January 2, 2007
Over it's 37 year history (to date) the World Series of Poker has produced many moments of remarkable drama. Some of these events have already achieved legendary status. Mark Rogers attempts to catalogue and, ambitiously, rank the top 52 World Series moments in his awkwardly titled book, 52 Greatest Moments World Series of Poker.
Rogers' book is a beautifully bound volume that contains brief descriptions of some of the most remarkable milestones in WSOP history. The layout is well executed and the book is filled with photographs carefully reproduced on high-quality paper. This is an attractive book that would look fabulous on any poker player's coffee table, even buried under mounds of casino chips, bundles of c-notes, and dog-eared copies of Theory of Poker.
The process of selecting and ranking these events will always be controversial. A certain amount of criticism over any such selection process is inevitable, and there certainly are orderings that caused an arched eyebrow or two from this reviewer as I made my way through the book. Moreover, there are places where Rogers stretches what falls within the boundaries of the World Series of Poker and what doesn't. Overall, though, it appears to me that the author put some significant time in creating his list, and at the very least I think that the choices made here are defensible. I may not agree with all of them, but I respect the decisions Rogers made, and that's not faint praise.
The text descriptions of the events listed in this book are fairly short. Moreover, without exception every one of them has been covered in other sources. While 52 Greatest Moments can work as a history book, those interested in detailed accounts of these events will almost certainly be more satisfied with the books and articles Rogers uses as sources. These include All In, The Biggest Game in Town, and Big Deal among others. I really appreciate the carefully compiled bibliography in the back, a feature that many poker books unfortunately lack. It's a good thing that Rogers went to the effort of referencing his primary sources.
While Rogers' book can't be categorized as a necessary book for poker readers, it does have its utility. One great use for 52 Greatest Moments is as a gift for that poker fan who has everything. This is an attractive book that isn't in wide release, so as a gift it is likely to both be appreciated and unlikely to be duplicated. It's also a nice book to page through for someone who wants to read some entertaining poker stories in small doses. Is it a must read? No, it's not an essential part of a poker aficionado's library. However, it is a fun book that's likely to be appreciated by those with a strong affinity for the game.
52 Greatest Moments World Series of Poker relates some of the amazing events that have made the World Series of Poker the iconic event of the poker world in an attractive package. The presentation is well executed, and the listing of events is reasonably considered. I wouldn't recommend this as a primary source for WSOP history, there are many other books that are better for that. However, I do think this book is worthwhile for a poker fan looking for a coffee table conversation piece, or as a gift for any poker player, even one who has everything.
Note: I received a free review copy of this book from the publisher. I have no other interest, financial or otherwise, in the success of this book.
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