While maybe not for beginners, and while maybe not a full blown excellent strategy, Poker Tournament Formula is a must read book for intermediates+ who want to play tournaments. i.e. it definitely belongs as part of a good poker library, while not being the single book you'd want to have.

For a beginner, I would recommend Harrington On Holdem as a great tournament book to start with. Actually his cash game series wouldn't be a bad place to start for beginners in cash games either, although he gets very bogged down and, frankly, a little bananas with the hand randomizing thing. I seriously doubt any beginner could remember all that. But if you simply go through the book and replace anything lower than 50% with "never" and anything higher than 50% with "always", you have a decent starting hand strategy, and you can make some randomizing adjustments on your own based on how the game's playing.

As far as bad books, the Hellmuth book(s) were terrible at Holdem. There are some others I've seen in bookstores that on brief perusal I could tell were awful, but promptly removed from my memory. A rather humorous book called "How To Dominate $1/2 NLH" advises just getting up and going home if you're not getting good cards. Without strong cards, you can't play his "dominate" strategy the way he wants you too, and you can't intimidate the table. The author fancies himself a sort of novelist, and mixes in his idea of a story along with his poker advice (which isn't all horrible), but as I said, it's an interesting and fun read in a sort of Sharknado kind of way.

That would be Sam O'Connor's book.

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/33...t-holdem-1349/

Honestly, I had to google for the name and the thread.

You can buy it here.

http://www.professionalpoker.com/Aut...o-Limit-Holdem

The author also has this book.

http://www.professionalpoker.com/Aut...-Old-Las-Vegas

Hi AI:

Just a little side note but Sam O'Connor, which is a pen name, moved into the house across the street from me about a year-and-a-half ago. I hardly know him but on the couple of times that we have talked he's been very nice.

Best wishes,
Mason

If you want a book not to read, I just noticed this sitting on my book shelf: Swayne's Advanced Degree in Hold'em by Charley Swayne. When Negreanu had his Internet Training Site Swayne was his "math guru," and Negreanu wrote the forward recommending it highly.

As one example of the quality of this book here's my favorite quote from page 324:

There's also a picture of Swayne and Annie Duke on the back cover.

Best wishes,
Mason

It was gems like that (your quote and not Duke's picture being on the back) which explains why I don't have that book.

lol, for at least two reasons.

Essential Poker Math, Expanded Edition: Fundamental No-Limit Hold'em Mathematics You Need to Know by Alton Hardin.
https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Pok.../dp/0998294500

The structure of the book is designed to help beginners to grasp the concepts of basic poker math. While the structure is well designed, the book is full of errors. For example, in Chapter 9 Rule of 2 & 4, there is an example in which hero has AA on a AJT flop and villain is assumed to have KQ. The author said hero has 7 outs, so the Flop All-In Equity is 7 x 4 = 28%, which is clearly wrong as that fact that there are 10 outs on the turn is simply ignored. Calculation mistakes can be found all over the books which will be difficult for beginners to spot them. I understand poker maths better by trying to find out all mistakes in the book.

Poker Math That Matters by Owen Gaines is a much better book if you want to learn basic poker math.