For Richer, for Poorer: A Love Affair with Poker by Victoria Coren

[thermalsatsuma]

For Richer, for Poorer: A Love Affair with Poker by Victoria Coren

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


From early games where she was fleeced by her elder brother, to the swankiest of French casinos via the dazzling lights of Vegas and games in dodgy boozers before coming home to the comforting security of Tuesday games at The Vic, Victoria Coren has mapped out her life in poker. It is a looking glass world, inhabited by characters going by names like Devilfish, J.Q. and The Elegance, who bandy words like big blinds, buttons and flops and are always looking for the turn of the final river card that could win or lose them a fortune. It's not about the money though - a big win can just as easily disappear in a flash with an ill advised dice game on the way out of the casino.

This is an intriguing and moving view into the world of a professional gambler, during the turbulent years where the game moved from something played in smoky back rooms of dubious legality to a brave new world of internet millionaires and poker superstars.



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