OR get to Arnie Wexler 954 501 5270

All Bets Are Off   OUT DEC 30TH

Losers, Liars, and Recovery from Gambling Addiction

Arnie Wexler with Steve Jacobson

Wexler's compulsive gambling once spiraled out of control. Now after forty-plus years in

recovery, he's become a nationally known expert on gambling addiction.

"Arnie is always available, responding not just

emotionally, but physically, to gamblers still suffering.

He is a good and loving man, but he is also a tough

guy. He's a guy tough enough to have survived the

gambling story you are about to read and tough enough

to make twelve-step calls that have involved cancelling

family plans, driving through blizzards, and facing the

underbelly of gambling straight on. Arnie is tireless in

his efforts to help others.

"He is alive with his desire to share the joyous freedom that

his recovery has brought him, while still remembering well

the horror of his late-stage gambling. When Arnie sees a

person walk into a twelve-step program for the first time,

he remembers how he felt that first day he came for help.

You are about to read the story of a legendary recovering

addict."—from the Foreword by Rob Hunter, PhD, Founder,

Nevada Psychological Associates and Problem Gambling

Center of Las Vegas

Wexler's life as a gambler began on the streets of Brooklyn,

New York, flipping cards, shooting marbles, and playing pinball

machines. His preoccupation with gambling accelerated until

a fateful day in 1968 when it all came crashing down.

His gripping narrative leads us through the dungeon of a

compulsive gambler's world—chasing the big win and coming

up with empty pockets—and how his addiction drove him and

his wife, Sheila, to the edge of life. With help, they managed to

escape, and together they have devoted themselves to helping

others with the problem they know so well.

By Arnie Wexler with Steve Jacobson

Central Recovery Press

December 2014

$16.95 Trade Paper

180 pages

ISBN: 978-1-937612-75-7

E-book: 978-1-937612-76-4

®

About the Authors

Arnie Wexler is a Certified Compulsive Gambling Counselor. He runs a national hotline for compulsive gamblers and is a nationally known consultant and lecturer. He has appeared on numerous radio and television programs, including Nightline, the Today Show, Good Morning America, Inside Edition, 48 Hours, and 60 Minutes, among others.

Steve Jacobson was a sports reporter and columnist for Newsday for more than forty years with a great interest in all aspects of sports. He coauthored a number of books with notable sports personalities. He was named by Associated Press among the top sports columnists and twice was nominated by Newsday for the Pulitzer Prize.

Q & A with the Authors

Why did you write All Bets Are Off?

Arnie: I have been trying to get a book on gambling addiction done for over forty years. This book should have been written years ago before the country exploded with gambling and gambling addiction in so many states.

Steve: In the 1980s I learned of Arnie Wexler's speaking engagements at schools and I wrote about what he had to say. I liked him and admired his efforts. When he was ready to tell the stories of his own life and how he saved it, I wanted to help him tell about the torture of Sheila and Arnie and the reality of their escape.

What makes this book unique?

Arnie: I don't think there has ever been a book on gambling addiction that includes the wife who lived through her husband's gambling addiction telling her side of the story. And the way Steve wrote it will resonate in the heart of any person who has ever lived with a gambler in active addiction.

How does All Bets Are Off address recovery?

Arnie: I am in recovery over forty-five years. People have been hiding behind their gambling addiction for years. We have some wonderful people in recovery today doing great things for themselves and others. We need to not let our addiction define us, but have our recovery define us.

Steve: Arnie's recovery was one step at a time, which became twelve steps up the stairway. His story and his willingness to extend himself to help those whose problem he understands is an offer of recovery for anyone who wants it.

Who is your target audience for this book?

Arnie: A national study found there are five million addicted gamblers in America and fifteen million at risk. This book is for anyone who is a compulsive gambler, their family members, and anyone who loves a gambler.

Steve: Together with Arnie and Sheila I hope to reach the awareness of the great number of people who think of gambling in terms of Guys and Dolls and the stage charm of their misadventures and comic tragedy. The recognition of addiction is clouded. Addicted gamblers don't need to be told of the problem. They need to learn how to get out of it.

Sales Points

• Wexler is among the foremost nationwide authorities on the condition that has an ever-tightening grip on a significant part of society, estimated to be between 3 and 5 percent.

• Wexler and his wife chronicle their shared personal experience with gambling addiction and what it took to break the cycle.

• Coauthor Steve Jacobson is a seasoned author, having written six books.

• The book is highly relevant due to the increasing number of outlets, including Internet gambling, that some say prey on those susceptible to gambling addiction.