29-04-2014, 11:32 AM
Something slightly different from the type of sporting tale that occasionally appears in these pages. I picked it up on spec in the library and finished it in a couple of days. It's a memoir by Victoria Coren, who for the benefit of distant brethren is a TV presenter and journalist who also happens be to be a successful poker pro. I found it a fascinating read, equally gripping (the glamourous amounts of cash, the impenetrable jargon, the characters) and disturbing (the slippery slope to addiction) - and all delivered with the dry wit and self-denigration she regularly displays on TV. I came away feeling that it's only a lucky few (blessed with a combination of talent and self-control) that emerge from the sport with their heads above water. A recommended read.