Who doesn’t love a good read?
Any would-be professional gambler may be spoilt for choice but which books are on readers hot lists and which are pure garbage?
Take a look at these 3 reads from Amazon reviews both good and bad.
1) Dave Nevison: The Early Years of Being a Professional Gambler
Published in 2008 by Highdown.
Pages: 304
Review:
Good: ‘Dave comes across as a decent bloke and sharp as nails. I found the book an easy read and quite entertaining. Along with another reviewer though I would have to say given the number of races he has actually attended there surely could have been a lot more tales of what happened/funny stories and also from his time working in the city.
It won’t give you any betting tips/strategies but to be fair it doesn’t set out to. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it. Why only 4 stars? Because when I got to 75% through the book and thinking to myself I’m enjoying this, boom, up pops the index! 25% of the book is taken up with an index??? come on, no padding Dave!
Bad: Nevison clearly fancies himself as someone living it high on the hog and openly mocks the esteemed Alan Potts for having nothing to show but ‘beans on toast’ for his efforts. He juxtaposes this with his own ‘playboy lifestyle’ where he adds a couple of rashers of bacon and some scrambled egg and parlays it up into a microwave meal in a transport caff. Move over Hugh Heffner – Nevison’s in town!
Being a Walter Mitty character is all well and good until you overstep the mark and Nevison does this on page 223 where he openly blasphemes Richard Hills, criticising his ride on Amoras at Salisbury and claiming the great man has one of the smallest fan clubs in racing. Shocking pocket talk that will inevitably lead to a fatwa from the great jockey’s church. What happened to Amoras subsequently that season you ask? Did he go on to rack up a sequence without Richard Hills? Well yes he did, but sadly it was a sequence of nothing but duck eggs. In fact no performance in the horse’s entire 43 race career hinted that he had the ability to win that Salisbury race or suggest that he was anything but mug punter fodder at 4/1 off a mark of 76. But why blame yourself, eh Dave, when you can launch unprovoked attacks on Richard Hills?’
2) Harry Findlay: Gambling For Life – The Man Who Won & Spent Every Penny
Published: 2017 Trinity Mirror Sports Media
Pages: 352
Review:
Good: Harry Findlay can best be described as a Marmite man – you either love him or hate him!
I make no apologies for falling into the first category.
This book tells the story of a real ‘character’ and the roller coaster he’s been on punting oveŕ 40 odd years. Yes, he may come across as loud, brash and a big time Charlie BUT he is also a man of the people. Loyal, decent and true to friends and acquaintances.
He comes across as the type of bloke who’d be happy having a couple of pints with the lads in the local having a game of brag and winning £20 as he would sitting in the Royal box at Ascot winning £500k on a horse.
Top man Harry. Racing is a poorer sport without you (and that’s all down to the BHA)
Great read if you love your gambling/sport.
Bad: I have read 296 pages of this book (it has 368) but no more. As a gambler for 50 years I thought this would be a good read but I found it dull and boring and must disagree with many of the reviews. I had an account closed for having 4 winning bets in a row and would like to know how Findlay managed to get large bets on so easily. The books jumps around with one minute he has won a fortune and 5 minutes later he is broke. Nobody seems to have a bad word for him although he has one or two for others. The last chapter highlights sports people who have enriched his life. Frankly I could not care less what he thinks.
3) Enemy Number One: The Secrets Of The Most Feared Professional Punter
Published: 2010 Racing Post
Pages: 304
Good: The ‘Secrets’ are the same ‘secrets’ that are behind anyone who excels in their chosen field: extreme focus, profound knowledge of the subject, total belief in your own ability and expertise, and plain hard work and determination! Mr Veitch’s approach is similar to that exemplified by the legendary American ‘gambler,’ Pittsburg Phil. He too used a network of agents to put on his bets, and had such a profound knowledge of his horses that he could ‘visualize’ how a race was going to be run. It’s easier now with videos available, but in order to have that absolute confidence in your selections, you need to have done the groundwork and investigated how races are run, how horses are trained, and how they are placed – and why they lose! Mr Veitch describes how he devoted hours studying the form book – and ruefully acknowledges that now – with so many data bases available – that work can be done in a fraction of the time. But it still needs to be done. Basically, anyone can accumulate the required knowledge – how you use it is paramount.
Mr Veitch’s approach also reminds me of the one outlined in Stewart Simpsons’ book ‘Always Back Winners,’ in that one notes horses which indicate they have greater ability than the bare form suggests.
If you take his many examples and access the data available at the Racing Post website, you can follow some of Mr Veitch’s thinking and planning. He is undoubtedly a very astute and intelligent ‘gambler,’ but he has the characteristics that would have made him a success in whatever field he chose. For anyone who has a serious interest in backing horses, this book is a rattling good read – entertaining and informative. The only thing is – he reminds me of Jerry Seinfeld!
Bad: This over-hyped account desperately needs to be sent to the knacker’s yard. It is written in such a turgid, matter-of-fact style – to be blunt, boring style – that I fear not even a set of blinkers would help. It cannot appeal to anyone without a thorough grasp of, and interest in, gambling and its only hope is to be entered in a seller at Plumpton. One to avoid at all costs.