Product Description
My friend Mr. Lucky journeyed around the world and through the tunnels of time learning countless poker variations from many fascinating characters. He learned Spit in the Ocean on a freighter in World War II, and Stalin taught him Ruin Your Neighbor in the depths of the Kremlin. Did I mention that Lucky is a tough teddy bear from Bayonne? I predict you’ll love Nostradamus, where a player who guesses the suit of his neighbor’s next card takes it from him, and Shar… More >>
Mr. Lucky’s Favorite Poker Games
Tags: Favorite, freighter, Games, Lucky's, mr lucky, next card, nostradamus, Poker, poker games, poker variations, tunnels of time, world war ii
#1 by tdm1 on April 14, 2010 - 8:40 pm
An excellent selection of innovative games.
The cover graphic is extremely creative,
as is the concept of this little teddy bear
and his friend Steve.
A delightful experience.
I suggest that you buy a copy for each member
of your poker-playing circle of friends and family.
Rating: 5 / 5
#2 by Anthony Luzzi on April 14, 2010 - 11:18 pm
Steve Maricic hits the jackpot with Mr. Lucky’s Favorite Poker Games, a highly entertaining and informative read that weaves a Forrest Gump-like (or for the more artistic, a Zelig-like) trip through the late 20th Century with an A list of poker games that would dazzle even the most jaded Vegas or Knights of Columbus Casino Night dealer. Maricic’s Gump is Mr. Lucky, a World War II merchant mariner from Bayonne, NJ who just happens to be a teddy bear. Don’t let that fool you into thinking this is a kid’s story – Lucky is a wry, albeit goofy, observer of the social and political scene who gets to test wits with such historical figures ranging from Communist stalwarts Fidel Castro and Nikita Khrushchev to their polar opposites Winston Churchill and Ronald Reagan. Lucky may be a blue collar guy from Jersey, but armed with Maricic’s witty, inventive and imaginative voice, he is more than a match for those he meets along his journey.
With Lucky’s travels as the backdrop, Maricic deals one winning hand after another as he presents an incredible collection of poker games. Some of them are familiar favorites, but Maricic goes way beyond the predictable, by bringing to light dozens of oddball, offbeat games with catchy titles like Gruesome Twosome, Bedsprings, Yanqui Baseball and Seven Card Myron. A filmmaker, librarian and teacher, Maricic skillfully brings these disciplines together in this book. The games are well-spaced throughout the narrative so not as to overload the reader; they have clear, easy-to-follow instructions; and are cleanly presented in simple graphics. Maricic introduces his work with a chapter on poker basics, and closes with an expansive glossary to complete what has to be one of the most original and entertaining books on poker in years.
Long before there was the World Series of Poker, Celebrity Poker, On Line Poker, Amputee Poker and the rest, there was Neighborhood Poker, played by close friends who used the cards as a backdrop to stay in touch, discuss sports and politics and simply have fun. Mr. Lucky’s Favorite Poker Games reminded me of those neighborhood games. However Maricic puts forth such a creative work that I wouldn’t be surprised if one night in the near future, I turn on ESPN and see, live from the Cruise Ship Terminal in Bayonne, Steve hosting the first ever Mr. Lucky Poker Tournament! Bedsprings, anyone?
Rating: 5 / 5
#3 by M. A. Testa on April 15, 2010 - 1:56 am
It makes you laugh at history, politic and life all at once
I wonder when he will have a card game about the Foley scandel.
I would love Maricic to publish a weekly card game based on the big news story of each week. It would make doonesbury seem out of touch
After having read it I passed on to people in my office they all thought it is one of the most hilarious views on life, history and politics.
Rating: 5 / 5
#4 by Edward Zampino on April 15, 2010 - 2:32 am
I admittedly know the Author. A brilliant individual, with a background including a perfect SAT score and an Ivy League education, but also a proclivity to occasionately deviate far from the Numbing Path of Normalicy. Mr. Maricic once created a number of short comedic films that are legendary in the Northeast(ok,a dozen or so towns in Northern NJ). His work, always hilarious but smart, now extends to the written word.
Mr. Lucky is a hybrid collection of absurdly entertaining “new” Poker Game creations. These (primarily) 3, 5 and 7 card poker games are tied to, and strung together via, a consistently funny recounting of episodes taken from global wanderings of a seemingly quaint and innocent little bear named Mr. Lucky.
Mr. Lucky, however, also happens to possess a thinly submerged and rather iconoclastic personality, which is often exhibited as he becomes tangled up in historic world events and mingles with an assortment of renowned historical figures on the world stage.
The large quantity, high quality and historical satiric content of the poker games presented in Mr. Lucky is accompanied by a precise and user-friendly sets of playing instructions for each game or set of games.
If your group’s Poker Night has lost some of its thrill, or gotten a bit too serious or routine for your taste, consider employing Mr. Lucky to re-inject the genuine freshness and collective inanity that originally colored those sessions….those great times that uniquely belong to old and new friends who don’t take themselves too seriously.
Rating: 5 / 5