He played for his wife ... and other stories : short stories of long nights at the poker table

He Played For His Wife...And Other Stories continues a rich tradition of fictional writing on one of the world's greatest games. A ghost at the table, a heads-up with Shakespeare, a high stakes stick-up, a hand played on Death Row, tales of pioneers and knaves, even a celestial argy-bargy – each story in this anthology reveals that when it comes to playing poker, no one can hide from their true selves. Whoever you are, you can be sure all your passions and compulsions, your desires, your foibles and idiosyncrasies will be unsparingly crystalised and exposed on the baize. First mentioned in print in a military history book published in 1836, the game of poker quickly found its way into the modern literary canon. Requiring technical skill and creative fiction in equal measure, poker is the quintessential writer's game. From John Steinbeck, Bret Harte, Henry James to Damon Runyon, writers throughout the ages have found in poker a natural prism to refract complex human experience. Poker is one of the few sports to have spawned a literature almost as rich and colourful as its own exotic history. Featuring contributions from Booker Prize-winning novelist D.B.C. Pierre , award-winning playwright Patrick Marber , actor Neil Pearson and poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy , He Played For His Wife...And Other Stories is a compelling collection that will appeal to poker fans everywhere . Poker has grown into one of the most popular sports in the world, with millions playing online, while the drama it creates has made it a natural subject for filmmakers and writers such as John Steinbeck. Now Anthony Holden, author of the poker classic Big Deal, has brought together some of the best original new writing on poker in this wonderful collection of superb short stories. He Played For His Wife ... And Other Stories features contributions from Patrick Marber, Jennifer Tilly, Neil Pearson, David Flusfeder, and Anthony Holden, as well as a poem from Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy A brilliant collection of the best poker short stories from writers such as Anthony Holden, Patrick Marber, Neil Pearson and Jennifer Tilly