Dear all,

Any books to recommend for starting out in close-up magic?
Close up as in coin magic, rope magic, sponge balls n the likes, cups maybe etc. Not including cards.
Looking especially for books on coin/ropes.
Best if available locally or in stock.

Thanks
Chia Wei

Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic sounds good for you...although it has Card magic and not much Coin Magic.

"Now You See It, Now You Don't: Lessons in Sleight of Hand" by Bill Tarr is quite informative..though it sometimes lacks clear explanation.

An excellent source for coin magic would be Modern Coin Magic by J.B.Bobo...pretty sure other people in this forum would say the same thing.

How much does these stuff cost?
Best is below SGD100, but I know magic stuff don't come cheap.
If the total is above SGD100, best is got episodes so I can buy them 1 at a time...

Royal Road to Card Magic

He said excluding card magic.

Why don't you go to Kinokuniya or Borders to search for yourself? I don't think they are warpped so you can browse through some of the books and see if they suit you. There is a section that houses games and hobbies books and they have some classic text on magic by Dover publication. If not you might want to consult some local magic shop or the internet like ellusionist.

Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic is an EXCELLENT book to start you off in magic, even if it has card effects and you are not looking for card effects. Here's a place you can get it. Only $50.90. There rope and sponge effects, and even a few parlor and stage effects. Super value for money.

Bobo's coin is VERY GOOD (and cheap) for coin, but it is rather advance and challenging so it might put you off if you are just starting out.
An option you might want to consider is the 4 DVD set Modern Coin Magic by Magic Maker. If you are really full on about coins.

And, of course, you can go to this event too and learn some close up magic.

If I'm not wrong, Mark wilson's book is in the national library if you want to find out more on Magic. It should be under hobbies. :)

Yup... it's THE book I always advise beginners to invest in because it isn't expensive but it's a complete GEM because of the wealth of material found inside... it basically is the holy grail of what you're asking for :lol: Worth a check out.

ning ^_^

Recently bought Karl Fulves "Self Working Coin Tricks" from Borders bookshop.
The book looked simple and had good pictures, and was quite reasonably priced too...so I got it, and it turned out to be a very good read

There are actually self working coin tricks? I did'nt know that.
How are the effects in the book? ^_^ ^_^

Magician read all kinds of books, some "magic" can be found in books on science e.g. static electricity or magnets, it's just how u apply in your acts to make it magical.

Most science books have e.g. on how to use static electricity or magnets to move objects w/o touching it, some also include "magic" using science theories, worth to check it out too!

As for magic book "Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic" is good for a start, I don't do cards but I also have that book...

You can also check out some bar trick, it's not magic but more like a game or puzzle, some of the tricks feature "magical" tricks like blowing out a match on the left hand by blowing thru the right sleeve...

-Alan-

You should definitely have a look at Chris Kenner's book Out of Control. Only gems ! But be careful, most of effects are very challenging...

I recommend "the encyclopedia of magic" by Nicholas Einhorn. It teaches everything, cards, coins, mentalism, match, silk etc etc. Its quite thick. I don't really know how much it costs, cause it was given to me by a friend. I think it is the ideal book for people who are just starting out and the book is what actually got me interested in magic when I just started. Haha do give it a check. ^_^

I got my Bobo's coin at Borders for $19.95.
It really is a good book like everyone else says it is. Budget too.
Thats the only magic book i have though. :P

This is the kind of things you can find in Kenner's book (ok, it's cards... :P):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iiUygCKRuc

ya... Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic is really a good book... it teaches notes, ropes, cards and a lot more and its a very thick book... worth buying...

-Ron-

If you like to know lots of magic include dove, cards, ropes or anything you can think of. You should buy tarbell series.

But i interested in the self working coin trick. I only know one self working coin trick without sleight of hand lol