Trade of the Tricks: Inside the Magician's Craft (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780520270473)

From risqu cabaret performances to engrossing after-hours shop talk, Trade of the Tricks offers an unprecedented look inside the secretive subculture of modern magicians. Entering the flourishing Paris magic scene as an apprentice, Graham M. Jones gives a firsthand account of how magicians learn to perform their astonishing deceptions. He follows the day-to-day lives of some of France's most renowned performers, revealing not only how secrets are created and shared, but also how they are stolen and destroyed. In a book brimming with humor and surprise, Jones shows how today's magicians marshal creativity and passion in striving to elevate their amazing skill into high art. The book's lively cast of characters includes female and queer performers whose work is changing the face of a historically masculine genre.

Author: Graham Jones
ISBN-10: 0520270479
ISBN-13: 9780520270473
Publisher: University of California Press
Language: English
Published: 09/14/2011
Pages: 308
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.95lbs
Size: 8.90h x 6.00w x 0.80d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 04/01/2012