Book Description
Meet Denver, a man raised under plantation-style slavery in Louisiana in the 1960s; a man who escaped, hopping a train to wander, homeless, for eighteen years on the streets of Dallas, Texas. No longer a slave, Denver's life was still hopeless-until God moved. First came a godly woman who prayed, listened, and obeyed. And then came her husband, Ron, an international arts dealer at home in a world of Armani-suited millionaires. And then they all came together.
But slavery takes many forms. Deborah discovers that she has cancer. In the face of possible death, she charges her husband to rescue Denver. Who will be saved, and who will be lost? What is the future for these unlikely three? What is God doing?
Same Kind of Different As Me is the emotional tale of their story: a telling of pain and laughter, doubt and tears, dug out between the bondages of this earth and the free possibility of heaven. No reader or listener will ever forget it.
Customer Reviews:
What a Great Read!.......2007-10-10
This book was recommended by a colleague and I could not find it here in Key West. I ordered two copies from Amazon and gave them both to friends (after reading). I was moved to tears by parts of the book. If anybody has any concerns about homeless issues, this book will renew one's faith in what can be done. It is one of the finest books on homeless issues that I have read in many years.
Very touching.......2007-10-01
This is a very readable book. It is also extremely touching. Several times as I read,I found tears streaming down my face. It will restore your faith in mankind and that there is more to a person than meets the eye.
A must read book.......2007-09-29
I don't have proper words to express this "amazing" book.
I can now better understand how it used to be in Slave times,
and feel a better understanding of my own faith and life after death.
I cried at moments of revealation! Would help anyone become a believer.
This book changed my life!.......2007-09-25
It's very easy to forget that this is a true story - it is such an amazing story that it could be fiction! It's a beautiful, poignant, touching book and it changed the way I view the homeless and how I share my resources with others. LOVED IT and I've been telling everyone I know to read it too!!
book.......2007-09-18
I ordered this book for my husband who had heard it was wonderful. He thought it was the best book he had ever read and he highly recommends it!!
Book Description
Cooking cocaine is remarkably similar to cooking foie gras. Both are costly ingredients and require careful attention. Left unattended, cocaine will go up in smoke; foie gras dissipates into a puddle of fat.
So begins one man's remarkable journey of transformation. Jeff Henderson grew up in the inner–city streets of San Diego. He spent nine years in federal prison for dealing drugs, where he became fascinated with cooking and decided to pursue a career as a chef when released. Little did he know how hard it would be to climb to the top of this profession. He is now the executive chef at the Café Bellagio in Las Vegas.
A combination of Angela's Ashes and Finding Fish, this is the enthralling story of someone who has managed to overcome the most unimaginable adversity. Alive with the energy of street life, the sober reality of prison, and the visceral thrill of being inside the intense kitchens of great restaurants, Cooked is a journey through the America of crime, punishment, and redemption. And at it's heart, it is a very human story of how even the worst mistakes can be overcome.
Customer Reviews:
Great read, compelling story.......2007-09-24
Wow, Jeff Henderson had a real "rags to riches" story. This book captures all the details of how Mr. Henderson went from "nothing to something". It's a good read because the story captures you from the beginning.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in reading a "feel good" story, but i would also recommend it to youths who want to know what it's like to go from "something to nothing" real fast.
This book chronicles the good, the bad and the ugly of Mr. Henderson's life. What I really liked is how he did not make any excuses for his failures (his anger, temper, mistakes, etc). Youths will learn about responsibility from reading this book.
What an interesting life..........2007-09-14
Wow! Well written. It was so great to learn about how a person could change their life into something so positive after it was so worthless.
Awesome.......2007-09-03
I loved this book and would recommend it to familes that have youth in their homes, especially with drug crimes so high in our communities. I have a son that is currently serving a 11 year Federal sentence for crack cocaine and will share this book with him and his children. This is a great book to teach youth in Boys and Girls Club that what they see as far as drugs and living the good life, will come to an end. I work in the school system and ask youth on a regular basis what they want to be when they grow up, most boys say a drug dealer, that's what my father was. I ask where is father now, "in prison" but, I will be smarter than him and not get caught. I tell them from personal experience not what someone told me but they will end up one of two places in jail or dead, and to choose a more promising career, and to remember the choice is yours.
Cooked from the Streets to the Stove.......2007-08-13
This was an excellent book. It showed how someone can change their life no matter what obtacles are in front of them. This book is a book for all ages to read it allows you to see if a person wants to have change in their life it can happen by setting your mind to it, living a clean life and working hard.
I am very glad I saw this guy on Oprah and I decided to purchase the book.
Great Story, Great Read.......2007-07-27
You'll learn more than you thought you would ever want to know about selling crack on the streets, the prison system, and the world of culinary art...quite a trifecta. I wasn't particularly interested in any of these things but the book certainly kept my attention. It seems unlikely to me that Mr. Henderson wrote the book - if he did, he can add author to his list of accomplishments - if he didn't, his ghostwriter did a terrific job.
Book Description
This novel portrays the life of Yarni, a sweet and innocent girl from a well-to-do family. By chance she meets Richmond Virginia's notorious drug kingpin, Des. Immediately they develop an astronomical love, which separates her from her family and friends. But when Des is sentenced to life in prison, Yarni will learn being A Hustler's Wife isn't easy with her sole provider behind bars.
Customer Reviews:
Outstanding book.......2007-09-18
I had purchased this book sometime ago, but never got a chance to read it. When I did get that chance, the book was outstanding. I would suggest that you read "Forever a Hustler's Wife" as soon as you are done with this one.
Extremely Good!!!.......2007-09-02
I thought this book was very good. I had to go out and get "Forever a Hustler's" after readng this. That one was also very good.
I recommend this reading!!
cHICKS IN THE GAME.......2007-08-29
OK FOR A CHICK BOOK i EXPECTED A LITTLE BETTER ENDING , IT WAS WEAK, BUT THESE ARE WOMEN WHO THINK THEY GOT GAME
Definitely Worth the Read...........2007-08-25
"A Hustler's Wife was a pretty good book. I am not familiar with Turner's writing, so this was my first experience. There were a lot of publishing errors and missed words. I had to use context clues to figure some things out, but overall, it was an easy read. It was a page turner, but not quite the page turner I expected after reading the reviews. By the time I finished the book, I was ready for the sequel. However, I will say that one thing I LOVE about Turner is how she incorporated spirituality into the street. That was hot!! Either way, I would say pick it up and read it, but buy it on Amazon.com.
Boring.......2007-07-30
I love to read....2 to 3 books a week. This was not at all interesting, but when I start them, I always finish. It took about 2 long days to finish. I'm not even the least bit interested in the sequel. Sorry.
Book Description
About Dan Paymar: Dan was born and raised in Flint, Michigan. Before turning to a career in the poker industry, Dan spent four years at Michigan Tech, becoming an engineer. His first work in the computer industry was in field service for Bendix Computer, which was bought out by Control Data in 1963. In 1967, Dan moved on to develop a text editing system for Encyclopædia Britannica.
With two other engineers, Dan started Educational Data Systems. Their goal: to write a BASIC language interpreter and disk operating system for the Data General Nova computer to handle up to sixteen users. As far as we know, this was the first time-sharing system ever to run on a minicomputer. When the company began manufacturing its own computers Educational Data Systems became Point 4 Data Corporation.
Always the idea man, Dan then developed an accessory for the Apple-II computer which he sold via his own mail order business and through retail outlets.
In 1989 Dan changed his career direction about 180 degrees and returned to school — to become a poker dealer. That same year, he moved to Las Vegas.
After five years working as a poker dealer, playing some poker, and getting interested in video poker, Dan became an instructor for poker dealers at Casino Gaming School. Not satisfied with the instructional materials then available, the original edition of this book was born. Starting as a booklet of fifty pages, the text evolved as new situations and questions came up in class that were not covered. In 1995, the second edition of the original text, with eighty pages, was published and sold in gaming bookstores.
About Donna Harris: Donna Harris was born and raised in California and came to Las Vegas in 1979 for the World Cup of Darts, which was held at the Sahara Hotel. She was the first female official for this event. Like many Las Vegas visitors, she was fascinated by the prospect of building a career in the casino industry, and in 1980 she returned to Las Vegas to deal blackjack professionally. Her first job was at the Golden Nugget Gambling Hall in downtown Las Vegas.
That same year, after becoming intrigued by the game of poker (which was played directly across the pit from where she dealt), and then playing poker after work, Donna asked to be transferred into the cardroom where the legendary Bill Boyd was the manager. Her initial position was as a "shill dealer" — a dealer who only dealt when the "regular" dealers were out of the lineup — usually to play poker. Her other early job duties included brushing tables, getting fills and player's checks, and "playing poker" as a shill. She dealt poker until 1985.
In 1982 Bill Boyd retired, turning the cardroom over to another legend, Eric Drache. At that time very few women were in poker management and Eric felt that many of his regular customers, who originally played in "smokey back room" type environments, would not respect the decision of a young and inexperienced female floorperson. However, Donna persisted and was given the opportunity to succeed.
In 1998 Donna became the cardroom manager at The Mirage, where you can still find her today. Donna has also held positions in both The World Series of Poker and Grand Prix of Poker tournaments held in Las Vegas. Her experience includes traveling with Poker Cruises International, whose routes to most ports in the Caribbean and Mexico have now been taken over by Card Player Cruises and Classic Poker Cruises. She was also aboard the first "poker cruise" to England on the QE II in 1985, and worked poker tournaments in such exotic locales as Marakesh, Morocco, and Port Vila, Vanuatu.
About Mason Malmuth: Mason Malmuth was born and raised in Coral Gables, Florida. In 1973 he received his BS in Mathematics from Virginia Tech, and completed their Masters' program in 1975. While working for the United States Census Bureau in 1978, Mason stopped overnight in Las Vegas while driving to his new assignment in California. He was immediately
Customer Reviews:
Great buy!.......2007-09-01
This item was in amazing condition and shipped extremely quick. I can't ask or anything better. Wish every order was like this. Thank you!
The best introduction to Dealing........2007-01-31
I got a job as a poker dealer and had have a few errors that weren't quite covered in my "introduction course" by my employers, plus I wanted to be as professional as I could so I decided to buy this book.
The overall structure of the book is somewhat confusing since you can find repeated lines all over the book, and several subjects are covered in several chapters so you can't really know all you need to of, say, blind structure, until you've read most of the book. This however is not that bad since you are most likely to read the whole thing in a couple of sittings. I actually read it in 2 days during breaks right at work.
The obvious lack of illustrations is also a bit of a problem but the explanations are clear enough.
There are some problems that you will find frequently during your job that the book leaves to the floorperson's decition and gives no information as to what their call might be, it would've been nice to know some options on those subjects.
In spite of these issues, the book is excellent at procedures and gives you the tools to be a true professional, my performance has improved a great deal and the players really appreciate a professional dealer.
Overall the book is great, I have it as a reference and when problems arise that need understanding by the players we can actually take the book and show the proper procedures.
The Professional Poker Dealers Handbook by Dan Paymar.......2007-01-04
Have you always dreamed of being a Poker Dealer?
If you read and study this book, it is only months away for you. My husband was told to buy this book by our Casino Poker Supervisors. He was told to read it three times and then study and practice what is in this book. He has been playing poker most of his life but this book helped him turn his hobby into his job. He worked only 4 days as a Poker Dealer and now he is a Poker Supervisor and Dealer. This book helped him learn the skills to fulfill his dreams and it can do the same for you.
Become a Poker Dealer with this book by reading and practicing what the author Dan Paymar give you. His tools really work. Good Luck.
Great book for dealers.......2006-06-30
I'm a student right now in poker school and this is the book we are using for class.
It covers everything from the proper mechanics of "pitching" (dealing cards the proper way), flops, sidepots and controlling the table.
I've read the book multiple times. I highly recommend this to prospective poker dealers and even long time dealers that have developed some bad habits in their game.
Good Tutorial.......2006-02-26
Was a good look into the profession of poker dealing. Had a little boring info but if you're interested in poker I guess that would make it interesting information for you.
Download Description
For more than twenty years, Sultan Khan has defied the authorities, whether communist or Taliban, to supply books to the people of Kabul. He has been arrested, interrogated, and imprisoned, and has watched illiterate Taliban soldiers burn piles of his books in the street. Yet he has persisted in his passion for books, shedding light in one of the world's darkest places. This is the intimate portrait of a man of principle and of his family - two wives, five children, and many relatives sharing a small four-room apartment in this war-ravaged city. As they endure the extraordinary trials and tensions of Afghanistan's upheavals, they also still try to live ordinary lives, with work, relaxation, shopping, cooking, marriages, rivalries, and shared joys. Most of all, this is an intimate portrait of family life under Islam. Even after the Taliban's collapse, the women in Khan's family must submit to arranged marriages, polygamous husbands, and crippling limitations on their ability to travel, learn, and communicate with others. Seierstad lived with Khan's family for months, experiencing first-hand Afghani life as few outsiders have seen it. Stepping back from the page, she allows the Khans to speak for themselves, giving us a genuinely gripping and moving portrait of a family, and of a country of great cultural riches and extreme contradictions.
Customer Reviews:
The Bookseller of Kabul.......2007-10-19
This is a beautifully written book that chronicles a fascinating man committed to saving the culture of Afganistan. In it the author, who was granted amazing access, reveals the incredible hardships muslim women suffer and the indominable spirit of a resourceful man.
A wonderful and rich look at everyday life in Kabul.......2007-09-19
A year in the life of a wealthy (by Afghan standards) bookseller whose focus is the preservation of literature and books for the next generation. The lengths to which he will do this often compromise his family, best revealed in the irony of denying his sons the privilege of going to school so they can work in his shops. Beautifully observed and touching, particularly the roles of women in the patriarchal family structure, who must carefully manage how much they can dream about their own lives. You won't soon forget this story after you have read the last page.
Reading as a Dangerous Activity.......2007-08-23
This amazing story follows an Afghani bookseller and his family, who opened their doors to a Western journalist (Norwegian Asne Seierstad). She becomes part of the family in a desire to understand what daily life is like for Afghanis in their own country, particularly women. In this book, Seierstad shares this family's hardships, sorrows, and joy. Reeling from the ravages of war, mired in poverty, and limited by traditions of the Taliban, the Afghanistan that Seierstad brings us is even more compelling because of its inside look at what one middle class family must endure.
She brings us into the heart of matters: the bookseller's determination and drive to continue his trade (which included spending several years in jail, as well as living under censorship and illegal border crossings to bring books to the people of Kabul). She also examines the life of his children and his two wives. No other book captures so graphically what it is like to be a woman in a burka living in Afghanistan today. This book will have every Western woman thanking her lucky stars that she was born into more tolerant conditions that allow her a choice of career, marriage partner, and pursuit of her own happiness...freedoms most Westerners take for granted.
Because of her journalist status, Seierstad is able to show us the stories of both men and women. With a war correspondent's background, she is able to fill in the historical perspective while still maintaining an unprecedented level of intimacy in this tale. This is truly a remarkable book, well written and compelling. Its value is sure to stand the test of time.
A fascinating look at Afghanistan.......2007-08-23
The Bookseller of Kabul is a fine book which illuminates a culture and country with both honesty and understanding. It is written like a novel, yet the reader is convinced of the authenticity of the narrative; and Seierstad is clear when she expresses her own opinions. It is not difficult to share her views of the treatment of women in the Afghan household where she herself is hospitably and generously treated. The lack of opportunity to escape the stifling and destructive prison of womanhood in Afghanistan is tragic. She also examines the power of the authoritarian head of the family who denies his own children an education or freedom to make some choices of their own.
It is evident that the thoughtless acceptance of traditional beliefs of the role of women or the rights of the "man of the house" cannot be easily changed or even modified. I closed the book with a feeling of sadness and hopelessness, but with admiration for Asne Seierstad's skill and sensibilities.
Bookseller is the Best.......2007-07-19
A gripping story and personal insight into a wealthy Kabul family. I could hardly put it down and learned a lot about modern Afghanistan life.
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
Readers of Black Hawk Down know Mark Bowden can tell an exciting story about as well as any writer at work today. Killing Pablo is further proof. It describes the rise and fall of Pablo Escobar, a notorious Colombian drug lord who became one of the narcotic trade's first billionaires. Pablo--Bowden refers to him by his first name throughout the book--started out as a petty thief and wound up running a massive smuggling empire. At his height in the 1980s, he owned fleets of boats and planes, plus 19 separate residences in Medellin, each with its own helipad. Violence marked everything he did: "He wasn't an entrepreneur, and he wasn't even an especially talented businessman. He was just ruthless." He bought off police, politicians, and judges throughout his country, and killed many others who wouldn't cooperate. The Colombian government tried to capture him, but without much luck; he evaded them time after time. "Now and then the police achieved enough surprise to catch him, literally, with his pants down. In [1988], about one thousand national police raided one of his mansions," writes Bowden. "Pablo fled in his underwear, avoiding the police cordon on foot." He got away, again, but his days were numbered. He was making powerful enemies in both Colombia and the United States. The final straw probably came when Pablo's men murdered a popular politician and, three months later, planted a bomb on a plane, killing 110 people, including two Americans.
The bulk of Killing Pablo describes what happened when the U.S. government put its resources behind the hunt for Pablo. Bowden describes the search in gripping detail, from the massive electronic-surveillance effort to bureaucratic infighting between rival U.S. agencies. This is an outstanding work of reportorial journalism, too: in the epilogue, Bowden drops tantalizing hints that it was an American--not a Colombian--who delivered the killing shot to Pablo in 1993. Readers looking for a real-life thriller--or any kind of thriller, for that matter--won't do much better than Killing Pablo.
Book Description
A tour de force of investigative journalism-this is the story of the violent rise and fall of Pablo Escobar, the head of the Colombian Medellin cocaine cartel. Escobar's criminal empire held a nation of thirty million hostage in a reign of terror that would only end with his death. In an intense, up-close account, award-winning journalist Mark Bowden exposes details never before revealed about the U.S.-led covert sixteen-month manhunt. With unprecedented access to important players-including Colombian president César Gaviria and the incorruptible head of the special police unit that pursued Escobar, Colonel Hugo Martinez-as well as top-secret documents and transcripts of Escobar's intercepted phone conversations, Bowden has produced a gripping narrative that is a stark portrayal of rough justice in the real world.
"The story of how the U.S. Army Intelligence and Delta Force commandos helped Colombian police track down and kill Pablo Escobar is a compelling, almost Shakespearean tale." (Los Angeles Times)
"Absolutely riveting. . . . Mark Bowden has a way of making modern nonfiction read like the best of novels." (The Denver Post)
Customer Reviews:
Too long.......2007-08-25
Mark Bowden wrote Black Hawk Down, as everybody knows. I was looking forward to any book by Mr. Bowden, but this one is too much. If there was ever a guy who needed to be killed it was Pablo Escobar. However, reading the endless corruption and stupidity of Columbians was depressing, and furthered my low opinions of them. There is hardly a living soul in this sorry country who is not vile or evil. Anyway, the book runs on too long and I finally just turned to the page where he was finally shot, almost by accident.
A decent true-life thriller, but that's all........2007-08-21
If you want a vivid portrait of Pablo Escobar, his personality, and his methods, this book does the job. Halfway through the volume, though, it just becomes another thriller, the story of a chase that could have taken place anywhere on earth (with of course lots of detail on surveillance gizmos, military hardware, and the colorful individuals involved--a bit like Tom Clancy). But there is virtually no backbround, nothing that helps explain why Colombia became such a huge supplier of drugs. (If it hadn't been Pablo, it would've been some other guy.) Moreover, Bowden takes for granted the notion that the cause of the drug problems is the evil men in Colombia, while never considering the fact of enormous drug demand in the U.S. Without the vast gringo appetite for drugs, there would have been no Pablo. Supply and demand is a two-way street!
On another note, Bowden's referring to the Contras in Nicaragua as "pro-democracy" forces is questionable. Those people were terrorists who killed some 50,000 people.
Runs Too Long.......2007-07-16
Black Hawk Down is one of my favorite books. From page 2 onward, there's not one dull moment. I wish the same could be said for Killing Pablo. This book really drags and at about the halfway point you're wishing that they'd cut to the chase already and kill the SOB.
A gripping account of one of the greatest out-laws and the country he lived in .......2007-04-28
Despite the apparent flaws the previous reader and reviewer points out, this is still a well researched book and these flaws do not take away from this thrilling and appalling story of Pablo Escobar. What I really liked was the description not only of Escobar but also of the country he grew up in and that let him live such a violent life and have such a horrific career. A very good read!
finding Pablo.......2007-02-22
Killing Pablo was alot easier then finding Pablo...go behind the scenes of the drug war as Pablo is hunted down with all the latest eletronic gadgetry and eventually located..Mark Bowden writes a compelling, page turner...Pablo Escobar rises to the top of the drug cartel much like Scarface only this is a true story just as compelling..
Book Description
Antiques dealer Lara McClintoch is targeted by ruthless criminals while tying to recover an eighth-century Tang Dynasty silver box-with an alchemical formula for the elixir of immortality etched on the inside of the lid. The rare item holds the key not only to the mysterious death of a museum curator, but to Lara's own survival.
Customer Reviews:
Mystery Nestled In Chinese Boxes.......2007-08-28
Hamilton just gets better and better at bringing together an ancient mystery with a current day missing artifact.
There is also fascinating information on how art auctions work and how the Chinese are trying to prevent their heritage from being sold to foreign collectors.
However, this is not Hamilton's best book as it reads as if it was a longer and denser book and then was edited down, leaving some character development missing and some of the action confusing.
And, add in one too many coincidence.
Armchair travelers can journey to famous Chinese historic site.......2007-05-14
This mystery series takes readers on trips to famous ancient sites while the protagonist tries to fulfill purchase orders for her upmarket antique store in Toronto. The latest one involves spending time with protagonist in ancient Chinese sites. The sense of place is wonderful but I could have used even more description of the sites as I have never been to China.
The Chinese connection is fascinating.......2007-04-26
Lara McClintoch is an antiques dealer who faces down an Asian gang called the Golden Lotus that is terrorizing a Canadian city's Chinatown. It seems Lara's significant other, Rob Luczka, a sergeant in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, has angered the gang and they may be targeting Lara because of her relationship with Rob.
Lara travels to New York and attempts, on behalf of her friend, Dory Matthews, to bid on a rare Tang Dynasty silver box--a box that has added value because the lid is etched with a formula for immortality. It is also a box very similar to one Dory already has.
The box is mysteriously withdrawn from the New York auction and ten days later, Dory is dead. It is learned that the box will be auctioned in Beijing and Lara travels to China (per a request in Dory's will) to bid on the box. Her rival, Burton Haldimand, turns up dead and the race is on. Lara must find the box or she might join Haldimand in death.
The Chinese Alchemist by Lyn Hamilton is the first of her novels that I've read. It's a fun, fast and easy read. Lara McClintoch is interesting, the plot takes some wonderful twists and turns and the Chinese connection is fascinating.
Armchair Interviews says: The Chinese Alchemist is recommended. You might want to check out Lyn Hamilton's other titles.
Hamilton delivers another winner!.......2007-04-10
Lyn Hamilton has graced readers with a series of stories featuring antiques dealer Lara McClintoch that take place in beguiling locales. The Chinese Alchemist is no exception. Lara's pursuit of a rare Chinese box takes her into the cities and byways of that exotic country whose elusive culture is only recently becoming known to Westerners. As always, the stakes go higher as intrepid Lara finds herself in a fight for survival.
Eleanor Sullivan, author of Assumed Dead.
Book Description
After a successful life in the drug game, twenty-one-year-old Kisa Kane plans to retire -- settle down, find a good man, and raise a family of her own. Done with the thug life, she has everything a ghetto girl would want: plenty of money, drop-dead-gorgeous looks, and two thriving legitimate businesses. Until she falls in love with Sincere Montega, a powerful drug dealer whose down-and-dirty money pulls Kisa back into the world she is trying so hard to leave behind. With lies, cheating, and conflict, Kai, their newborn, may be the only reason for this couple to stay together, but their lives are inevitably changed in the most unexpected way, the only way the streets of Harlem can.
Customer Reviews:
GETTO GIRL !.......2007-08-22
This book was okay i was a little tired of hearing about what they where wearing. The writer spent more time talking about there clothes then the plot of the book. Other then that it was a good read. I hope there will be a Part II because there was a question at the end that i would think need answered.
Not Another Ghetto Story.......2007-07-27
This book was okay, not one of my favorites. I got tired of reading about every article of clothing Kane bought, wore or wanted. All the designer name dropping took away from the story line and got on my last nerve. This book really could have been converted into a short story if we didn't have to read about every characters clothes, jewelry, shoes, purses, etc.... Just Okay for me, tired of reading about the "Lifestyles Of The Ghetto Fabulous." And can somebody please tell me what was up with the author using the "N" word in every other sentence, was that necessary?
amazing.......2007-07-26
I LOVE THIS BOOK I THING I HAVE READ IT OVER 15 TIMES NOW I'AM READING HER LATEST GRINGING AND SO FAR LOVING IT TOO DANIELLE keep writing and you have a fan that will keep reading
straight fiyah.......2007-07-19
Oh my god this is defiantely one of my favorite books hands down Kisa Kane was that chick who stuck by her man no matter what. This book had me screaming out loud on some parts but this book was definately worth the money and one of my top 5. i can't wait for the sequel. Ms. Santiago keep doing ya thing cause u kilt it with this one.
Ok I get the point!.......2007-07-03
The book overall was good but I could do without the description of what clothes they had on all the time and how much they cost. What the author failed to do was verify the characters complete backgrounds. Yeah I know that Sincere's grandpa was Italian and a made man but what else was Sincere? Was he also black or what and who was black his grandma or his daddy? There's also not enough info about Kisa's father. Where was he when she went home to her momma? The book does not give enough information or explore the pasts of the characters.
Book Description
A winning strategy for the game of 21. The essentials, consolidated in simple charts, can be understood and memorized by the average player.
Customer Reviews:
This book and your own brain are all you need....well...a team..........2007-08-27
Next stop Macau
Still the classic for the high-low method, but nowadays you need to work in teams and with the perpetual continuous shuffle machines/decks the method has become harder to deploy in lots of casinos. Which is why those who use this with refined forced-card deck cutting are in the current gravy boat, although their day in the sun will also pass.
Most folks can intuitively understand card counting and shoe-skew. There are plenty of books on the topic of card counting. However, Thorp's original work is best and overlooked on several important points by most folks. The first point is: rigor. Thorp has backed up his method with solid empirical and theoretical underpinnings. This gave confidence to generations of card counters who refined his method. The second point is: clarity. Thorp is a first-string mathematician and easily could have stayed conversing with peers in jargon, or he even could have purposefully employed obscurantism to keep tables thin. Instead his prose style is lean, direct, and clear. Such is his brevity and Wittgensteinian exactness that you may need to re-read a few sentences here and there to absorb what he is saying, but on the whole this is an accessible narrative written by a mathematician for an intelligent audience.
A wonderful gift that opens up a new world combining math, fun and money.
Now about Kelly criterion in betting strategies......
The Book that Started the Blackjack Revolution.......2007-03-08
Edward O. Thorp started the blackjack revolution way back in the early 1960s with a difficult but successful card counting system. This book explains that early system and why blackjack is a beatable game. There are now many easier card counting systems such as the Hi-Lo, the KO, the High Opt and the easiest of all Speed Count.
Thorp's book is a must have for your gambling library as he started it all.
Frank Scoblete: author of Golden Touch Dice Control Revolution!
The Grandfather of Blackjack Strategy.......2007-01-22
Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One by Edward Thorp started a craze toward card counting in casinos, prompted several rules changes including increased numbers of decks, shorter cuts, and more frequent shuffles. It's the grandfather of Blackjack strategy books and the first mathematical analysis of the game published outside academia. For those reasons alone it's worth having and studying even if its effectiveness has been diminished by the rules changes I noted above.
The other advantage that Thorp's book has over the dozens of blackjack books available is that it includes the probability charts. You can take the numbers from the appendix, see where the strategy was developed and make your own adjustments based on the conditions you encounter at your local game or casino.
It's tricky, his counting system and strategy, but once you have the hang of it you can be assured a fair game with a casino. And, all told, it's not that difficult a system to master with some practice ahead of time. Don't read this volume on the plane flight into Vegas and expect to beat the dealers in a day, but spend a week or two with some decks of cards, practice, go online and play, then take your shot against the pros. Good luck.
- CV Rick
Used it and won--when they didn't cheat!.......2007-01-21
The book was very useful in understanding how much to bet given your hand and where you are in the deck. The casinos do still cheat, so I would advise watching for opportunities to play at a fair table (then clean their clocks with these methods).
Must read, but not all praise.......2006-07-25
If you were ever interested in card counting this book is for you. Not because it guarantees the edge against the casino with 10 simple rule, because it doesn't, but because it outlines several good strategies to maintain a small edge (or in some cases a smaller disadvantage) over the casino establishment.
I gave this book 5 stars for a couple different reasons. Although requiring a lot of practice, the ten count that thorp teaches should more than pay for the book. The stories, although providing little insight into the world of current gambling, provide comical relief for an otherwize stale and mathmatical book. Although a person can find easier to use systems and basic strategy tables on the internet, Thorp's main assistance to me came in his in depth modification to the tables based on what the count reflects. The short comings of this book are numerous however. For one, thorp dedicates a significant (not to mention hilarious) portion of the book to end play. A system where by busting certain hands and standing on others effects the composition of the deck post shuffle. That is, by busting all hands with aces and tens when the deck appears to be running out, the aces and tens are reshuffled with the remainder of the deck while the low cards are not, giving the player a small advantage. Another dissapointment is that thorp doesn't go into the deep mathmatics of his strategy or the simulations, he simply states nearly undunderstandable percent advantages and assumes the reader will trust him. (for owners, this is reference to the page where he outlines the percent advantages with different numbers of tens in the deck where no pattern is visible)
To splice in some praise, I would recomend this as a first book. A lot of information about advantages and disadvantages with different casino play is not included, but the basic outline presented, the expanitory style in which each of his 4 counts are explained, and the excitement in practicing "beating the dealer" make this a worth while read.
Average customer rating:
- Zach's Lie
- Zach's Lie
- Students will love it.
- Zach's Lie's reveiw
- zachs lie
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Zach's Lie
Roland Smith
Manufacturer: Hyperion
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ASIN: 0786814403
Release Date: 2003-04-28 |
Book Description
Jack Osborne's life changes forever the night men in masks break into his house, threaten Jack and his family, and ransack their home. Jack then discovers the reason these men have come into their lives-his father has been arrested for drug trafficking. Jack, his mother, and his sister are then forced to enter the Witness Security Program. Jack becomes 'Zach' and moves to Elko, Nevada, a town in the middle of nowhere. There he meets Sam, the strangest school custodian he has ever encountered, and Catalin, a girl who might make Zach's uprooting worth the trouble. But just as Zach finally begins to piece together a new life, he finds himself in danger again-and this time his actions could determine the fates of everyone he cares about.
Customer Reviews:
Zach's Lie.......2007-06-06
Jack Osborne is a 12 year old boy in the 7th grade with an imaginary friend named commander IF (Imaginary Friend). Three men broke into their house in the middle of the night; Agent Pelton said it had something to do with their dad. Agent Pelton said he found their dad down in Texas and said they locked him up down town because he was transferring drugs throughout North and South America. Agent Pelton said his dad worked for a man named Alonzo. Alonzo has warehouses throughout America. Jacks Dad wants to put his family in the Whiteness Security Program. The Osborne's changed their names and hair color. Their new names are the Grangers and they moved to Elko, Nevada. Will Alonzo ever find the Grangers in Elko, Nevada?
I believe this is a great book and I recommend it for kids and adults that read fluently. I like this book because it keeps you thinking and they travel all around trying to become people that their not and trying to fit in.
Zach's Lie.......2007-06-06
Jack Osborne is a 12 year old boy in the 7th grade with an imaginary friend named commander IF (Imaginary Friend). Three men broke into their house in the middle of the night; Agent Pelton said it had something to do with their dad. Agent Pelton said he found their dad down in Texas and said they locked him up down town because he was transferring drugs throughout North and South America. Agent Pelton said his dad worked for a man named Alonzo. Alonzo has warehouses throughout America. Jacks Dad wants to put his family in the Whiteness Security Program. The Osborne's changed their names and hair color. Their new names are the Grangers and they moved to Elko, Nevada. Will Alonzo ever find the Grangers in Elko, Nevada?
I Believe this is a great book and I recommend it for kids and adults that read fluently. I like this book because it keeps you thinking and they travel all around trying to become people that their not and trying to fit in.
Students will love it........2007-05-08
I think this is a great read aloud. Lots of action and drama. A must read.
Zach's Lie's reveiw.......2007-04-16
The title of the book I chose is called "Zach's Lie." The author of this book is Roland Smith. The genre of the book is realistic fiction. My opinion about this book is that the book was amazing how it turned out. This book is very emotional at times and also it very adventurous. To admit it I almost cried twice! Kids, teenagers, and adults would love this book. My favorite part in the story is in the ending when... wait I'm not able to tell you. You are just going to find out yourself. The style is adventurous, emotional, and a mystery -find the bad guy- kind of book. When you read the book you can find out what your opinion is. I am not forcing you to read it, but I wish you could because it is the greatest book you will ever read. Just in case you did not understand the book's theme is about a family in trouble and how they try to get out of that situation.
zachs lie.......2007-04-11
ZACH'S LIE
What would you do if somebody broke into your house and threatened to kill you? This is an investigation book that tells all about a kid's life that gets turned around when people break into his house for his dad.
This book title is Zach's Lie. The author is Rolan Smith. The genre: this book has action, adventure, and it also has investigation in it.
This extraordinary book takes place in Portland, Oregon the main characters are Zach, the janitor, his mom and dad and his best friend.
The plot is when Zach is trying to figure everything out why the bad guys are trying to kidnap him so he doesn't figure out what is going on.
What I liked about how the author wrote about the story is that she made it sound like something was bad every second which was cool and how she made it adventurous.
I think somebody that would like this book would be 9 year old and up I am "ten years old" and I loved this book.
I thought this book was great, awesome and just so amazing. I would love to read it again! I think it is better than a lot of books.
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