All In

by Monique Polak

Todd Lerner's never been much of a student, but he's got plenty of street smarts and he's a mean poker player. Todd's always had a thing for Claire, the most beautiful girl in grade eleven—but Claire likes nice things. If Todd wants to date her, he'll need cash and plenty of it. Soon, a weekly poker game turns into a costly and dangerous obsession, and Todd's luck begins to change. Inspired by true events, All In journeys into the high-stakes worlds of gambling, addiction, and fraud.

Genres: Young Adult

168 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Mack · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have never read a book like this. I hope I never read one like this again.

[kind of cool dad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worst book ever but made me laugh so hard

[Daniel Loendorf · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a great book. I haven't ever been into anything about gambling in any movie or book. This book was about a boy named Todd Lerner. He is a young boy that lives with rich parents and has a brother that is off at college. His parents were always off working so most nights when Todd got home he would be alone. He was a very successful gambler in the small game. He had a friend named Lewis that he was trying to teach him how to gamble. Lewis was very bad at keeping a straight face which made him very readable when it came to poker. Todd went to Rick's house who is in the book Todd's enemy when it came to everything. Todd beat him a lot when the book first started. Todd felt unstoppable or invincable. There was a girl that was Todd's dream her name was Claire. He asked Claire to go and hang out with him and she said sure why not. So on the night that they were going out Todd made fake ID's and they went to a casino and they gambled. Todd was winning big throughout the night. Later in the book Todd went with Claire to a mall and Claire wanted a pair of 600 dollar sunglasses. Todd went onto a site called Texas Hold'em and he gambled 600 dollars of his dad's money away it was his first time he lost. Sooner or later he spent over 1,000 dollars of his dad's money and he got in serious trouble. He was able to avoid his dad, but his dad's co-worker had other plans. He called Todd and asked Todd if he spent his dad's money and Todd admitted to it. Todd asked the co-worker if he could pay it off in a week and the co-worker not to say anything about it and the co-worker agreed. Sooner or later Todd was selling counterfeit money to 7th graders and they got caught. Sooner or later one of the 7th graders opened their mouth and turned Todd in. Todd's brother Mark came home because he was expelled from his college for cheeting. The police came over to Todd's house with his mom, dad, and his brother Mark all there and they said in front of everybody that Todd had been selling counterfeit money and Todd's family could not believe it. Todd admitted for the first time in his life he had told the truth. I would rate this book a 10 out of 10. It was a great book.

[Arianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

En lisant ce roman, j'ai eu l'impression que les marges imposées par le roman obligeaient la précipitation des événements et des sentiments. Comme si tout devait se dérouler à l'intérieur d'un mois alors qu'une addiction prend beaucoup plus de temps à se développer, à se concrétiser puis à réaliser. Pour le personnage adolescent, tout se fait trop vite, est sur-simplifié.

Plusieurs autres ont aussi commenté sur l'univers dans lequel se déroule le roman; ils ont bien raison. Difficile de se sentir proche d'une banche d'ados richissimes qui se rencontrent dans des spas et dépensent des milliers de dollars sur des trivialités.

[Emilie Pelland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pris au jeu was an easy and engaging read. The plot was solid and kept my attention the whole way through. I especially appreciated how the story highlights how quickly and easily someone can fall into a vicious cycle once gambling becomes a problem. It’s a realistic and important theme that makes you think.

That said, I felt like something was missing at the end. The conclusion didn’t feel fully satisfying or complete. Still, it’s a worthwhile read with a good message and a clear warning about the dangers of addiction.

[aurelia p · Rating 1 out of 5]

why

[Terry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an acceptable, if bland YA HiLo from Lorimer's SideStreets imprint. Really, there's no reason that high-interest books need to be dull. Compelling characters and propulsive plots can exist in stories with simple sentence structure and readable word choice. Check out Blade: Playing Dead, You, Down, and The Fallen if you need examples.

Gambling is a worthwhile issue for a YA title. Polak has put together a formulaic story: HS teen slips out of control, starts with on-line poker, moves onto table games at a casino near his home in Montreal, then to sports betting. Along the way, there's a hot girl, a dutiful best friend, some oblivious parents, stolen credit card numbers, a couple of teachers who miss the warning signals.

It could have been a story about Todd Lerner, a really interesting guy with a story to tell. Five years out from publication, it is already a bit dated (the teen protagonist feels the need to explain that a BlackBerry "is a gizmo that's like a conmbination minicomputer and telephone" and he contemplates spending money on CDs). The ending is properly cautionary, and aside from the under-aged gaming and a bit of drinking (both frowned upon), the book could easily fit in a middle-school collection. I'd buy Pete Hautman's All-in first, as it is a better poker story.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty straightforward story - kid is good at Texas Hold 'Em, gets addicted to gambling (although the addiction isn't fully defined, but his habitual need to get money through gambling is), commits crime to get money to gamble. I bought it for my high school-aged brother who "hates" reading, and if he bothers to pick up the book, I think he might be interested. I think there could be more grit to the book, and more development with his friends, but that'd make it longer, which might make it unappealing to the hi/lo audience intended. Also, I think this would be interesting if it wasn't a rich kid in a private school.

Is it wrong that I'm putting a $20 in a book about gambling addiction?

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story about a challenged boy who has the love for the game- poker!

But as he goes through his way to rise to the top and the girl of his dreams, with his helpful tips and impressive poker face, the more trouble he causes; not only to others around him, but more regretfully to himself.

An incredible book that shows character development through-out the story; realizing after all the excitement, the consequences are waiting to get you... Is the love for the game worth living your life not being able to enjoy it anymore???

[Khishan Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm giving this book 5 stars for one reason and one reason only.
That reason is that Monique Polak is a great autor. She made this story with suspense and imagination which is still realistic. She should keep writing novels and bringing out more great ideas.

[Seton Catholic Central High · Rating 4 out of 5]

i start read it today and end at page 21,the first two chapter is talking about Todd Lerner’s not much of a student, but he’s got plenty of street smarts and a mean poker face.
kid is good at Texas Hold 'Em, gets addicted to gambling, commits crime to get money to gamble.

[George Ilsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading YA for research, especially high/low books. Some are surprisingly good. This one was above average for the genre.

[Vadim · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing, bt only if here was a number two.