Joseph Walsh has revealed a new book for poker lovers, it is called Gambler on the Loose and it is a highly enjoyable, incisive look into the complicated world of the full-time gambler. Walsh's new work presents an entertaining collection of short essays and jokes, roughly covering the period from the 1940s when the former child actor first got involved in betting sports on up through the 1970s and the making of California Split, a famous movie on gambling.

In his book Walsh frequently digresses to wax amusingly on various qualities possessed by the true gambler, a character Walsh ultimately portrays with a deliberately ironic mixture of approval and derision.

Though certainly more light-hearted in its approach, Gambler on the Loose might be compared to other works exploring the psychology of gambling, though unlike those books which generally recommend ways to avoid common problems, Walsh's intimate understanding of the gambler's motives and inclinations prevents him from issuing forthright "solutions" to such difficulties.

Amid the often hilarious tales from Walsh's own checkered gambling career, a few reoccurring themes emerge, the most prominent being the suggestion that for whatever reason -- be it nature, nurture, or some mixture of the two -- the "true gambler" is utterly different from the non-gambler, or, as Walsh sometimes refers to those who don't find it necessary to have placed a bet on a game before watching it, "normal people."

Another, related theme concerns the "us-vs.-them" mentality of the gambler with regard to those "normal people," also referred to as people who never experience true life. One of the funnier stories in the book illustrates this distinction in uproarious fashion, as Walsh chronicles the torture of having to watch a game on which he has a large bet with a roomful of people who do not. "Non-gamblers tend to look at gamblers like an amusing freak show," Walsh explains. "We tend to look at them like they barely exist." Other issues receiving special attention include gamblers' chronic pessimism, their various superstitions, and what has to be described as their "hate-hate" relationship with bookmakers.

Walsh also discusses poker, which along with sports betting provides most of the book's gambling examples.  Simultaneously the author offers some particular observations on what he calls "celebrity poker," a phrase that refers both to celebrities playing the game and the effect poker's growing popularity has had on how society views gambling. Also included here are some interesting behind-the-scenes stories from the making of California Split that fans of the film should enjoy.

Perhaps Walsh's best advice to gamblers is provided indirectly by his own example; namely, always to maintain at least some degree of ironic distance or sense of play when taking those risks the "true gambler" must take.