Spinning a Yarn

I want to recommend a new book by my friend, Barney Vinson.  The Big Spin is fiction but I have often heard Barney talk about his experiences working in casinos down through the years, so I know that this a true-to-life story.  It is a tale of the old Vegas, showing the glitz and glamor side at the top but with a dark underbelly of mob influence, crime, and a mortal struggle for those at the bottom.

If you like to read about how Vegas life used to be, you will never be bored while following the adventures of “Boo,” a Texan ex-disc jockey who comes to town to start a new life.  At first it seems he has nothing but bad luck and is doomed forever to deal at a sleazy Downtown joint, barely surviving from one day until the next.  But his luck slowly gets better and eventually he lands a job in a swanky Strip casino.  However, in Vegas Lady Luck has a way of leaving you without warning and we follow our hero back down to the bottom –  and then turn the pages quickly to see how it all ends.

The subtitle gives a good summary:  “A Dark Comedy with a Vivid Cast of Vegas Characters.”  Lots of heavy drama but with the light humorous touch that Barney always gives his writings.