Rating: 
Summary: The House No Longer has the Advantage
Review: Imagine sitting at a blackjack table with ten thousand dollars riding on one hand and thousands more strapped to your chest with velcro. Kevin Lewis, Martinez, Fisher, and others did just that 25 times a year for five consecutive years. Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich tells the story of six MIT students who learn to count cards and win millions in Vegas.
Led by a slightly crazy former MIT professor named Mickey, the MIT team revolutionized the way casinos thought about card counters. Kevin Lewis, at the time, was Mickey's newest recruit. After passing numerous tests given to him by the team, Kevin gets his chance to play in Vegas with the team. His first attempt was a success and he was instantly hooked.
Kevin Lewis was an exceptional student, from his high school prep school days through his admittance to MIT. Kevin was a student who never deviated from focusing on his studies. His recreational activity was being a member of his college swim team. Nothing exciting ever happened to Kevin, so when he was asked to join the card counting team he saw it as a way out of his very mundane life. Up until that moment, Kevin's biggest worry was missing a day helping his professor in the science lab. This particular character attempts to take one giant leap from geeky scholar to high roller. These two traits being so incongruent took him on journey with no set boundaries where he had no control. In the end Kevin realized that taking risks must be tempered with cautiousness.
This is the first book that I have read for school or pleasure that I did not want to put down for one moment. This novel is an intriguing non-fiction novel that reads likes fiction. It is hard to believe that this actually occurred, but the author brings the reader back to reality in the end when there is no final closure as the characters continue to live there lives. I would suggest this book for anybody of any age who enjoys the fine line between fiction and reality.
Rating:
Summary: Cardiac meds needed for Mezrich's thrilling ride
Review: As a physician I have my fill of non-fiction with an abundance of journals so when I read for relaxation I want a story that keeps me excited, interested and sleepless until it is finished. Bringing Down the House is such a book and reads like a Clancy or Pollock with a little lower body count, but with no less excitement. Ben Mezrich is superb writer and story teller with the amazing ability to weave the excitement of a Las Vegas casino, the mathmetics of card counting with enjoyable interpersonal dynamics so that this is a consuming story with people you care about. His description of the high roller lifestyle in Vegas takes you to the tables playing sums you watch others wager with the adrenaline rush like you were part of the team. I bought the book in Boston having just missed him at a book signing and had a hardtime finishing the conference. I found myself in the room reading a book I could not put down instead of going out in one of the towns in which the story was set. It was that engrossing. My Christmas list now contains all of his previous writings as this is an author who knows how to tell a story.
Rating:
Summary: Read it in one day!
Review: This true story is so captivating that you might believe you're reading a well-constructed novel. The danger: you want to jump on an airplane to Las Vegas and give it a try! I wouldn't be surprised to see this become the next Vegas movie.
Rating: 
Summary: An Interesting Read About Gambling
Review: Ben Mezrich has written a fascinating account about Blackjack counting by MIT students. This reads like a fiction novel even though it's true. The thing I found intriguing is that counting is not illegal, even though you can be kicked out of a casino for doing it. One of the things he explains is how teams work in counting, which I never understood. Basically, one person sits at the table and gambles the same amount each time. He is also counting the cards, and when the card count is favorable to the player, he calls over his buddy -- who immediately bets high. This makes it hard for the casinos to spot the card counters because the money starts out high from the gambler instead of progressing upward. I enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It amazes me how much money the ring of MIT students accumulated in a few short years. It makes you want to learn how to count cards. I highly recommend this book for anybody who's ever been to Vegas, loves a good crime-type caper (even though what they did was legal!), or just likes a well-written story.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely enjoyable read for any college grad of the 90's
Review: I bought this book at an airport bookstore before a long business flight as a take-your-mind-off-work-are-we-there-yet type exercise. However, it was much more than that and in fact a genuine page turner at that! I found that it was well written, simple enough not to tax your literary skills, but in no way so elementary as to insult your intelligence. The basis of the story genuinely interesting without becoming melodramatic or beyond reality. Being an engineer from a similar engineering school myself and having attended around the same timeframe as well, I could identify with many of the characters, their surroundings, their uncertainty about both the present and future at the time and their desire to do something different and more challenging even if a bit sinster. Though I never recalled hearing blackjack or even Vegas (perhaps Bahamas, but for different reasons!!) whispered across my campus, I can't help but wonder what might have been. As you can see, I rather enjoyed this book, and if you share a similar background with me or at least attended college, I think that you will find this an absolutely wonderful. Those were the pros; the cons are but two and minor at that. I didn't particularly enjoy the flash forward, return to the main story type writing that occured from time to time between the chapters. I found that in most cases the present day chapters added nothing of real value to the story and just broke the momentum. In hindsight this between chapters was probably the best place to put it, but in the end it stopped the flow. The other con was that the story at the end was a bit rushed. I'm still not sure what happened in the end. All in all: Absolutely enjoyable read for any college grad of the 90's.
Rating:
Summary: Great book...
Review: I do not think that Ngubu or the reader from London,Uk read the book very careful or have much knowledge about card counting themselves.. the author did a fine job and did alot of research about the topic.. he didnt just interview Kevin Lewis and took his word about it.. he verified all info via independent sources... first of all just because your a expert card counter does not mean you will win 100% of the time.. the popular misconception is that if your a card counter you know what every card that is coming out is (though its theoritically possbile through shuffle tracking but its not 100% accurate).. card counting just gives you a probable guess as to high cards to low cards left in the deck.. it will not tell you for absolute fact the next card is a ace of spades (or whatever card).. when the deck is rich in high cards it is in the players favor (high cards bust dealers hands and gives you the chance for a blackjack and to double down bets) when it is rich in low cards it its in the Houses's favor (less likely to bust and more probable to beat your hand)...when you know the "count" you vary your bet accordingly.. bet more when rich in high cards and bet less when rich in low cards.. as for Ngubu saying why didnt they just go to casino's around the world.. if you were more informed of blackjack history since the 70's lets say. u would know that the casino's hire a Private Investigation firm that helps them keep tabs on card counters.. no matter how a expert card counter you are sooner or later they will put 2 and 2 together and see a common thread/link.. similar faces in disguises, same people at the same casino's at the same time but do not acknowledge each other etc... but anyways this PI firm keeps a book that is called The Griffin Book that has photos and information on card counters and cheats.. and that book is sent worldwide to casino's.. so that answers your question.. in fact one MIT BJ team (there are several not just the one in the book) was caught in Monte Carlo and escorted out of Monte Carlo by the police but were allowed to keep there winnings... as for the reader in UK.. he/she is obviously no mathmatician (yet makes judgements about such) and is definelty not a card counter because UK doesnt understand card counting to begin with just thinks if your a expert you will never get caught.. as for blackjack teams being done in the 70's .. yes you are right it was .. by a legend actually.. Ken Uston (he perfected the Big Player role & he also sued Atlantic City casinos and won which now u can count cards in AC without getting banned but they will make it difficult for you to do so by changing the rules to blackjack or only letting you bet the minimum while everyone else at the table can bet whatever they want etc.).. but he was banned from every casino there was eventually cause his face got recognized and he was one hell of a expert and there is no refuting he wasnt.. What the MIT team did was keep records of there playing sessions, fed it into a computer and came out with solutions to any playing problems at the table through mathmatics etc.. as for blackjack in general you have no knowledge of it except probably basic rules of the game.. if you studied it you would know that in the short run anything can happen if your a card counter (major losing streaks included) but in the long run if your a expert card counter and do it perfectly you will come out ahead... Anyways i recommend this book to anyone who is aspiring to be a card counter as well as people who like to hear that david vs goliath true stories still exist... It is suppose to be made into a movie being produced by Kevin Spacey.. though im not sure what title the movie will be because "Bringing Down the House" was recently made a movie starring Steve Martin and Queen Latifah that had nothing to do with blackjack... anyways read it you'll love it period..
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining lightweight read
Review: This book is entertaining but some of the chapters are poorly written. I had to reread some paragraphs a couple of times. The gambling part doesn't seem to add up. The author claims that the success ratio of MIT Blackjack club's strategy is in excess of 60%, yet he claims the group sometimes lost money on weekend outings. At that rate over say 800- 1000 juiced hands in a weekend, the chances of loosing money are remote unless they are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Also, at 60%+ over many thousands of hands in six months the return on investment should be much higher than the author's 6 month ROI claim of 80%. Extracurricular Vegas expenses can't have lessened the ROI by that much when everything is comped. It seems absurd that the team could continue to avail themselves of the Vegas comp system and not draw attention to themselves as they regularly extracted hundreds of thousands of dollars a weekend. It would be poor business policy for the team to put their undercover identity at risk for the price of a Vegas hotel room. The casinos have to be well aware of the winnings and losses of the big players who get the big comp presidential suites and anybody who wins, say, 80% of the time is going to draw heat or at least be recognized the next time they come to the casino. The casinos can't be that stupid. Also, why would the author divulge his secrets when there are so many backwater casinos in the world with antequated policies and green pastures (so I am told)? Putting together a team and hitting a casino with the old system of checks and measures has to be more lucrative than exposing state secrets for book royalties. Factual or not, this book could be turned into an interesting screenplay. Maybe parts can be woven into the next James Bond thriller. Nobody seems to care how James performs his spectacular stunts. They just like to see the action go down.
Rating:
Summary: David versus Goliath mixed with cards and mathematics
Review: This has got to be one of the most intriguing non-fiction books of all time. It's basically how a group of MIT students combine together and take millions from major Casinos. Using team play, sound probability, expert training, and skill, they do the impossible and create havoc for the Casinos, and later themselves. This book describes it all, and yes, it's better than any made up story a fiction writer could produce. Mezrich describes how Kevin Lewis became involved in what later became a lifestyle of glamor, big money, and even woman. Kevin goes from a geeky swimmer at MIT to a big player winning big money. Mezrich knows how to weave the story. First he discusses the introduction, then the frightening orientation. He delves into the mathematics, the strategy, and how the teammates fit into what character roles. He shows how intricate the team aspect of blackjack works, and how they capitilized on it. Both seedy and genious, it sheds a whole new life on blackjack and casino gambling. After that, he then starts showing how Casinos work, especially how they treat you when you're a big player versus when you're a card counter. Without giving too much away, this story not only deals with the winning, but also with the repercussions. Mezrich brings into the lifestyle, not only with the glamor, but also the suspense and terror that accompanies it. This books is one of those few books that you cannot put down. It's a great story and most importunely, a great eye-opener. To top it off, it's all true. No one who reads this will be able to gamble the same way again. No exaggeration. Just pick up this book. I bet you can't put it down (terrible pun intended).
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't Put It Down
Review: I was recommended this book by my sister and kind of blew off her recommendation. Finally I was in a bookstore and ran across the book, picked it up and purchased it. When I got home I sat down and dove into the first chapter. But after every chapter it seemed foolish to put the book down because it was so good, and I thought, well written. The book does read like fiction, but that is what amazes me - reading about a lifestyle that should exist only in movies. Backrooms, PIs, cheating, deception, VIP suites, people losing over 100 Grand in 2 hands, absolutely amazing stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Will renew your passion for Blackjack
Review: Great intuitive introduction to Basic Strategy completely dispensing with the dreaded charts that are so unexplicably popular. The story is great too. However, in all such descriptions, it's often hard to distinguish fact from fiction. Nonetheless, I believe that the explanation of the Hi-Lo counting system woven into the story makes for a fast-paced, yet educational introduction to winning at Blackjack. You'll learn much more from this book on Blackjack than so many others which I have read (and put down because they were so lackluster.) You'll also begin to enjoy your play since you will better understand the Basic Strategy. (I stayed up for hours several nights practicing with my new found knowledge on some free software obtained from the internet.) And, you just might start winning more often.
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