The table
Master the basic rules and the layout of No-Limit Texas Hold ’Em — positions, blinds, and what a hand actually is.
Lessons · Talks · Signed books
Welcome to Poker With Sara.
Poker With Sara LLC is a place to come as a beginner and better your game — a gateway to mastering the table before entering a cardroom or casino with confidence and class.
You can book a one-on-one or group beginner’s lesson with Sara or buy one of her books.
Lessons & TalksNo-Limit Hold’EmBooksCome for the PokerStay for the FunLessons & TalksNo-Limit Hold’EmBooksCome for the PokerStay for the Fun
The invitation
Welcome Poker Newcomer!
Let me show you the tools and strategies that will hold up at any table. Master the basic rules and the layout of Texas Hold ’Em. Move from the nuances of reading hands into strategic play.
Come have fun playing poker with me. Learn from poker professionals, dealers, and the floor. Embrace the adventure that is playing No-Limit Texas Hold ’Em cash games.
Come for the poker, stay for the fun.
Hand of the moment
Royal flush
A
A
K
K
Q
Q
J
J
10
10
Beginner’s Lessons
You can book a one-on-one lesson with Sara: $25 for 30 minutes or $45 for an hour.
Contact Sara for group rates.
Reading the hand
From the nuances of reading hands to strategic play. Folding is a skill. So is the moment you don’t.
Pros, dealers, the floor
Come have fun playing poker. Learn from professionals, dealers, and the floor.
The Bookstore
Buy signed copies of my work here.
Unsigned copies live on Amazon for $5 less.
2025 · 252 pages
Shuffle Up and Deal With It
Tales from Dealers Worldwide
They’ve dealt every kind of hand imaginable. Now they’re showing theirs.
Welcome to the real world behind the poker table — raw, chaotic, and deeply human. Sara O’Connor brings you face-to-face with over 30 poker dealers from around the globe. These are the voices you never hear over the clatter of chips: bad beats, personal breakdowns, rounders chasing dreams, and players spiraling out.
Inside the book
From behind the box to the other side of the felt — or into entirely new careers. Stories of reinvention, risk, and chasing more.
Life on the road, bouncing from casino to casino. These voices span borders, cultures, and languages. Poker is global, and the grind is universal.
The backbone of poker’s biggest stage. High pressure, long hours, and a front-row seat to iconic moments.
Surviving trauma, physical pain, and mental-health battles — and rising again.
From smoky basements to private games, these tales open poker’s shadow world.
Stories too raw, strange, or personal to fit the mold — and impossible to forget.
These dealers aren’t just keeping the game running. They’re holding the line between chaos and order, one hand at a time. You think you know poker? Think again.
Some tales are unfiltered and include addiction, violence, and loss. They aren’t here to shock. They’re here for the people who still showed up to shuffle.
$24.99
Signed · US domestic buyers only
2024 · 310 pages
A New Queen's Guide to Poker
The Art of Playing Cash Games Like a Pro for Beginning and Intermediate Players
From beginner to champion in a year — and a map so you can take the same road.
In “A New Queen’s Guide to Poker,” Sara O’Connor shares her first year playing poker in a casino with confidence and a roadmap for cash games: clear explanations, exercises, and the stories that make the strategy stick.
Inside the book
Rules, hand rankings, and betting, with clear explanations and exercises you can actually run.
Folding, calling, raising, and bluffing — plus when each one works, and when it doesn’t.
Mental toughness, bankroll control, and the particular challenges women meet in poker.
The personalities across the table, told through interviews and anecdotes from the room.
Wisdom from seasoned professionals, gathered so you can lift your game without the tuition of a bad year.
Table conduct that keeps the game clean — and makes the other players take you seriously.
Everything you need to hold your own on the felt. Practical strategy, plain language, and a winning ticket into the game.
$24.99
Signed · US domestic buyers only
The booking
To book Sara for a speaking engagement, lesson, or event, send a note. It goes straight to pokerwithsara@gmail.com.
- Lessons
- Beginner lessons, one-on-one or a group
- Talks
- The books, the felt, and the art
- Signed books
- $24.99 each, US domestic buyers only
Straight answers
Questions the table actually asks.
What is Poker With Sara?
Poker With Sara LLC is Sara O'Connor's poker studio. She teaches beginner No-Limit Texas Hold'em, one-on-one or in a group, speaks at events, and sells signed copies of her two books to US buyers.
Who is Sara O'Connor?
Sara O'Connor is a published poker author and teacher. She wrote A New Queen's Guide to Poker (2024) and Shuffle Up and Deal With It (2025). Her fine-art site is saraoconnorfineart.com.
How do I book a lesson, talk, or event?
Use the form on this page or email pokerwithsara@gmail.com. Say whether you want a private lesson, a speaking engagement, an event, or a signed book, and when you have in mind.
How much are the signed books?
Signed copies are $24.99 each for US domestic buyers only. Buy one on this page. Unsigned copies are $5 less on Amazon.
What is Shuffle Up and Deal With It about?
Shuffle Up and Deal With It: Tales from Dealers Worldwide (2025, 252 pages) collects stories from more than 30 poker dealers, including dealers who became players, road dealers, WSOP dealers, and underground games.
What is A New Queen's Guide to Poker about?
A New Queen's Guide to Poker (2024, 310 pages) is Sara O'Connor's account of her first year playing poker in a casino, with a roadmap for beginners: Hold'em rules, betting, bluffing, bankroll, and etiquette. Signed copies are for US domestic buyers only.