Price$45.00
Media TypeBook
CategoryClose Up
Date AddedMar 16, 2003

Art of Astonishment, Volume 1

Harris, Paul

A-1 Multimedia

(Based on 3 reviews)
Highlights - The Light & Heavy Dime, A re-make of Robert Houdin's famous Light and Heavy Chest using a common dime, which ends up permanently stuck in the most uncommon place. This will become the "Card-on-the-Ceiling" of Coin Magic; Lip Balm, An organic, "naturally gimmicked" coin box (a special brand of Lip Balm) that climaxes with a container full of Lip Balm; Ultimate Rip-Off, Dancing with the Last Piece, The Ultimate bluff ending for Paul's Torn 'n' Restored Card, twenty years later, a way to restore the last piece; Creation, Patrick Martin's practical "workers" approach of producing a live moth to create maximum astonishment.; Shell Shock, Gregory Wilson's practical technique for blowing a hard-boiled egg right out of its shell ... then finding a marked coin inside its yolk; Tunnel Vision, A just-barely-possible way to make yourself disappear ... using a rolled-up paper tube and more nerve than most of us possess.

Reviews

Kevin

Oct 12, 2009

Book 1 is the opening to a great exploration of Mr. Harris' large library of knowledge. The essays alone are worth the price I feel, because of the "makes you think" factor. The tricks range from easy to half baked. The contributions from other Magi are in the right mix. They don't overload the book and that is great since it is Mr. Harris' book. A few of the tricks at the beginning of the book are on his DVD The Art of Astonishment. Many others are found on his Stars of Magic releases. Paul Harris is one of the greatest minds in magic. This is the perfect start to see why so many pro's think of Paul Harris as The Close-Up Kinda Guy.
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Merl Hamen

Feb 23, 2004

If I could only own one card book, I would have great difficulty picking volumnes 1, 2, or 3. Do yourself a lifetime favor. Buy all three. His advice on the Art of Astonishment changed the way I do all my shows, close up or stage. His linking cards in Volume 2 can not be beat. The Anything Deck in Volume 3 now sells with a gimmiac under another name for $25 and is well worth it. I still perfer the Anything Deck without the gimmac. You can figure out the color change with the words once you understand the handling. What more can I say, Paul Harris is my card idol.
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Jim

Mar 19, 2003

"Astonishment is our natural state of mind." So says Paul Harris, the original "Close-Up Kinda Guy". Paul has put out an astonishing (sorry) amount of great material over the years. A lot of today's superstars point to Mr. Harris as their inspiration. The Art of Astonishment books collect old, new, and maybe-not-possible material in three very entertaining volumes.

The tricks and routines vary in quality from self-admitted pipe dreams to reputation makers. As strong as the magic is, the real joy of reading Paul Harris is, well, reading Paul Harris. He has an absurd sense of humor that shows up in trick titles ("LuLu's La La," "Buck Naked"), descriptions, and illustrations.

The essays are also worth the trip. The quote at the beginning of the review is backed by some pretty sound reasoning. I'm not sure I buy the entire premise, but he made me think.

Read it for the terrific magic. Read it for the essays. Read it for the weird Paul Harris writing style. Hey, just read it, ok?
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