Prepare to Be Amazed: The Geniuses of Modern Magic

Description

80 pages
Contains Photos, Illustrations, Bibliography, Index
$24.95
ISBN 1-55037-927-5
DDC j793.8'092'2

Publisher

Year

2005

Contributor

Illustrations by Warren Clark
Reviewed by Anne Hutchings

Anne Hutchings, a former elementary-school teacher-librarian with the
Durham Board of Education, is an educational consultant.

Review

This slim volume, in addition to providing a history of magic from
ancient times to the present, is a “who’s who” of the brightest
and best purveyors of this art.

Beginning with Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin (1805–1871), the first of
the “modern” magicians (as opposed to the sorcerer-street magicians
prior to this time), and arranged chronologically, the famous and
lesser-known are all profiled: Adelaide Hermann, Chung Ling Soo (who
appeared to catch bullets fired at him in midair), The Great Lafayette,
Harry Houdini (named after his idol, Robert-Houdin, and renowned for his
daring and dangerous escapes), P.C. Sorcar, Harry Blackstone,
Winnipeg-born Doug Henning, Siegfried and Roy (known for their white
tigers), and finally David Copperfield, who, with his use of technology,
has taken illusions to new heights.

A chapter is devoted to each “genius.” Each is liberally
illustrated with line drawings, photographs, and reproductions of
posters and newspaper clippings. At the end of each mini-biography are
detailed instructions for performing a trick in the style of that
magician. For example, one of Doug Henning’s trademarks was levitating
people; thus his chapter provides instructions for a trick in which a
small amount of water rolled up in a $5.00 bill appears to defy the laws
of gravity.

Well researched, the book is fully indexed and includes a comprehensive
list of resources. Readers in junior and intermediate grades, especially
budding young magicians, will find this book with its interactive format
both entertaining and informative. Highly recommended.

Citation

Schendlinger, Mary., “Prepare to Be Amazed: The Geniuses of Modern Magic,” Canadian Book Review Annual Online, accessed November 25, 2024, https://cbra.library.utoronto.ca/items/show/23352.