Reviews: Read What Others Are Saying: page 12
169 ★★★★★ reviews
120 ★★★★★ reviews
78 ★★★★★ reviews
122 ★★★★★ reviews
The Master of Misdirection
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Josef Fortier (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Thursday 29 December, 2022)
I read the Fulves Slydini book as a teenager, which had an enormous effect on me. This book spells out much of the ideas I absorbed then but fleshes them out. The book is a wonderful window on "lessons from Slydini" by someone who has thought about those lessons a lot.
10-Card Trick
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by David Cottrell (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Saturday 24 December, 2022)
This is a well thought out fun routine that should entertain and please every audience! However in order to learn the "false count" one must also purchase "Alan Ackerman Advance Card Control #7". #7 has this routine on it.
Advanced Card Control Volume 7: False Counts
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by David Cottrell (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Saturday 24 December, 2022)
This is great! The magic is tremendous and the production is of great quality! Alan Ackerman may be the best!
Quodlibet (Italian)
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Biagio Fasano
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Saturday 24 December, 2022)
Ho avuto la fortuna e il piacere di poter leggere "Quod Libet" del collega Davide Rubat Remond (col quale io e Renzo Grosso abbiamo collaborato nello scrivere i 3 Volumi di "Bending Minds") fin dalla sua prima stesura, ed ora che é stato ultimata e finalmente pubblicato l'ebook su www.Lybrary.com sia nella versione Italiana che Inglese, non posso che confermare la mia prima impressione: é un lavoro magnifico che, partendo da un classico del mentalismo matemagico e sorretto da un'idea brillante, lo sviluppa fino a portare alla creazione di nuovi incredibili effetti.
Molti conosceranno l'effetto da cui tutto parte e che personalmente adoro e non perdo occasione di insegnare nei corsi base e laboratori di Magia per ragazzi: "il gioco dei cartoncini" o "pensa un numero" nel quale si chiede ad una persona di pensare un numero e di indicare poi su quali dei cartoncini, che a seguire gli verranno mostrati, compaia il suo numero.
Essendo il trucco basato sulla matematica binaria e richiedendo dei semplici calcoli, da molti viene oramai ingiustamente snobbato, ritenendolo di scarso impatto ed essendo comunque abbastanza conosciuto anche tra i non maghi.
Davide ha pensato di rendere più interessante il trucco, lasciando che lo spettatore trattenga per sé tutti i cartoncini dove compare il numero pensato e l'illusionista riuscirà ugualmente ad indovinarlo basandosi solamente sull'osservazione rapida dei cartoncini scartati, senza necessitare di calcoli complessi o particolari sforzi mnemonici.
Ma non si é certo limitato a questo, ma presenta a seguire 3 diversi effetti, tutti basati su questa semplice ma brilante idea, che riescono a rendere il trucco indecifrabile anche alla maggioranza dei prestigiatori, in un crescendo di stupore che mi sento di garantire per tutti coloro che saranno testimonii della performance.
- Nel primo effetto allo spettatore viene chiesto di scegliere mentalmente un numero da 1 a 100, controlla quindi tra le 7 cartelle colorate che gli vengono sottoposte, dove appaia tale numero e le trattiene per sé. Il mentalista, osservando con un semplice colpo d'occhio i colori delle cartelle rimastegli perché scartate ,indovinerà immediatamente il numero pensato!
- Nel secondo effetto, "la classifica dei migliori film di sempre" non si fa alcun uso di numero, ma allo spettatore viene presentata una lista di ben 14 film giudicati da esperti del settore tra i più belli della storia del cinema. Egli potrà scegliere mentalmente il suo preferito e trattenere per sè quali schede, tra le 4 che gli verranno esposte, lo contengano al loro interno (ogni scheda riporta 7 titoli). Il mentalista saprà subito, tramite una semplice associazione mnemonica, indicare il film scelto.
- Il terzo e ultimo effetto é quello che preferisco in assoluto, tanto da volerlo inserire sin da subito nel mio "repertorio di mentalista": Quod Libet (Cosa ti piace, in latino), che dà appunto il titolo all'intero ebook. L'illusionista depone sul tavolo un mazzo di carte legato fermamente da un elastico e chiuso nel proprio astuccio, poi chiede allo spettatore di pensare liberamente ad una delle 52 carte e gli vengono consegnate 8 cartelline, ognuna riportante all'incirca metà carte del mazzo.
Ancora una volta, mentre il mago é di spalle, dovrà controllarle attentamente e trattenere per sé solamente quelle contenenti la carta pensata. Fatto ciò, il mentalista si volta e, osservando rapidamente le poche cartelle scartate (che NON contengono quindi la carta pensata), indicherà un numero (da 1 a 52) e inviterà lo spettatore stesso a contare le carte nel mazzo rimasto sempre a vista, fino a ritrovare la carta nella posizione indicata. Incredibilmente quella carta coinciderà con quella solamente pensata dallo spettatore! Praticamente una sorta di effetto ACAAN (Any Card At Any Number) che può essere seguito tranquillamente sul palco.
Aggiungo a quando detto sinora il fatto che Davide sia stato così bravo non solo a tradurre in inglese questo ebook ma ad adattare perfettamente anche gli aiuti mnemonici forniti per l'effetto sui film, e a fornire per entrambe le versioni tutte le schede a color (template) pronte da stampare per eseguire ognuno dei tre effetti di fronte a qualsiasi pubblico.
In conclusione ho trovato questo ebook davvero ben realizzato, con tre solidi effetti di sicuro interesse non solo per gli appassionati di magia matematica, quale io mi reputo, ma per qualsiasi buon mentalista.
Lo potete trovare anche disponibile da scaricare come PDF in inglese, sempre su Lybrary.com.
Quodlibet
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Biagio Fasano
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Saturday 24 December, 2022)
I have had the good fortune and pleasure to be able to read "Quod Libet" by my colleague Davide Rubat Remond (with whom Renzo Grosso and I collaborated in writing the 3 Volumes of "Bending Minds") since its first draft, and now that it has been completed and finally published the eBook on www.Lybrary.com in both the Italian and English versions, I can only confirm my first impression: it is a magnificent work that, starting from a classic of mathematical mentalism and supported by a brilliant idea, develops it to the point of leading to the creation of incredible new effects.
Many people will be familiar with the effect from which it all starts and which I personally love and never miss an opportunity to teach in basic courses and workshops in Magic for kids: "guess the age" or "think a number" in which a person is asked to think of a number and then to indicate on which of the folders, which will be shown to him afterwards, his number appears.
Since the trick is based on binary mathematics and requires simple calculations, it is now unfairly snubbed by many, believing it to be of little impact and yet being fairly well known even among non-magicians.
David thought of making the trick more interesting by letting the spectator keep for himself all the cards where the thought number appears, and the illusionist will still be able to guess it based only on the quick observation of the discarded cards, without needing complex calculations or special mnemonic efforts.
But he certainly did not limit himself to this, but presents to follow 3 different effects, all based on this simple but brilliant idea, which manages to make the trick indecipherable even to the majority of magicians, in a crescendo of amazement that I can vouch for all who will witness the performance.
- In the first effect the spectator is asked to mentally choose a number from 1 to 100, he then checks among the 7 colored folders submitted to him, where that number appears and holds them for himself. The mentalist, observing at a glance the colors of the folders left to him because they have been discarded, will immediately guess the number thought up!
- In the second effect, "the ranking of the best films of all time" no use is made of numbers, but the viewer is presented with a list of as many as 14 movies judged by experts in the field to be among the finest in the history of cinema. He will be able to mentally choose his favorite and retain for himself which of the 4 cards that will be displayed to him contain it (each card carries 7 titles). The mentalist will immediately know, by simple mnemonic association, which film he has chosen.
- The third and last effect is my absolute favorite, so much so that I wanted to include it right away in my "mentalist repertoire": Quod Libet (What do you like, in Latin), which precisely gives the title to the entire ebook. The illusionist lays on the table a deck of cards tied firmly by a rubber band and enclosed in its case, then asks the spectator to think freely about one of the 52 cards and he is handed 8 folders, each bearing approximately half the cards in the deck.
Once again, while the magician's back is turned, he will have to check them carefully and retain for himself only those containing the thought card. When this is done, the mentalist will turn around and, quickly looking at the few discarded cards (which therefore do NOT contain the thought card), will point to a number (from 1 to 52) and invite the spectator himself to count the cards in the deck that has always remained in sight, until he finds the card in the position indicated. Amazingly, that card will coincide with the one merely thought of by the spectator! Basically a kind of ACAAN (Any Card At Any Number) effect that can be safely followed on stage.
I would add to what has been said so far, the fact that David has been so good at not only translating this ebook into English but also perfectly adapting the mnemonic aids provided for the effect about movies, and providing for both versions all the color cards (template), ready to print, to perform each of the three effects to his audience
I would add to what has been said so far the fact that David has been so good at not only translating this ebook into English, but also perfectly adapting the mnemonic aids provided for the effect about the movies, and providing for both versions all the color cards (template), ready to print, to perform each of the three effects in front of any audience.
In conclusion, I found this ebook really well done, with three solid effects sure to be of interest not only to fans of mathematical magic, which I consider myself to be but to any good mentalist.
You can find it available to download also as a PDF in Italian.
Professional Impromptu
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Christopher Weber
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Sunday 18 December, 2022)
Paul Lelekis has graciously given me a copy of his new ebook "Professional Impromptu" for me to share my opinion. I have had an interest in magic for over 50 years and I enjoy close-up magic as my primary interest. I am not a professional performer by any means. I consider myself an amateur/hobbyist with a solid overall knowledge of close-up magic and magicians. Most of the performing that I have done has been for fun social events for friends and family and I frequently did little performances for my music students throughout my career as a public school music teacher. This is an excellent collection of no setup or very little setup card tricks to perform at any time, even with a borrowed deck of cards. The routines use subtle moves and principles rather than difficult sleight of hand to produce entertaining card effects that can be performed at a moment’s notice. All are impromptu and designed to pack the maximum amount of magical punch with the least amount of sleight-of-hand skill on your part. Poker, Mental discoveries, Spelling effects, Amazing Coincidences. Some of my favorites include Rainbow Match, Four Way Coincidence, A Principal Principle which is a wonderful adaption of a classic principle of self-working impromptu card magic, and if you are into algebra and interesting explanations and analyzing the general theory of a trick, you will enjoy Paul’s The Trick That Can’t Be Explained- or Can It? I highly recommend you give these wonderful effects a try. I hope you get as much enjoyment out of this collection as I have.
Ask Roberto Giobbi
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by James Russell (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Tuesday 13 December, 2022)
This is an invaluable resource to have on my devices! I can read and reread anytime!
Die-Bolical ACAAN
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by hal barlow (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Tuesday 13 December, 2022)
This is not strictly ACAAN, but close, and quite clever. I fooled myself when I tried it out. Probably the best dice and cards trick I have seen.
Thought Transcribed
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Curtis Foster
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Thursday 08 December, 2022)
Thoughts Transcribed is the solution for sealed message reading that I have been looking for.
Why? In addition to what the true ad copy reads and in no particular order: 1. More can be written on an index card than a business card, including a sitter’s whole thought or question; not just a word or a doodle. 2. There are no fishy moves; nothing unnatural or unnecessary. (There’s only one move or sleight if you can call it a sleight). 3. *Important: Thoughts Transcribed allows you as much time as you need to do the READ, which makes it ideal for longer messages or questions. It’s NOT just a quick peek unless you want it to be. 4. All you need is a pen, a stack of cards, and an envelope (and an ashtray, some lighter fluid, and a match if you want to destroy the envelope with the card inside instead of keeping it). 5. Can be performed seated, or with minor adjustments, standing up.
Five stars for sure.
The Invisible Thread Manual or The String Book
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Don Jarrard (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Tuesday 29 November, 2022)
From studying Finn Jon I would say that these are the most incredible levitation methods. The one where a real solid hoop is passed really over a gold stick is amazing. The light and thread advice also helps a lot. As a printed book this could sell for $40. Look at Who's Afraid of Invisible Thread. Highly recommended as one of the few workable books here. These work better with the new smaller plastic zombie balls. Or Christmas ornaments. Aluminum balls are a few ounces too heavy.
Numbered
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by David Goldberg (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Monday 28 November, 2022)
A regular deck, a Sharpie marker, and a little bit of time and practice with this video creates an incredible piece of magic that's suitable for walk around, casual performances for friends and even those at the club meetings. I myself am a serious hobbyist who will perform on occasion and this is one that I would do. I really like to perform close-up walk-around magic. The best thing to do is come up with your own intriguing presentation that fits you and your style. That is something I'm still working on.
Bammo Brainwave Brainwaves
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by David Magicorthodoxy
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Saturday 26 November, 2022)
Psycho Path
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Bruce Littleboy (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Thursday 24 November, 2022)
The kernel of the method is very interesting, but the procedure currently involves clumsy equivoque at step one. Participants also need to be quite alert and literate (i.e. can spell well in their heads) – or cards with the keywords on them need to be provided (make sure you get them back). I think it needs more work on the scripting at step one: there must be a solution. It nevertheless receives “Notable Mention” in Unbiased Magic Reviews, Top 5 Propless Mentalism Effects Part II. Perhaps David has refined the procedure successfully. I can see why a disappointed reviewer here has awarded one star only, and this was my immediate feeling on the first page. However, I think there’s certainly some potential… 3.5 stars from me on the trick as it stands: toss a coin whether to round up or down. I'm glad I bought it at a half-price sale though, which makes it better value for money and thus four stars.
Al Mann's Sensational Boiler Escape: A Psychic Dematerialization
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Don Jarrard (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Wednesday 23 November, 2022)
This is t.v. special material. The cost to make this is too much. You need permission to do it on t.v. but otherwise, it could really boost ratings. The secret was used by Houdini as I have seen in his books. Highly recommended as this could eventually be performed again someday.
The Magic of Mahadevananda
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Don Jarrard (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Wednesday 23 November, 2022)
Good ideas are taught. For the price, I do recommend it. Easy methods but nothing spectacular. The drink production is unique.
X-Ray Eyes
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Don Jarrard (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Wednesday 23 November, 2022)
Not a good book for me. Mostly covers what is already in 13 steps in mentalism by Corinda and mental effects by Annemann.
Undetectable Stooges
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Don Jarrard (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Wednesday 23 November, 2022)
This is a good book that all mentalists need. Even regular magicians need stogies just to force a design on a force card to have it appear in an impossible place. Highly recommended.
Limitless
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Don Jarrard (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Wednesday 23 November, 2022)
Nice idea. The newest method uses dry-erase ink but this is another method that doesn't require erasing several marks which are evident using more than 4 objects. The stained clothes idea can really add a visual element that most mentalism lacks. Recommended.
202 Methods of Forcing
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Scott Reed (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Monday 21 November, 2022)
There is a ton of useful information in here! As you may have expected, some of it is a bit dated and may be something you don't wish to try. But I can assure you that you will find plenty of gold in the pages of this book!
The Travelling Trickster
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Dave Arch (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Friday 11 November, 2022)
If you enjoyed Karrell Fox’s concepts and routine ideas, I believe you’ll enjoy this ebook. I found little to no overlap with the content on Mel’s DVD’s.
In fact on his DVD’s as enjoyable and entertaining as his routines are, I found their success to be highly dependent on his own very unique performing persona. Not so much with these writings.
Highly recommended.
Magical Mentalism Tour
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Dave Arch (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Friday 11 November, 2022)
Since Karrell Fox, I have not seen an author deliver such consistently practical ideas. Mel does.
Scripted #4: The 21 Card Trick
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Kakas Etterem (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Friday 11 November, 2022)
Funny variation of this standard routine!
Inner Secrets of Crooked Card Players
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Thomas Irving (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Thursday 10 November, 2022)
Love the book, Site makes it easy to download.
Semi-Automatic Card Miracles
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Howard Port (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Thursday 03 November, 2022)
I got a lot out of this book. I have been reading lately in several places (Mike Close, Dani DaOrtiz) about introducing more "chaos" into your magical procedures. Maximiliano describes 5 effects (one with a variation) all of which demonstrate how to use "chaos". One of the effects, My Green Goes Red, takes a commonly used procedure and improves it immensely by introducing some "chaotic" elements. Maximiliano explains all clearly and even includes a few words about audience management. I also appreciated his words about how to milk more out the climax of each effect. Crediting is adequate though not as extensive as it could be. (I will be looking at some of his references.) The effects have few if any slights (nothing more difficult than a HaLo cut) and any suspicious handling is always done on the offbeat. Highly recommended.
Jack Kodell
Overall customer rating: ★★★★★reviewed by Joel Howlett (confirmed purchase)
Rating: ★★★★★ (Date Added: Wednesday 02 November, 2022)
Amazing and rare opportunity to hear Jack Kodell speak about his years in show business, his unique bird act and even performing on ICE!
The interview recording is very clear / great quality.
It's wonderful we have this record of magic history available. Highly recommended.