Confidences
Giobbi, Roberto
Drawn from a Master's Repertoire - Taught with a Master's Ability
Roberto Giobbi, recipient of the Academy of Magical Arts' Literary Fellowship of 2012-2013, is known worldwide as the preeminent teacher of card magic. He is also one of Europe's most sought-after performers of close-up magic. In Confidences, he opens up his professional repertoire to teach eight of his prize routines. Each receives the in-depth, insightful coverage for which Giobbi is known. He seasons this generous selection with three impressive essays, one on the art of controlling cards, another on the correct approach and understanding for vanishing coins and small objects, and a third on Erdnase's classic, The Expert at the Card Table. In these essays, Giobbi reveals numerous insights and shares personal handlings and strategies for sleights, with practicality and deception being his highest priorities. Here is a sampling of the riches disclosed in these pages.
- An unsent letter from Albert Einstein proves to have a strange connection with a freely named playing card.
- Playing-card manufacturer A. Dougherty leaves explicit cues on his cards and card cases that lead to spectators locating the four Aces in a shuffled deck.
- Giobbi explains his masterly opening sequence for the Cups and Balls.
- The guarantee card in the deck assures, in surprising ways, that chosen cards will be located-even in the most difficult circumstances-not just by the magician but by spectators as well!
- A chosen card materializes in a mirror-a very eerie and unusual effect.
- Dai Vernon's "Trick That Cannot Be Explained" is given the Giobbi treatment, which produces a tremendously entertaining and impossible result.
Confidences is a 275-page 5" x 7" hardcover book, produced to bibliophilic standards, with color artwork, marbled endsheets, book ribbon, sewn binding and acid-free paper. A pleasure to hold, a revelation to read.
Reviews
(Top ▲)
I was planning on starting of the review by saying something like "right from page one Giobbi draws you in." Or something like that. But then I had to back up and realize that the said "drawing in" happens before page one. Right before page one is the preface which is brilliant. However, what makes the preface brilliant is the drawing on the page before that. However, if you go back a few more pages and close the book, you realize that the "drawing in" happens before you open the book.
Product/Production Quality
The book is classic looking with a built in ribbon-style bookmark. Even my non magi friends who saw me reading the book have made comments about the appearance of the book without even knowing the content. So production quality . . . BAM! (Jeff Sings the word "aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawesome!"). Further, the book is well organized with the right mix and structure of effects and essays. There are plenty of illustrations where needed, and for the most part, the text is very clear and well written.
There were a couple quirky things here and there. For example on page 99, Giobbi makes the following statement regarding the procedure for performing the spectator peek selection, "I found that this method of choosing a card was perceived as a bit unusual to a lay audience. I'm sure none of them had ever selected a card in this way before meeting a magician." I can't think of any scenario where a spectator is selecting a card unless it was for a magician. As I recall there may have been one or two other oddities like that in the book. However, my pointing them out is more for the fun of it and less for the review's sake. I just found it funny. So all silliness aside, the book is very well put together.
Content
As you read the ad copy, you'll get a good sense of the content. Whether you'll like the effects or not, I don't know. However, even if you hated all of the effects, they're all worth reading for no other reason that the presentations. Giobbi clearly thinks about presentation and emotional hooks, and audience impact, timing, rhythm, scripting, etc., etc. There is not a magician alive today who wouldn't benefit from studying Mr. Giobbi, particularly this book. His essays, though at times excruciatingly detailed - his essay, Thoughts on Controls is nearly 80 pages long - were very thought provoking, and edifying. He's kind of the King Midas of card effects. His touch on classic plots turns them to gold.
Final Thoughts
If you're looking for some new card ideas or some work on the cups and balls, you'll find valuable information in here. If you're looking for fine-tuned "work" on your magic as a whole, you'll find valuable information here. If you're like reading essays on magic; if you like smart presentational ideas; if you like magic . . . get this book.
Final Verdict:
4.5 Stars with a Stone Status of GEM.