"However, as the years went by, having witnesses a particularly striking performance, I would be sufficiently enthused to find out how it had been done."
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Out of the Box:
Amazing Card Tricks from a Sealed Pack by Stuart Lee Trafford Publishing
book review by K.R. Mecom
Stuart Lee offers an in-depth and instructive guide on how to perform a wide variety of playing card tricks in his book Out of the Box. In the introduction, Lee explains how after receiving a book about puzzles and tricks, he was drawn to the section about playing card magic. Being recently retired, Lee set off on a quest to learn all he could about card tricks. The introduction contains a summary of some of the best reference books he has found, as well as a helpful list of playing card terms and their definitions. Lee expertly explains how to handle, shuffle, and arrange a card pack, so that one is prepared to perform a series of card tricks which he calls "The Routine." The first trick called "Cards and Numbers" starts by asking a spectator to choose a number. By dealing the pack of cards into two different piles, and doing some expert counting, Lee explains how one can end up with two cards of the same value and color projecting from the two piles. Lee walks his reader step by step through the act of performing all the tricks by using a numbered system that is both easy to follow and understand. After describing "The Routine," Lee offers additional tricks that add and extend to the performance.
In another chapter, "Handling and Sleights-of-Hands," Lee offers some techniques that "can be used to manipulate and control the cards." Meant to be a reference guide, the chapter explains how one can use various methods to create the illusion that they are shuffling or cutting a card pack. For example, "Magician’s Choice" asks a spectator to pick a card out of five choices, then again out of the choices left until there is only one card left. Lee describes that by manipulating the choices the spectator makes and by discarding or keeping different cards, one can "magically" end up with the card of their own choosing.
Out of the Box is a useful tool for someone just starting out in the game of card magic. With clear, concise instructions and helpful hints, Lee has provided a genuinely great resource for those who want to learn a little magic and fool their friends and family.