talkmagic.co.uk

A book review section then I am going review a classic of magic, bit of luck all the review’s n the classics will be made sticky at the top with some thing like a required reading thingy.


The Effect
Mark Wilsons complete Course in magic - it’s a book!
Covers everything from cards to stage illusions and back again.

Cost

I got the soft back version available almost every where I got mine from Waterstones.
£14.99 also a hard back version available at NUMS.

Difficulty
1 - 5

(1=easy to do, 2=No sleights, but not so easy, 3=Some sleights used,
4=Advanced sleights used, 5=Suitable for experienced magicians only)



Review

Well here is my attempt to review a tome weighing in at 501 pages. All you card workers there is a section on cards actually there is over 100 pages on cards. I find it the next best introduction to card magic since Royal road to card magic. The colour changing deck is a classic. You looking for impromptu stuff its there. How about a billiard ball routine? Got one of them too. What about the classic cups and balls? Of course it has….bet you cant find a bill lemon wrong. Rope magic too. Ok its not that David Blaine style make you run 20 miles down the street shouting devil devil. But it is a solid foundation of magic and required reading for any one who loves magic.
Some tricks you wont find to your taste as well all magic books , tricks and DVDs. But sometimes I leaf through this book and find pure gold like the torn and restored napkin. Ok the coin section is no Bobo’s modern coin magic (and lets face few coin magic books can live up to that) but all the sundry slights are worth looking at. I like coin a go-go myself. What can I say? Get this book you wont regret it.


Overall

Overall this book is a solid foundation in the art of magic. It is with the 3 books that all new magicians should read along with Royal road and modern coin magic. Sorry kids who like a DVD of some one whacking a coin in a soda can but this is better. Save your money and buy a book, read it understand. You will use it as a reference book for the rest of you life in magic. Even if some of the presentations are dated. But you never are suppose to do a trick verbatim of some one else are you?

9/10
_________________

this is a great book and a must for those beginning in magic and those how have been practising for many years it is one of those books that you should be constantly looking at to perfect the basics and learn about our art.

brilliant review too cheers

Whatever style of magic you are interested in, there is something for everyone here from simple reputation makers to more complicated tricks that require a lot of practice.
The section on stage illusions is also very good.

I often browse through this book and come up with new ideas and varitations of my own. Excellent stuff.

you beat me to it Markdini, I had my review all in a word file all ready to be copied across. Oh hell I'm going to copy it here anyway.

This is a truely brilliant book, one that any magician should have regardless of their experience level.

This is where any beginner should start out. The book is divided into sections, each focusing on different area of magic from close up to stage illusions.

Mark Wilson guides the reader though each area starting with easy self working tricks and moving on to introducing sleights. The book gradually builds up introducing more advanced techniques and effects that go with it. His easy to follow steps and illustrations coupled with insightful performance tips make the book an absolute must.

If you're new and wanting to get into the basics of magic, this is the book for you. If you're a seasoned pro looking from some new ideas or tips, this book is for you.

You know Lady Of mystery me and you have done enough to promote this book over the last couple of days to start getting roayalties from the publishers. Sorry about beating you to it.

There's no harm in adding additional Reviews to the same Review thread - more data and information to aid buying decisions!

Definitley and a wide cross section of opinions creates a fuller picture.
It would be good to point out the negatives as well as the obvious positive points, but with this book I can find no negatives!

This book has information on pretty much every part of magic that you could imagine (within reason of course). Highly recommended for ANYONE with ANY interest in performing ANY sort of magic.

The only downside is it's lack of portability (it weighs a ton!)

At £15 you just can't go wrong!

I have Mark Wilsons Encyclopedia of Magic, which was purchased in america a few years ago.

A fantastic book that covers tricks with everything from cards and coins to everyday items such as bottle tops, paper clips, rubber bands etc. It's pocket sized, although you'd need deep pockets as there is about 700 pages, but very concise and well worth investing in!

I purchased this book and love it. The effects are pretty classic but you can definitely 'modernize' them if you try. My favorite effect in it is probably the bill to lemon because it has such a great impact. Great review.

This is an awesome book. I got this a while back, found it again inside my "magic" box. And starting to read this to the kids and I'm finding some classics that even they could perform.

Oh by the way if anybody is considering something like this but doesn't want such a huge book then I recommend Mark Wilson's Cyclopedia of Magic which is a smaller more concise version and it's about half the price.

I picked it up on Amazon for a couple of £ from one of the second hand dealers on there. It is very comprehensive, but it fails to give the really close detail that you need for certain moves, especially sleights. For example I had heard about the Paddle Move, had never seen it, so looked it up. From what was written I can sort-of-understand what is going on, but the information is too scant to really get hold of the move (or mabe I am a bit thick).
When it comes to coin sleights it's on a level with Bobo; i.e. look elswhere or you will get into terrible habits.

On waterstones online it is £5.99. Cant really complain at that.

Can always stick that figure to those people who justify their theft of material from you tube etc. due to lack of money.

I bought mine for just under £10, for a tenner I think it's the best value for money I have ever read. You can read this book for 30 minutes and go and do tricks. I would advise it to everyone!