Card College is a modern classic. It is without a doubt the most important work on sleight of hand with cards. This is the first volume in a series of five. The speciality of this electronic book are its 89 video clips, which show how Giobbi executes each and every technique described. (If you are looking for the 8 hour video course please go here Card College 1 & 2: Personal Instruction.)
This ebook has also been nominated as a finalist in the prestigious EPPIE 2004 ebook award in the category non-fiction/how-to. This is the first magic book to be nominated for a non-magic book prize.
Please note that there are significant differences between the latest printed edition of Card College 1 and this ebook, beside the video clips. This ebook was based on the German edition Grosse Kartenschule 1 which has a somewhat different selection of chapters than the English one from Hermetic Press. One could say it is the author's cut: Chapter 9 'The Glimpse' in this ebook appears in volume 2 of the Hermetic Press series. On the other hand chapters 13, 14, 15 and 16 from the Hermetic Press book are missing in this ebook. They are available in the electronic Card College 2.
Besides the chapter differences between the paper edition and this ebook, Giobbi added about 20 new pages to Card College 1 since the latest printing. There have been numerous additions particularly to the 'Final Notes' and 'Check Points' sections. Chapter 1 has a new section on the card case. You might think that opening a card case is a trivial matter. Not so, says Roberto, who disects this process into its smallest parts and gives you plenty of good reasons why you should know all these details. A new routine 'Further than that...' was added to Chapter 5 'Force Techniques Part 1'. And finally the 'Bibliographic Notes' have been updated and extended.
So even if you are already the proud owner of Card College 1 the book, there are plenty of reasons why you want to have this ebook. Alternatively you could get the companion DVD Card College 1: Videos Only.
This ebook is to my knowledge the first of its kind not just for magic literature but in general. The inclusion of several dozens of video clips extends and completes the description of moves and techniques and allows the student a deeper and quicker learning. Altogether 89 video clips are present. These show Giobbi's hands without any comments, since one can find all comments already in the text. It would anyway be futile to try to capture all written information as a monologue in video. Video clips have to be understood as an addition and not as standalone. Each form of expression is used in its most efficient way. With the written word one can provide a lot of searchable details and present them in a clear and precise manner. Illustrations capture important moments and positions. And video clips convey the timing and motion of a technique. Video clips also allow one to acquire a basic understanding and overview in a few seconds.
I am convinced that you will be delighted by this ebook. It will help you reach new levels in your card magic and reach them faster.
[Note that to view the embedded video clips on iPad you will need the PDF-Expert app. And to view them on Android tablets use ezPDF. There could be other apps that work but these two have been tested.]
1st digital edition (HTML) 2002, 1st PDF edition 2012, 253 pages.
- Fundamental Techniques
- Overhand Shuffle Techniques, Part 1
- False Cut Techniques, Part 1
- Card Controls
- Force Techniques, Part 1
- Riffle Shuffle Techniques
- Transfer Cuts
- The Glide
- The Glimpse
- The Key Card
- The Double Lift, Part 1
- Hindu Shuffle Technique
- Flourishes, Part 1
word count: 66385 which is equivalent to 265 standard pages of text