Hustler Days book review?

junior

junior

Bill Aubin
Silver Member
Anyone read Hustler Days? Great new book w/ tons of info on Fats, Wimpy, and Jersey Red, also a little more on other players. Tons of info on eack player's life as well as additional gems of info, eg. how billiard rooms got their name changed to pool rooms.... Recommend the book and am nterested in other feedback.
 
I didn't get much from it. Most of the info is regurged from other sources and what's not rehash has an overidding speculative sentimentality that I didn't buy.
Don't get me wrong, I thirst for this kinda stuff, and there's a need for more of it. I liked McGorty and the pool part of Polsky's book better.

I haven't read the Rifleman or the Cornbread Red books, anyone have a thought on those?
 
Cornbreads book...lostsa stories about him
same with Buddy's book...
I liked the stories.....
 
I've read almost all of them , except one, and I find The Hustler Days the best read of all of them by far, I rate Playing off the Rail second, the only book I have not read, is McGorty. The writing is superb without a doubt, it leaves you spellbound and brings you into the story as if you are witnessing what is happening! Congratulations to the writer R.A. Dyer!!!
 
stroker6626 said:

...the only book I have not read, is McGoorty....
Click to expand...

You MUST read McGoorty. It's a great book.

I read Hustler Days last weekend. It deals primarily with MN Fats, Jersey Red, and Luther "Wimpy" Lassiter. Some biographical info and some good tournament and gambling stories.

Altough some of the tournament stories are a bit melodramatic, the book is well written and quite interesting. It's a good read and an easy read.

I recommend it.
 
I love this informative and interesting forum and site. Thanks for the info. I am going to pick up Hustler Days tonight. Can't wait for Xmas for someone to get it for me. lol
 
McGoorty A Pool Room Hustler

I got my 'McGoorty A Pool Room Hustler' by Robert Byrne from Amazon.com. I've read Hustler Days and Playing off the Rail neither hold a candle to McGoorty.

I'm not an easy guy to make laugh but he was a character. Martin Scorsese should make a movie out of it. If done right it'd be better than anything else out there.

It's the best book I've read about a player. It gives great insight and respect to the billiard players of the past. What I like most about the book is it reminds me that pool is a humbling game and there have been alot of great great players over the ages ... almost all of which have had their asses handed to them at one point.

The book really touches on the greatness of this game.
 
I saw McGorty at the Barnes and Noble Bookstore yesterday while purchasing the new "Hustler Days" book. I have read the first 40 pages and so far I like it.
 
Thanks for the tip Efirkey, I will drive to Barnes and Noble next week to purchase it, it's about time we can read some literature that stimulates your mind pertaing to this great sport!

On another note, I purchased a dvd of that new pool movie Pool Hall Junkie, I can honestly say that I could not even watch the whole movie, it was done so poorly, what could have been in their mind when they put out such poor dialogue into a movie? I was not impressed with The Color of Money, but this piece of trash was more than I could tolerate, if you have not seen this movie, "Pool Hall Junkie"
do yourself a favor, DON'T BOTHER!!!
 
Re: McGoorty

Yeah, I think that McGoorty was better that Off the Rail, but OTR was cooler in the respect that it featured players of our time.

IMO, McGoorty is another example of another wasted (lit/ hammered/ f'd up) man getting the cash. Kind of tough to know that even wasted, McGoorty could spank probably 95% of us! Tough to take a beating by someone who could most likely not drive a car legally...Poor/ hedonistic illustration of pool.

Both great reads though- A crappy pool story is better than just about any other mediocre story.

-pigs
 
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I liked the book a lot. Love those old time stories, made me a little more aware of Wimpy and what he was capable of. Jersey Red also. Pretty good tales from the old tourneys.
Got to recommend it highly.
My fav has got to be Mcgoorty though, read it for the first time in the 70,s and still pick it up from time to time for a good laugh.
Playing off the rail is also great, as is Fats Bank shot, although its full of hot air, funny as hell if you take it with a grain of salt.
 
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