Is someone you care about gambling your life away? You don't have to be a gambler yourself to suffer from the often disastrous effects of excessive gambling. Behind the 8-Ball is the must-have guide to reclaiming your financial, legal, and emotional freedom. Spouses, parents, siblings, children, friends, and coworkers of the gambler will learn how to: Understand why some people lose control of their gambling Recognize the compulsive gambler and realistically assess the financial and emotional damage he or she is causing you and others Accept that you can't control someone else's gambling Encourage the gambler to seek help Recover from being involved with a gambler For anyone who is or has ever been involved with someone who gambles too much, this supportive, informative volume delivers all the tools and motivation you need to rebuild your life. "This book is essential for gamblers, families, friends, and professionals who need to know more about the personalities of gamblers ... It is a precise, updated, and accurate look at how gambling affects families." - Timothy W. Fong, MD, co-director, UCLA Gambling Studies Program "This book remains as important today as ever and has remained the standard reference for family members of gamblers." - Keith Whyte, executive director, National Council on Problem Gambling

Inner-city black women open their hearts to share the pain of crack addiction and its consequences Behind the Eight Ball: Sex for Crack Cocaine Exchange and Poor Black Women documents an American tragedy that highlights the widening gap between social and economic classes. In their own words, poor black women—nameless, faceless, and marginalized by poverty—share the details of their lives before and after crack cocaine invaded their communities, each recalling the circumstances of her introduction to the drug and her first experience using sex to support her addiction. These candid interviews expose the socioeconomic changes in inner-city neighborhoods that created the perfect conditions for a crack stronghold; the crack cocaine economy's impact on the lives of inner-city residents; and the social and familial consequences of crack addiction among poor, black women. Behind the Eight Ball: Sex for Crack Cocaine Exchange and Poor Black Women places crack addiction, crack-related prostitution and its consequences, STDs, HIV, and pregnancy into the context of the larger social issues of inner-city poverty, race, gender, and class. This unique book reveals the sex-for-crack barter system as evidence of a long-term social exclusion and systemic racism that has worked to destroy the self-image of poor black American women. The women interviewed reflect this negative image, exchanging sex for crack on a regular basis to support their addictions at the risk-and reality-of unplanned pregnancies. “The baby I am carrying now, I don’t know who the father is. There are a few (men) that I had sex with around the time I got pregnant—that day. But which one it is, I don’t know who.” Behind the Eight Ball: Sex for Crack Cocaine Exchange and Poor Black Women examines: why poor black women addicted to crack are disproportionately at risk for sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, and unplanned pregnancies how the social and economic characteristics of poor black communities support crack distribution and consumption how crack use and the exchange of sex for crack damages struggling black families why the care of many children is entrusted to child welfare agencies how and why women are marginalized in the crack culture Behind the Eight Ball: Sex for Crack Cocaine Exchange and Poor Black Women is an insightful and enlightening look at the motivations behind the decision to risk illness, injury, disease, death, and pregnancy to support addiction.

Is someone you care about gambling your life away? You don't have to be a gambler yourself to suffer from the often disastrous effects of excessive gambling. Behind the 8-Ball is the must-have guide to reclaiming your financial, legal, and emotional freedom. Spouses, parents, siblings, children, friends, and coworkers of the gambler will learn how to: Understand why some people lose control of their gambling Recognize the compulsive gambler and realistically assess the financial and emotional damage he or she is causing you and others Accept that you can't control someone else's gambling Encourage the gambler to seek help Recover from being involved with a gambler For anyone who is or has ever been involved with someone who gambles too much, this supportive, informative volume delivers all the tools and motivation you need to rebuild your life. "This book is essential for gamblers, families, friends, and professionals who need to know more about the personalities of gamblers ... It is a precise, updated, and accurate look at how gambling affects families." - Timothy W. Fong, MD, co-director, UCLA Gambling Studies Program "This book remains as important today as ever and has remained the standard reference for family members of gamblers." - Keith Whyte, executive director, National Council on Problem Gambling

Here in a single, compact handbook are all the rules for the myriad forms of pocket billiards. Billiards: The Official Rules and Records Book is complete with detailed instructions on how to play everything from Basic Pocket Billiards to Cut-Throat, together with the rules for tournament games such as Nine Ball and Rotation, and Snooker and Carom games. These are the official rules of billiards from the Billiard Congress of America, the governing body of professional billiards in the United States. A very helpful chapter for the beginner includes professional tips on basic techniques and strategies. Also included are a glossary of billiard terms and a summary of BCA billiards champions.

Debt typically represents the most difficult financial hurdle for most Americans to overcome. As a result too many of us are unable to enjoy any form of financial success. "Are You BEHIND the 8 Ball? Six Cornerstones of Financial Freedom" is a book aimed primarily at young Americans, but with material of interest to all people. The principal goal is to raise the level of awareness and anticipation in all areas of personal financial planning before being subjected to the pitfalls that so many adults are afflicted with. The book navigates key focus areas ranging from budgeting and debt elimination to home purchasing and investing, ending with discussions on long term care and estate planning as well as an understanding of the tax landscape in America. Preparation, patience and discipline are possibly the three most important ingredients of financial success for all individuals.

Goddess Bast gives werecat Heller a human mate, Lawson. Can there be happiness past hurt feelings and misguided beliefs?

Thirtieth anniversary edition out in 2007! World Champion Pool Player Ray Cool Cat Martin shares his secrets for playing winner's pool in this classic book, now with a new introduction by the author. Written with co-author Rosser Reeves three decades ago, The 99 Critical Shots in Pool remains one of the most authoritative guides to the game ever written. Over 200 illustrations show the proper form, technique, and approach to shots such as: - The Center Ball Cheat-the-Pocket - The Hook Shot - The Seven Ball Stop Shot - The Jump Shot - The Frozen Kiss Shot - The Nudge Shot - The Side Pocket By-Pass Shot Ray Martin, a Billiards Congress of America Hall of Fame inductee, is one of only seven players in the twentieth century to win three or more world 14.1 titles. He co-wrote this book with Rosser Reeves in 1976.

**** This is the SOFTCOVER/GLUED BINDING edition, NOT the notebook spiral binding **** Poolology is a breakthrough aiming system for pool players. I was once asked, ""How do you aim?,"" and I couldn't answer. I said I didn't know, and I'm sure the player that asked me that thought I was holding out on him, keeping some great secret to myself. But it was true - other than to call it instinct, I had no idea how to aim. I'd never been taught how to aim. I just shoot balls into the pocket. This question, ""How do you aim?,"" is what prompted me to write Poolology. After experimenting with various aiming systems, I learned that most aiming systems don't work for most people. That explains why so many pool players struggle to be consistent shot makers. I wanted to fix that. I wanted to find a system that could teach players how to aim any shot on the table, how to develop a feel for pocketing balls. No such system existed, until now. It's called Poolology!

The world of pocket billiards and the world of high stakes poker collide and brings two people together, desperate to find the link in a series of murders that involve both worlds. Jay, passionate about pool, meets tournament poker player, Lisa. Together, they tell the story in this roller coaster thriller about the games people play and the price people will pay to win.