book. The stuff about the death of Binion is, for the most part, [annoying]. Particularly annoying is the clunky manner in which it is bolted on. And it's nowhere near as enchanting as the thought of a writer for Harper's going to Vegas, exchanging his expense money for chips, and then somehow making it all the way to fifth place. Plus, there is some really interesting information about professional poker players. I thought this book had a lot of potential. A real bummer to not exercise more restraint, and focus on one story.
Rating:
Summary: Love McManus, Love Poker, Love the book
Review: Like James McManus, I love the game of poker, though I don't have the nerve or the bankroll for no-limit games. I am also a fan of nonfiction murder cases. So what's not to like about this book? McManus' intelligent discussion of the game of poker from all aspects was enlightening and entertaining. While he played in the WSOP (totally untried--totally computer-educated), he also covered the trial of Ted Binion's wife and lover, accused of his grisly murder. The marriage of these two themes results in a lively, intelligent and well-written text. I love the book.
Rating:
Summary: Bestselling poker book with good reason
Review: I could not stop reading this book. It tells the story of the biggest poker game in the world with lots of inside information, because this journalist to everyone's surprise, became a leading contender. You learn a lot about Texas Hold'em and the WSOP tournament in particular. He fills out the book with sex, drugs and even murder, though the expert players he portrays seem a colorful, yet ascetic bunch. All the sensationalism is justified because it IS Las Vegas and the murder victim ran the tournament in the past. A serious look at no limit poker. BTW, I read this as an ebook. I find a book in that form has to be a real page turner to finish it. This certainly was.
Rating: 
Summary: Aces full of hisownself...
Review: Biography meets poker textbook meets true crime meets history of gambling meets seedy Las Vegas travelogue...it's not a book, it's a "Now That's What I Call Literature!" compilation of magazine features. Despite the pinball narrative structure and the occasional lapses in taste (whaddya expect from a man who wore a baseball cap at his wedding?), McManus has crafted a compelling tour of the obsessive behaviors that define us all, whether we admit to them or not.
Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: I had hoped for much more. The author has A LOT of first-rate, first-hand material to draw on, but gets bogged down early in IMAGINING the Binion murder (the writing is ridiculously inane at times) There is also too much "textbook" filler and clutter about the great game of Texas Hold Em that one will enjoy far more in A. Alvarez's classic (Alvarez's writing is better than McManus's by a factor of five). But the Good Jim/Bad Jim stuff is fun, and will make you laugh. I also enjoyed the author's narrative from the final table at the WSOP, though at times it inexplicably bogged down. This book could have used a strong, rock-em-sock-em editor. It is hardly the classic some people here think it is. And that's a big disappointment because the author had the "nuts," as they say in Hold Em, to write that classic. He just failed to deliver.
Rating:
Summary: Pocket Kings
Review: Not Aces, but definitely very, very good. The editing was a bit inconsistent as he tends to ramble a bit afield early on. Both stories (Binion murder trial and WSOP) are very well done, as is the telling of his own family tale and how it ultimately relates to his experience in the Big One.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put this one down!
Review: Living in Los Angeles, Las Vegas has become my adult Disneyland over the years and I've adopted it as my vacation of choice; something about the allure of isolation, lights, potential riches in a matter moments, alcoholic binges, women, you name it...all within a 4hrs drive. But when I can't be there in the flesh, the next best thing is the written word...and the word better be written damn well. Only three books so far have brought Vegas to me: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (of course!), Super Casino, and Positively Fifth Street. Unlike the other books mentioned, PFS delves deeply into the annual World Series of Poker, tactics and all, along with the intrigueing story of the Binions--the hosts of the WSOP--and the high-profile murder case involving (you guessed it..or did you?) none other than the Binions. A classic Vegas fairytale/tradgedy amidst the most prestigious poker event around. It's simply pure vintage Vegas wrapped within a tight 422 pages of text. Interested in high-stakes hold-em poker? I barely knew poker till I read this book...now I find myself buying all the strategy books on hold-em mentioned throughout the text, I'm now hooked...after reading this book I want so desperately to wrap that WSOP bracelet around my wrist after reigning over Chris "Jesus" Ferguson or J.T. Cloutier...how fun would it be to take down the 'Gods'??....Hellmuth, you're on my hitlist as well. ... Buy it, read it, absorb it...what an engaging read this is.
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