First porn, and now poker. In Once More, with Feeling, Victoria Coren described her attempts to make an erotic film. Now, in this memoir, she writes about her love of poker. She’s unusual, not only for being a woman in what is still largely a male-dominated game, but also because she is an excellent player and writer. Many poker journalists are on the outside, peering in at a game they haven’t fully mastered, and their books are often slightly disappointing – they’re fine if you haven’t read the others, but they all rake over the same old ground, digging up the same old mouldy corpses. You can only read about the glory days so many times. 

For Richer, for Poorer, however, is fresh, funny and moving. Coren writes insightfully about love, obsession, depression and illness – and poker, obviously, and how it helped her cope with life. She grew up watching her brother play with his friends and longed to join in this game,