"Casino Gambling: The Ultimate Play-To-Win Guide" by Roger Gros

Gentle, friendly book introducing those wanting to know about casino gambling before placing a bet.

It has possibly been mentioned before on this website, but since growing up, my grandmother lived her entire retired life in Las Vegas. Thus, the lights, the electricity and the energy of casinos was were things I grew up with. I'm fascinated because not a lot of kids have had any interest in something rather intriguing as casino gambling. Perhaps a nice book, like this, should be an excellent guide to the curious and/or to the eager gamer wanting to increase their chances of winning. Off the bat, we were impressed with this book.

Author Roger Gros, who also was a dealer at the fabulous Caesars Palace, starts off the book with a gentle introduction. This part may indeed put the potential gamer back in their place, explaining the reality of casino gambling—"expect to lose," he says. Now you're asking, "then what's the point of playing if you know you're going to lose?" That's where things get philosophical despite that, whether you know it or not, you take risks all the time. When driving, have you ever changed lanes hoping that one next to yours is quicker and less congested? When grocery shopping, have you purchased an item thinking that there may not be a sale price like the one marked? Have you said "yes" to someone to go on a date with, hoping it'll potentially heading towards a romantic companionship down the line? Even if situations like this gave you second thoughts, you're still in a matter of putting your chips on the table with regards to gain something, making an informed but best decision that places the odds in your favor. The same goes with casino gambling: The decisions, the bets and some luck are what's needed to come away winning a small fortune.

This reality, however, goes deeper and more harsh as Author Gros explains. He talks about the costs of the fun casino gambling brings, all in hopes to break even in exchange for that fun. Casino gambling doesn't have to be frightening, but there have been witnesses seeing gamblers make the worst decisions ever. Just because a high roller bets all their $35,000 in cash on the blackjack table doesn't mean they're doing something right. Because many of us would swoon over the thought of having $35,000 in our pockets right now, there are gamblers who play "just because." They want the thrill without knowing about winning (what do they do for a living anyway?).

All this fun comes at a cost, but Author Gros gives his best advice to maximize your chances in winning and making the best decisions. Even if you break even, you at least enjoyed the thrill and the suspense of laying your money down to win more. Nevertheless, the confidence you have going into a casino will be much more improved.

After the Introduction and Casino Psychology, Author Gros then talks about the popular, and least popular, casino games, how to play them, the odds and the best chances on how to win those games. Since odds are discussed, basic Arithmetic is required with hints of Probability.

Some of the games Gros mentions which has the least chances of winning are The Big Six, Craps, Linked Progressive Slot Machines, Sic Bo and Roulette (Sic Bo is becoming more and more rare to find in casinos, because if players not winning frequently.) Yes, Roulette is listed, and also has been called the "Sucker's Game" by casino executives. Funny because casual gamers still play the game, without realizing they're guaranteed to lose.

Throughout the book, you not only learn majority of the games the average casino offers, but you learn to get comps, the casino layout and other chances to make your stay at the casino more worthwhile, on top of watching your money. The stigma casinos have often is purportedly intimidating and coercing players to gamble but it doesn't have to be that way. Casinos are also a business and they want to compliment and protect their players, especially the loyal ones who stop by periodically. There isn't much mentioned by Gros about which casinos, namely Las Vegas, to visit and try, but here at The Seeds of Books, we like to proudly suggest in avoiding Gold Coast Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Perhaps their Yelp rating and reviews will tell you, otherwise.

All in all, this hardcover guide has all the basics, and the psychological advice, you need whether you're new to casino gambling or an amateur wanting to expand your gaming knowledge. This book is as friendly as you can get, without all the verbose terms that may sway the reader away. Originally released in the mid-nineties, this still holds up as a nice companion to your casino gaming library.

Kris Caballero

Founder of KCU Network and KCU Plus, Kris has been writing since he managed a personal blog made back in late 2005. Officially back to doing computer programming (software development) and video production, Kris enjoys reading books on Mathematics, Quantum Computing, Philosophy, playing old video/DOS games, digital video archiving, and listening to sports, public radio and classical music.

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