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Magic: The Complete Course (Book & DVD)
 
 
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Magic: The Complete Course (Book & DVD) [Paperback]

Joshua Jay (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)

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Book Description

October 2008 Book & DVD
Magic is everywhere, from the big spectacle celebrity of David Copperfield and Siegfried and Roy to the quirky Penn and Teller to the spooky David Blaine and Criss Angel to the endless material on YouTube. But until now, learning it has never been easy—that's all about to change with Magic, a book that does for close-up magic what How to Grill does for barbecue. Written by charismatic young magician Joshua Jay, Magic combines expertise, photographs, step-by-step directions showing how to perform 100 tricks, and a DVD that demonstrates 35 of them.

Joshua Jay took home the top prize at the World Magic Seminar (the Olympics of magic) when he was just 16 years old. Ten years later, he continues to perform magic, write about magic, eat, sleep, and breathe magic. Here, he brings all his passion and knowledge to teaching magic. Each trick is broken down into the Effect, the Secret, the Set-up, and, most important, the Performance, with lessons on what to say, how to direct the audience's attention, where to keep your hands, and so on. (In other words, how to be smart about the things your audience is surprisingly clueless about.)

Here are the Ten Greatest Card Tricks; tricks to dazzle a dinner date; tricks to perform for the boss (poke a hole through his shirt, then magically mend it); tricks especially for kids; and even tricks for an audience in another state—with "Australian Self-Help," you can find a participant's chosen card over the phone. It's the Aha! book for a subject whose time has come.

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Magic: The Complete Course (Book & DVD) + Pro Brand Svengali Deck - Easy Magic Card Tricks - Red or Blue + 101 Tricks with a Svengali Deck Booklet
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Every 10 or 20 years a book comes along that introduces a whole new generation to the art and craft of magic. This is it!"—Stan Allen, Editor-in-Chief, Magic Magazine
(Magic Magazine )

Review

"Finally, a book that brings the art of magic into the 21st century!"—Rick Merrill, 2006 World Champion of Magic

Product Details

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Workman Publishing Company; Pap/DVD edition (October 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0761149872
  • ISBN-13: 978-0761149873
  • Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.4 x 0.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,391 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

76 Reviews
5 star:
 (59)
4 star:
 (15)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (76 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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58 of 62 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars How else can he explain....?, November 19, 2008
By 
S. Berner (Cocoa, Fl USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   
This review is from: Magic: The Complete Course (Book & DVD) (Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
One doesn't judge a book like this by its style. This is too bad, really, because Jay's style is delightful. Nor does one judge it on the basis of such other "literary" criteria as humour, insight, or human interest, which is also unfortunate because, surprisingly, the book abounds in these as well. No, one buys a book like this for its ability to teach us, well, let's be frank, its ability to teach us how to make our friends look like idiots. (Sure, there are going to be some few who buy it to SERIOUSLY get a grounding in beginning magic, but, alas, they ARE few... and far between). Additionally, a large portion of the book's audience will probably be young people ("young" being in the eye of the beholder, but it has been my experience that we tend to lose either interest or simple dexterity as we age). So, the real tests of a book like this are: A) Are the tricks explained clearly and in an easily duplicable manner? B) Are there ENOUGH of them that DON'T require the hours of practice that any true afficianado of the art knows is necessary... but we really don't want to do? and C) Does it also contain a great DVD of over 2 hours in length that shows us how to do a lot of the tricks and, even if we don't want to do them ourselves, still is a heck of a lot of entertaining fun? The answer to all three of these is a resounding YES!!!!!! So, what are you waiting for? Buy this!
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21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars THE Book to buy on Magic, November 11, 2008
By 
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Magic: The Complete Course (Book & DVD) (Paperback)
If you could only buy one book on magic, this is the one. The price is a bargain for the information being provided. One of the many great features is a DVD which covers (i.e., presents & demonstrates) about a third of the effects addressed in the book. The quality of the book's language and photos is likewise outstanding. Joshua Jay can be proud of himself and his really wonderful book which is sure to become a classic in magic literature. He hits the nail on the head when he points out that people don't simply want to learn the secrets...but to learn how to perform the magic itself. I am trying to adopt many of the effects myself so I can share them with family and friends. The wonder of magic for me and many others is to allow ourselves to be children again...and Joshua Jay is helping many amateurs such as myself to share that joyful experience with others. Well done, young Mr. Jay!
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT Introduction to Magic w/ great DVD, November 22, 2008
By 
Dan Sherman (Alexandria, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Magic: The Complete Course (Book & DVD) (Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, in that it is a nicely illustrated, easy-to-follow collection of about 100 magic tricks (or if you prefer "effects" ) that includes instruction both on "how to do it" and also the "how to present it." The tricks are well chosen and include lots of different effects, including tricks at the table, the office, card tricks, tricks you can do with kids, etc.

The suggested presentations are fast moving and entertaining -- there are no tricks where spectator spends endless amounts of time counting cards, etc. The DVD is very helpful in terms of showing both how to set up or do the trick (what the sleight of hand or misdirection is) and also what the presentation is as seen by the audience. Joshua is a good magician (you can see him at work on YouTube) and I enjoyed seeing how he presented old favorites such as the "Out of this World" card trick (truly a great trick in which he has added a very simple bit of misdirection that covers the one clunky bit in the standard routine).

This is a great book that a child (say around 10 ) could use -- tricks are graded by difficulty -- or that an adult familiar with magic would find interesting.

My only (small) complaint about the book is its very short "references" section -- It seems to cite only a few books (and no DVDs) aimed at the specialist (e.g., the 8-volume Tarbell course). Of course, there really aren't that many good intermediate books out there, but I would have added Bill Tarr's sleight of hand books or maybe "The Amateur Magician's Handbook" (out of print I believe).

This is a great book though at a great price, especially with the addition of the DVD.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
invisible deck, ovation position, gun trick, disappearing ink, false thumbtip, tabled pile, laundered bill, right first finger, folding coin, false transfer, invisible coin, overhand shuffle, ask your participant, left first finger, flattened penny, impromptu magic, pool chalk, deck facedown, borrowed penny, facedown cards, force card, move your right hand, right fingertips, normal ring, rear pants pocket
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Complete Course, Six of Spades, Three of Clubs, Svengali Deck, Linking Rings, New Trick, Two of Clubs, Grandpa's Coin Trick, Statue of Liberty, Change Machine, Earth Shoes, The Da Vinci Code, Two of Hearts, The Miser's Dream, Four of Spades, Max Maven, Out Of This World, Las Vegas, Australian Shuffle, Sid Lorraine, The Rising Card, Bobo Switch, Queen of Spades, Harry Houdini, Card Engine
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
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