I remember as a child, it was always a momentous TV occasion when American illusionist David Copperfield performed - he made a Learjet disappear! The Statue of Liberty even! He levitated over the Grand Canyon, for goodness’ sake!
I’m not sure why the world’s most commercially successful magician doesn’t feature in this book - nor even the hijinks of the great Houdini - but it’s certainly not lacking from these omissions. I learned about other ground-breaking magicians, such as Minerva, an American female escape artist from the early 20th century, who submerged herself in barrels of water wrapped in chains, or British magician David Devant, who could make paintings come to life, pull endless eggs from a hat, and had a goldfish that could spell out words with letter tiles.
This handsomely illustrated tome is packed with tricks to have a go at, ideas for harmless pranks, toe-curling tales of scams and hoaxes… and the secrets of some of magic’s biggest tricks are revealed.
The author himself is a bit of a con artist too - he’s created five fake stories within the book for you to spot!
Reviewer: Stacey Anyan
Wide Eyed Editions