Biggest 'Jeopardy’ Winner Ever Shares Secret to Success: Children's Books

Contestants on Jeopardy have spent the latter part of their lives planning for their chance to compete. Although every individual has their own strategy for success, this week’s record-breaking winner kept a secret weapon under his belt that no one saw coming—children’s books.

Earlier this week, James Holzhauer broke the record for the largest cash prize to ever be taken home in a single game. The grand total? A whopping $110,914, which surpassed the previous record of $77,000 by a landslide. The professional sports gambler from Las Vegas spilled a few of his insider tips to The Washington Post, and one of his game plans is unconventional to say the least. Leading up to his big moment, Holzhauer says he surouned himself with a plethora of children’s books.

“They are chock-full of infographics, pictures and all kinds of stuff to keep the reader engaged,” he tells The Washington Post. “I couldn’t make it through a chapter of an actual Dickens novel without falling asleep.” You know, he’s onto something. A study from earlier this month claims children who are read to daily know upwards of a million more words than other kids.

Holzhauer says he’s been preparing for his big break on the show his whole life, and even promised his grandma he’d make it on the game one day. Besides engrossing himself in the very best of childhood literature, the big-time winner had a few other strategies he put in place. In his interview with The Post, he also claims he spent hours rewatching old episodes, competed on quiz teams and just has a knack for remembering facts.

Now would seem like a good time to whip out those children’s books from your kid’s bookshelf.