talkmagic.co.uk

Is there such a book out there that is basically a encyclopedia of magic tricks? I dont mean a book that reveals how to do every magic trick but one that just explains what the trick/effect is. I always find myself reading books where a trick is mentioned and i have no idea what the trick is because ive never heard of it before. Lots of tricks are the same but have different names and it gets very confusing. I dont believe that there should be one book out there that has every trick explained if thats what you are thinking just what the trick is not how to do it.

this probably doesn't make much sense

please help.

james

I doubt there's an 'A-Z' of magic tricks available, per se, however I'm sure that if you come across the title of an effect that you don't know, a mere 'Google,' or whatever your preferred internet search engine is will help you out, and probably give you much more to explore, too.

However, thinking about it in a slightly different way, why not search for 'magic' in an encyclopaedia? For example - Wikipedia: Magic (Illusion).

Now there's a load of history, info and links to get you going...

there is an encyclopedia of card tricks and a encyclopedia of card sleights

but I doubt there is a book for just Magic tricks


Oh wait zack got here before me

but I agree "Google" can be used a a good "Magic Encyclopedia"

You know, that is an interesting comment........when I first came to this site, I found it to be overwhelming at times due to the fact people refered to sleights and tricks by specific names. I got into close up magic by watching, mimicking, and creating (not saying original, but created for myself without a manuscript, etc) moves......I had no idea what the name of the original trick, or sleight was, or if it even had a name. I am now getting better at identifying the names by looking at various websites, or listening to descriptions......I know what you mean by "IT WOULD BE NICE" but yet I understand why it is likely not possible or practical!

Henry Hay's "Cyclopedia of Magic" published by Dover is a little old and out-of date, but if you are looking for the basics or origins, it has a bit of everything.