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This goes without saying in most nonfiction, though, as the narrative effect that makes it so readable, that I expected this was the case before I did a little research. I enjoy playing a little blackjack here and there, some poker at times, so I was interested to read 21, especially after I had watched the movie. Granted, I know books are always better than the movie it is based off of, but this seem to be in a complete different ball park. I was sad when I was done reading it and there was no more to read, but in the same light it had also come to a natural conclusion that felt right.On the other side I was a little saddened as well by a simple Google search that showed that Mezrich admitted to slightly fictionalizing some of the story. Enough said for me. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the account of the MIT card counters in Las Vegas.The book is interesting because you get a progressively more and more complex and threatened lifestyle as you move through time.
In the end I really didn't care. I was extremely surprised to find that the book was so much more that the boiled down movie. Obviously a lot of the sidelines of the other characters, like Fisher and Martinez when they went out of country to gamble, where fiction, building a story around rumor (such as hearing that they had conflict and were banned, and that Fisher had a black eye; the guess is the narrative around this story that Mezrich used). This injects natural adrenaline and action into each new chapter. There was always the threat of violence in the background, even though counting is legal, so you continually read on as you anticipate the conflict as it brews. I know there was truth to a lot of the basic facts of the MIT team, and that there was fiction around some of the more fascinating aspects, but when it all came down to it it was an enjoyable read.
I would recommend to others despite learning that some of the story was fictionalized.4 stars.
Just be up front about it. I picked this up after seeing the movie '21.' I knew the movie was largely fiction, and wanted to see what really happened.The book is a good read; the author can definitely write. This book should not be in the non-fiction section. However, I have learned that the book is at least 50% fiction. Look, anybody can make up a story. (Maybe it should be on the same shelf as that slimebag Fry's "A Million Little Pieces").I'm thinking about writing about my gambling escapades. I think I have a pretty good imagination, too.
If you are a geek that dreams to become rich in a Vegas-way and use your math analysis brain then it is a book for you. As Kevin Lewis wrote, BJ is the ONLY game in Vegas that the history influence the future and any card out of the shoe is less in the deck. I loved every bit of this book with great background about Vegas behind the curtain (or behind the nice wall). I am going to Vegas this for a 24-hours getaway with my wife and I am sure to watch around my for the sky-in-the-air, and the pit-bosses, and those security guards that patrolling the area around the black-jack tables. Read it and try to be careful when you implement it. This is a game for the grown-ups.
It was a easy read, interesting - I had seen the movie prior to reading this book and so I knew the story. Liked the development of the characters in the book better than the attempt in the movie, fast paced, very understandable. Good story.
I mean, who hasn't told what they intended to be a fully true story to an observer and not exaggerated a bit here and there. It feels like, with the abounding heightened prose, the book is being told by college students who have had a few too much complimentary champagne. It is likely that a substantial portion of this story was fictionalized either for effect, or by the inevitable inaccuracies that come from reporting someone else's story. I feel like I need to review this book as a reader and not a gambler. If we wanted simple, adverb-free writing we'd read Hemmingway.But this criticism should not ignore the fact that the book is well paced and sticks to an effective dramatic structure that makes it a compelling read. To say that the book can get a little hokey at times is to put it lightly.
Overall, I have to give it a mixed review on quality, but a pretty positive note on the entertainment level.
Or for that matter, perceived something one way, only to have their perception challenged by someone else.
Dan Brown has nothing on Mezrich's ability to overwrite a simple description into an inflated series of similes.
Other reviewers here have posted on the plausibility of this book, and they have many good points.
It doesn't quite stoop to Swifties (look it up) or anything, but every once in a while you are forced to put the book down and just take a breath to cleanse the mental palette.
Let's not get too hung up on truth with a story that is clearly meant to be entertainment not a historical record.
So my review will ignore plausibility, in the same way that one should with Hollywood films, and will instead focus on the literary and dramatic value of the book.
But that's the style, right.
It's light enough for a plane trip or the beach, and if you have a fondness for the popular gambling/casino genre (Ocean's Eleven, Casino Royale, Rounders) it will more than satisfy.
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