MattA75's Full Review: Ben Mezrich - Bringing Down the House: The Inside ...
When Ocean's 11 hit big at the box office last year, most people assumed it was because the movie had big name stars up the yin yang. Clooney, Pitt, Roberts, Damon, Garcia et al put on a hell of a show. I thought Ocean's 11 to be fantastic escapist fare, and I watch my copy of it regularly. While critics slammed it, there was one thing about it that everyone loved: in that movie, Vegas lost, big time.
But what if I told you there was a book out right now that was completely true, where Vegas not only lost, but lost legally, and that it was all done by a bunch of kids who were still in college? Does that sound like a good read?
Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich is the true story of an MIT club given exclusively to taking Vegas for millions on blackjack by what is commonly referred to as card counting. The book follows Kevin Lewis' tale of being recruited into the low profile, high stakes club through to his weekly dances with Sin City, and right back up to today. Throughout the book, this club is referred to as more of a "team," although it becomes obvious that there are a lot of "I's" in this particular team.
To give more of the plot away would truly spoil the fun that is this book. Instead, I'd like to talk about some of the things the book does very well. Firstly, the book saves the complicated version of "the team's" scheme until the very end in a "how to" chapter. Throughout the story of Lewis, his friends, his enemies and his aliases, you are only let in on the very basics of the scheme. This helps move the book along in a very very quick pace, which works extremely well for the subject matter at hand.
There are also some nice juicy tidbits thrown throughout the book, such as how the Mohegan Sun in Connecticutt changed their rules after their very first weekend in business due to this team and their plot.
And then there's the true stories of intimidation, violence, and sheer brutality that happens when Vegas realizes they're the ones being bent over. It's amazing how fast word spread about the team once Vegas had them figured out.
Mezrich smartly does not just interview the participants about the actual scam, but about the effect it had on their lives. How did it affect relationships? Who asked questions? Who didn't ask questions, and why not? Because of him, Bringing Down the House isn't just a great non-fiction story, it's a story that brings up a lot of moral questions.
If you don't believe me about this book, fine. But WEEI in Boston had the author and the real life Kevin Lewis on to promote it, and it became the most requested segment in the station's history. Not only that, but the book is getting a tremendous amount of press, and it deserves every bit of it. While short at 250+ pages, it will seem even shorter. There are few books that come out these days that really grab me and force me to sit down and not let go until I've read every word. Bringing Down the House is one of those books.
Besides, everyone loves rooting for the underdog...
#1 National Bestseller! The amazing inside story about a gambling ring of M.I.T.students who beat the system in Vegas -- and lived to tell how. Robin ...More at Barnes & Noble.com
#1 National Bestseller! The amazing inside story about a gambling ring of M.I.T.students who beat the system in Vegas -- and lived to tell how. Robin ...More at Barnes & Noble.com
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