You can spend a lot of money on products to help you get better as a
blackjack player. You’ll find online courses galore. You can even find personal
coaches and tutors who will help you get an edge over the casino.

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These products might have some value, but we’re a big fan of a more
affordable option: blackjack books.

On our site you’ll find detailed reviews and overviews of a number of
recommended blackjack books. Below we offer a birds’ eye view of what some of
the better books in the field have to offer.

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1. Blackjack Bluebook II by Fred Renzey

Blackjack Bluebook II is sub-titled: “the simplest winning strategies ever
published”. It offers a complete guide to the game, including sections on how to
play, how to use correct basic strategy, and how to get an edge by counting
cards. We especially enjoyed the section explaining commonly-misplayed hands.

As with many websites, this book includes a section dispelling the most
common blackjack myths. It also features 3 different card counting systems:

1. KISS I
2. KISS II
3. KISS III

We also enjoyed the multiple illustrations and tables presented in the book,
many of which were in color.

2. Blackjack for Blood by Bryce Carlson

Blackjack for Blood is sub-titled “The Card-Counters’ Bible, and Complete
Winning Guide”. We think it’s one of the only books most people would need to
become a professional card counter. It’s not as comprehensive about the math
behind the game or the history of how players have tried to win as some other
books. But it’s practical in the extreme.

Carlson includes how to play, how to use basics strategy, and how to count
cards. But he also includes sections about camouflaging your advantage play
efforts, which is important if you want to avoid getting 86’ed.

You don’t have to become a professional to have fun playing blackjack.
Carlson explains how to get enough of an edge to turn blackjack into a hobby
where you can win money and get comps from the casinos without mathematically
risking much money at all. And if you want to become a pro, you can.

The counting system taught in this book is the Omega II.

3. The Theory of Blackjack by Peter A. Griffin

The Theory of Blackjack’s subtitle is “The Compleat Card Counter’s Guide to
the Casino Game of 21”. It’s considered one of the classics in the field, and it
focuses (as you might expect) on the numbers and math behind the card counting
systems in use today. If you want to get an idea of how we determined things
like playing efficiency and other aspects of a counting system, this is the book
to read.

It’s also a practical book. You can learn basic strategy and how to count
cards, too. It’s a surprisingly entertaining book, considering how math-heavy it
is.

4. Playing Blackjack as a Business by Lawrence Revere

Playing Blackjack as a Business is one of the older books available in the
field. The author was one of the most interesting characters in the field, too.
Lawrence Revere works as a pit boss and as a dealer for various casinos. He also
served as a consultant for casinos trying to identify card counters, so he had
plenty of experience on both sides of the fence.

The legend has it that he started dealing blackjack in the back of a barber
shop at the age of 13.

You’ll find simple, practical explanations of how to master the game in this
book. It’s focused on players who want to become professionals. It’s old,
though, and possibly out-dated in some respects. The book dates from the early
1970s.

5. Beat the Dealer by Edward O. Thorp

Beat the Dealer is sub-titled “A Winning Strategy for the Game of
Twenty-One”. Thorp, the author, is considered the “father of card counting”.
This is an old book and possibly out-dated in some respects, but it still
provides some of the best and simplest discussions of how and why card counting
works.

It also offers how to play and a delineation of which strategies are
appropriate for beginning, intermediate, and advanced players. The sections on
cheating are probably useless to modern players, as few casinos cheat anymore.
The charts and tables are great, too.

6. Knock-Out Blackjack by Ken Fuchs and Olaf Vancura

Knock-Out Blackjack is sub-titled “The Easiest Card Counting System Ever
Devised”. We think this is a little bit of a misnomer, as the Ace Five count is
arguably a lot easier.

But in terms of a practical system that you can actually use to get an edge,
Knock-Out Blackjack might, in fact, be close to the easiest. It’s right up there
with the Red Seven count, anyway.

You’ll find information about the system presented in this book on our site
under the name “KO Blackjack” or “KO Card Counting System”. It’s an unbalanced
count that eliminates the need for a running count to true count conversion.

7. Professional Blackjack by Stanford Wong

Professional Blackjack doesn’t have a sub-title, but it’s written by one of
the best blackjack writers in the business today. It’s practical, but it also
goes into enough detail to be used as a serious reference book. It might not be
the best starting-point for novices, though.

This is an older book, and the author is optimistic about how easy it is to
get an edge over the casino. The reality in today’s casinos is a little tougher
in terms of getting an edge without getting caught.

The book presents the Hi Lo system as well as the Wong Halves counting
system.

8. Million Dollar Blackjack by Ken Uston

You can find used copies of Million Dollar Blackjack for next to nothing on
eBay or on Amazon. It’s out of print, so you’ll need to find a used copy
somewhere. During the 1970s and 1980s, this was considered a state of the art
guide to winning at blackjack. The author, Ken Uston, is one of the interesting
characters in the game-maybe less interesting than Lawrence Revere, but still
quite a character.

9. Blackjack Attack by Don Schlesinger

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Blackjack Attack is sub-titled “Playing the Pros’ Way”. It’s out of print
now, but it’s easy to find in used versions. The author is a great mathematician
with a knack for explaining how much to bet, how to analyze risk, how to put
together a blackjack team, and how to compare one card counting system with
another.

10. Blackbelt in Blackjack by Arnold Snyder

Blackbelt in Blackjack is sub-titled “Playing 21 as a Martial Art”. It’s a
clever thematic gimmick, but don’t let that fool you. It’s an incredibly
practical book and one that we’ve referred to constantly during our career as
gamblers.

This book explains some of the more interesting advantage play techniques we
discus on this site, too, including shuffle tracking. He covers multiple
counting systems, too, including:

• The Red 7 Count
• The Hi Lo Count
• The Zen Count

11. Winning Casino Blackjack for the Non-Counter by Avery Cardoza

The theme of Winning Casino Blackjack for the Non-Counter is simple enough.
Its goal is to teach you how to get an edge over the casino without having to
count card. The way to do that is to find good single deck games and play with
perfect basic strategy. The edge you get from such a strategy is small, but it
will make you a winner in the long run if you’re good at it.

Unlike many other blackjack books, Winning Casino Blackjack for the
Non-Counter includes information about playing blackjack online.

12. Big Book of Blackjack by Arnold Snyder

The Big Book of Blackjack is one of the first books on the subject that we
recommend to anyone who asks us how to get started. It’s well-written enough to
be easily understood by the novice, but it also includes enough information that
you can use it to get a profit and even become a professional. It has 27
chapters, many of which are interesting for their insights into the history of
the game.

It includes an explanation of the Red 7 count.

13. Blackjack Secrets by Stanford Wong

Blackjack Secrets is a good book if you’re just getting started, but once
you’ve become proficient, you’ll probably be better served by some of the other
books on this list. Some of the information in this one, as with many of the
books on our list, is outdated. That doesn’t make the book useless, but some
discernment is necessary.

The book covers the Hi Lo counting system in detail. It also includes details
about how to practice most effectively.

14. Blackjack: A Winner’s Handbook by Jerry L. Patterson

Blackjack: A Winner’s Handbook includes information about how automatic
shuffling machines affect the game. It also explains why counting cards
sometimes doesn’t work. Unlike most of the other books on this list, Patterson’s
opus includes a section on Internet gambling, although some of the details in
that section are out-of-date, too.

We enjoyed his observations about how to learn more about the game using
informational websites, too. The bankroll management advice is excellent. We
love learning practical techniques to improve our mental discipline.

Finally, we enjoy books which provide advice on HOW to practice. It’s not
enough to know how to count cards. You need a practical strategy for improving
your skills.

15. Sklansky Talks Blackjack by David Sklansky

Sklansky Talks Blackjack is our favorite blackjack book. He’s as
straightforward and entertaining in his discussion of the game as any other
author on this list.

But what we enjoy most about this book is his total-by-total analysis of how
to play every possible hand. He explains the math behind the correct decisions
in a way that makes sense to even the most math-challenged reader.

He also explains how to use the Hi Lo count, which is good enough for most
players. If you’ve read his poker books, you know what Sklansky is like. If you
haven’t, then you owe it to yourself to learn more about David Sklansky and his
approach to gambling.

16. Play Blackjack Like the Pros by Kevin Blackwood

Play Blackjack Like the Pros is the beginners’ guide to blackjack and card
counting that we wish we had written. Blackwood is one of the clearest and most
entertaining writers on this list. It’s an uncomplicated approach that we envy
and try to emulate here on our site.

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He starts from the beginning by explaining in detail how the game works and
how to use basic strategy to reduce the edge. Then he explains how to count
cards. This is the perfect blackjack book for beginners.

17. Advanced Advantage Play by Eliot Jacobson

Advanced Advantage Play is one of the newest and most up-to-date books on
this list. The subtitle reads “Beating and Safeguarding Modern Casino Table
Games, Side Bets and Promotions”. At $50 per copy, it’s not cheap, but it’s well
worth buying anyway. We wish it were available for the Kindle, but it’s not-you
have to buy it in paperback if you want to read it.

Advanced Advantage Play covers more than just blackjack. It also includes
information about casino promotions and getting an edge at other games.

18. Burning the Tables in Las Vegas by Ian Andersen

Burning the Tables in Las Vegas is subtitled: “Keys to Success in Blackjack
and In Life”. This could be considered a sequel to Andersen’s 1975 book Turning
the Tables on Las Vegas, which was all about how to conduct yourself in the
casino while winning. That original book is one of the classics in the card
counting literature.

Turning the Tables broadens his focus to discuss games besides blackjack
(poker), and it also focuses on success in general. But his approach to success
is about as different from reading something Steven Covey or Tony Robbins as you
can imagine. Other success literature discusses psychology and the importance of
taking care of your physical and mental health. What those books leave out is
the focus on math and probability.

But it’s not just a self-help book. You’ll also find copious amounts of
advice directly aimed at the blackjack advantage player. It even includes advice
about disguises and fake ID’s. Controlling your emotions to avoid self-sabotage
is also important.

Our favorite parts of the book, though, are the anecdotes about the author’s
personal experiences as a gambler. This is well worth reading.

19. Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich

Bringing Down the House is a fictionalized account of what happened with the
MIT blackjack team. We recommend this book with reservations. Our problem with
it is that it bills itself as nonfiction, but it’s admittedly a far cry from the
facts.

Still, Mezrich’s book is an interesting read. If you enjoyed the movie 21,
then you’ll probably also enjoy this book.

Just don’t expect any detailed how-to information. You won’t find it in this
book, which is basically a biography/memoir of sorts.

20. Comp City by Max Rubin

Comp City focuses less on winning at blackjack and more on learning how to
reduce the house edge close enough to 0 that you profit from the comps that the
casinos offer. Rubin is an entertaining writer, and he explains how the comps
system in the casinos work in detail. He goes on to explain how to take full
advantage of it.

If you’re familiar with The Frugal Gambler, you probably understand some of
the concepts in Comp City. The main difference is that blackjack is a
higher-stakes game, so you’ll need a bigger bankroll to take advantage of these
strategies in the casino.

The literature related to blackjack is vast. In fact, the blackjack books
listed here barely scratch the surface. Most of the authors of these books have
multiple books to their credit-especially Arnold Snyder, Stanford Wong, and Ken
Uston.

Recently, I was at the UNLV campus visiting the Gaming Research Center that is on the third floor of the Lied Library. I do this from time to time as a point of review, and to stay sharp on advantage play techniques and insights. There is a special collections section at the center where almost every gaming book and academic paper ever published on the topic resides. It is easily the most complete gaming book collection in the world. Some of the books are classic text on a variety of advantage plays and some are essential reading for the aspiring professional player, while others are sheer rubbish and not worth the paper they’re written on.

The visit led me to reflect on all the books and articles I have read on advantage play over the years, which is somewhere in the neighborhood of hundreds and thousands respectively. Four books stand out among all other texts that have been written on the subject. This is not to say that these are the only ones worth reading, and there are dozens of authors that have made significant contributions to advancement of the field. And I will give those books an honorable mention toward the end of the piece. But these four in my humbled, but informed opinion are keystone text that one is able to derive all of the most essential advantage play techniques from.

The first of the four books should be no surprise to anyone who has studied gambling, even at the most superficial levels. In 1962 Ed Thorp published Beat the Dealer. It was the first scientifically based text on the subject that was widely distributed among the public. The idea a casino game was beatable was a completely foreign concept to the general public and this book brought the ideology front and center for all to see.

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The ideas in Beat the Dealer were developed in the time when single deck blackjack was the dominating table game in Las Vegas. The introduction of Thorps book caused Las Vegas to alter the rules of the traditional 21 game, but the original rules were quickly reinstated shortly after the change in the rules caused the guest of the Las Vegas hotels and casino to practically vanish.

As additional decks and rule changes were added to the traditional single deck game, Thorps original analysis had to be modified. There have been a variety of authors and players who have attempted to put their spin on the Thorps ground-breaking work, some do it justice while others fall well short of that goal. Long time professional player and author, Henry Tamburin PhD, in his online document, The Ultimate Guide to Blackjack published on the 888casino.com blog, does a solid job of putting Thorps original analysis in a framework that is consistent with the modern era. Professor Thorp will be publishing a new book in late January, 2017. A Man For All Markets is a reflection on his life, his influence on Las Vegas and the Stock and options markets as well as offer advice on the general business of life.

The second of the four books I find essential in the advancement of advantage blackjack play is Peter Griffins: The Theory of Blackjack. This book broke down every aspect of blackjack in a strict mathematical approach. The entire book reads like a high level math text. Essentially, it is one proof after another, using multi-variable calculus in both integral and derivative aspects. A lay person flipping through it on a casual basis would likely be put off by the page after page of equations and quickly discard it as not being worth the effort. But like most things in casino gaming, the opposite is true.

The approaches by Griffin outlined the fundamental proofs that the aspiring game theorist should apply to their analysis of any game they are trying to solve. Simply stated The Theory of Blackjack was a blueprint for future advantage players to follow when determining what questions to ask when they are developing new strategies. It also provides general directions for the hopeful problem solver.

Ken Uston’s book Million Dollar Blackjack is the third book in the quartet of required reading. Ken Uston even after his death remains one of the most controversial players in the history of the game. MDB is an amazing book and Uston’s breakdown of complex ideas to simple and understandable form remains his greatest achievement. The book introduces a variety of new concepts like the introduction of a multi level counting system and ace side counts. Gaussian distribution curves on hit frequencies of the most frequent win percentage, as well as comparative analysis between multi level counting systems and single level system are among the new Ideas introduced by Uston in MDB. I have found something new in the book every time I have read it.

Beyond Counting Exhibit CAA is arguably the most advanced text ever written on the subject of Blackjack and the other aspects of casino gaming. It is also one of the rarest. Only 1000 copies were printed and you had to be screened by the author and approved to purchase the book. The original price was $250 but the when a copy of the book does come up for sale on Ebay, the price approaches $4000. The 700 page book reads like math text book in some places and a sarcastic commentary in others. It evaluates games like 3 card poker, Caribbean Stud and even discusses approaches on the big six wheel and roulette. I humbly admit I did not grasp every concept on the first go through. Most players, including me, only apply one or two chapters to at a time. This leads to more than adequate profits for the dedicated practitioner.

James Grosjean who authored Beyond Counting Exhibit CAA is considered by every AP to be the best in the business when skill is measured by dedication, desire and analytical ability. The Grosjean Cup that represents the title of the world’s greatest blackjack is awarded every year at the annual Blackjack Ball. It was named after James after he was barred for competition 7 years ago because he took first or second every year in the decade prior to his being banned from competing.

These four books in my experience make up the most important books in advantage gaming to date. There are a few additional authors that also have made very impressive contributions to the advancement of advantage play. Professional Blackjack by Stanford Wong and Playing Blackjack as a Business are two classic texts. Anything by Arnold Snyder is a good starting point for most novice players. Lastly, Turning the Tables on Las Vegas by Ian Anderson is a great read with equally great insights.

Go forth and conquer.

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Nicholas is the Managing Director of Alea Consulting Group, a casino gaming consulting firm with a player centric philosophy. It is staffed with world class players, gaming authors, mathematicians, top legal minds and a variety of industry professionals.

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Follow Nicholas and Alea on twitter @byth3numb3rs.