Whether you are trying to improve your game, or simply learning a new version of blackjack, there are some excellent books available that can help you. These are guides that will teach you how to play the game, how to devise intricate strategies, how to boost your chances of winning and how to minimise your losses. To know which ones are must-reads for any blackjack player, we have three of the best for you listed next.
Books Budding Blackjack Players May Wish to Read
#1 Beat the Dealer by Edward Oakley Thorp
Beat the Dealer was written by mathematical genius and investment advisor Edward Oakley Thorp back in 1966. This New York Times Bestseller changed the blackjack scene forever on release, because it delivered something that was previously only discussed in vague theory. In his book, Thorp explains how to use the probability theory for creating an almost-perfect Kelly strategy, which can then enable the player to beat the House Advantage in blackjack games.
It should be noted that he had already proved his theory in practice, well before Beat the Dealer was even written. If you wish to learn about the very first method of counting cards, and using the Kelly criterion to your advantage, then this is a book that you just have to read first.
#2 The Theory of Blackjack by Peter A Griffin
Peter Griffin’s book, The Theory of Blackjack was released more than four decades ago and it still holds several secrets of modern-day card counting strategies. There are also more complex mathematical strategies based on several other aspects of the Probability Theory for you to learn. Some of those are still just as effective as they were in 1979.
However, don’t make the same mistake that Griffin did back in 1970, when he lost all his money while still in the process of perfecting his game. Instead, play blackjack for free online, test out your strategies, and make sure that you have a good grasp over them first. Once you are sure, only then should you try your blackjack strategy out by joining a real money blackjack table.
Peter Griffin did not manage to see success at all during his first few visits to the blackjack tables inside Vegas casinos, but he learned a lot from his initial experiences. In fact, Griffin improved so much and saw success at such an astonishing rate that he later became one of the seven original members of the prestigious Blackjack Hall of Fame in 2002, right alongside Thorp.
#3 The World’s Greatest Blackjack Book by Ken Cooper and Lance Humble
Whether or not the book lives up to its namesake is unimportant, because it’s still a solid, practical strategy book all the same. It was written with the aim to teach blackjack players everything that they need to know about counting cards in real-life situations, via the Hi-Op I & Hi-Op II method. In addition to discussing the mathematical aspects, Ken Cooper and Lance Humble also goes into great detail regarding how to read human behaviour and use it in your strategy to win without getting caught.
If you have already gone through these three and are looking for something else to read, try Professional Blackjack by Stanford Wong and Rick Blaine’s Blackjack Blueprint. Blackjack Blueprint in particular should be prioritised by serious players, given that it has far more updated information.
Of course, there is a wealth of other material out there that would give any new blackjack player an insight into the game, and whether you are looking to take up a new hobby during this pandemic, looking to turn a hobby into a serious money-maker, or simply planning a trip to the card-playing capital of the world, Las Vegas, reading material written by those that have succeeded in the past is always insightful.
Have you read any interesting books that explore ways in which to master Blackjack? Perhaps you have read either an autobiography or some fictitious works that focus on the life of a card player that you feel others may be interested in.
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If you are based within the UK or the US and prefer to support independent bookshops, then you can find a full list of all the books and authors mentioned in this article on our bookshop page.
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