Not many blackjack books worth their salt are written in such an easy to comprehend style as this. It provides an extensive basic strategy section which goes on to explain the reasons why many questionable plays are correct. It also does a convincing job of debunking prevailing blackjack myths, such as the Sacred Order of the Cards, the Bad Player at Third Base, etc. There's an enlightening section on the value of getting involved with other players' doubles and splits. The author also introduces some innovatively simple ways to identify an advantageous shoe without card counting in the conventional sense. The book's KISS Count takes unbalanced card counting to a more developed level with all positive starting counts, individual index numbers for about 20 basic strategy revisions and clear tips on how to fudge its indices for true count accuracy. The technical section offers some interesting camouflage plays for card counters including calculations of their costs. In all, I found it to be an ideal training manual for developing the skills to win.

Been awhile? First timers? Refresher? Want to have fun like "Nick Pappagorgio"? This is your book.

I have learned more about blackjack from the Bluebook than any other single source. Its basic strategy section is the most complete I have seen, and the follow up chapter brings many relevant fine points to light that I am sure most people never thought about. I think the book's various counting systems are instructive and easy to digest, particularly the Ace/10 Count and the KISS Count. I often refer to the Bluebook after playing a blackjack session, as it has become my personal reference source for building game knowledge.

"Blackjack Bluebook II", like most blackjack books makes a big deal out of card counting. The authors like to pretend that it takes learning some sort of magic method, like the one they are promoting, in order to become a proficient card counter. That simply isn't true.

The effectiveness of card counting in blackjack rests on the fact that it is more favorable for the player to make bigger bets when the remaining undealt cards contain a higher than average proportion of large cards, principally 10's and Aces. When the undealt cards contain a smaller than average proportion of big cards (more small cards), the game is more favorable for the house, so the players should make smaller bets then, or stop playing. Any number of methods for keeping track of the ratio of high cards to low cards will serve as an effective method of card counting.

Check it out with one of the really good, old blackjack books like:
"Professional Blackjack" by Stanford Wong,
"Theory of Blackjack" by Peter Griffin, or
"Beat the Dealer" by Edward Thorp.
The information in these books is absolutely correct, but they come from the stone age of card counting. Although their information is rock solid, they spend so much time marveling over the minute details that they also leave the impression that card counting is a bigger deal than it really is.

Currently, the best book on blackjack, one that blows away all the fog, isn't even dedicated to just blackjack.
"How to Gamble at the Casinos Without Getting Plucked Like a Chicken"
does a great job of explaining how to play profitable blackjack. First and foremost, it tells you not to play the lousy varieties, like 8 deck blackjack or 6-5 blackjack or Spanish Blackjack. In about 30 pages, it tells you everything you really need to know about blackjack, without all the bs.

Renzey explains why you count only the red two's in the book. Either you didn't read this part or didn't bother to pay attention. This is one of the simplest books to read, just as easy as KO blackjack. To all other readers, this book will turn you from novice to advanced in weeks.