In my studies of magic I have become intrigued by bizarre magic. Not sure it is a direction I want to go, but definitely want to learn more. What do you think are the three most important bizarre magic-focused books to read first for someone interested in the genre of magic?

I'm not going to be presumptuous enough to pick "the" top three, but I'll be happy to share the few titles that have really gotten my thinking flowing in that direction. Others may well disagree with me and there are certainly a lot of books I have not read yet. Don't take this as gospel, just one guy's favorites.

Pentalogy by R. Shane is my favorite book for inspiring thinking about magical presentation in general. There are a lot of tricks I wouldn't do, but not a single one I think is filler. This is not a book of technique, but of presentations. If you are unfamiliar with the techniques he references, you will have to look in other sources. Hardcover is out of print, but it is available on Lybrary for half the price I paid.

Capricornian Tales by Christian Chelman is really good and fairly affordable. Again, only a few things that suit me personally, but I learn something from every single trick/effect that is written in that book.

Mind, Myth, and Magick by T.A. Waters is generally presented as a mentalism book. And it largely is. But some of the ideas seem wasted on just a mental effect and beg to be part of a story. This is another of the great resources for getting the grey matter pulsing. Sadly, this book is out of print at the moment, but if you find it on the used market, it really is worth having.

Seance magazine in the single volume is also a wonderful resource for spirit magic. Readily available.

Now, there's another book that I don't yet have (though it shipped yesterday) that is suggested so often I finally broke down and scraped up the cash to get it. That's Walt Anthony's Tales of Enchantment. Since "bizarre" magic really revolves around telling stories that are illustrated with the magical effects, I really hope this book inspires me as much as it has so many others. Just look for reviews on it to see that many people consider it indispensable. I think this is the least expensive book I've suggested.

Demons, Darklings, and Doppelgangers by Tony Shiels can be found at some retailers. I think it is out of print, but not out of stock. It is a small book but does a wonderful job of showing how a relatively simple method can become a much larger mystery with a good presentation. Short descriptions that are adequate for communicating both the effect and the method, leaving much to the imagination for you to insert your own personality, but also requiring you to insert your own meaning for the tricks. Not my favorite, but well worth having.

Add a good book of spooky short stories, a local history of haunted places in your state, and perhaps an old book of some obscure religion and see what you can create from all that. It isn't hard to find these other resources at your local library.

-Patricck

Mr. Woolery is giving you some great advice. I would also recommend that you look under "The Cellar," and join the discussions in "The spooky, the mysterious...the bizarre!" That's where I mostly hang out, and you'll find a lot of helpful practitioners who dabble in the dark side.

I appreciate all of this great information. Thank you!

Please let me direct you my way.

www.blackhart.co.uk

If you want to ask any questions about any of our effects, books or other products, please email me and I'll be pleased to assist. I can recommend a couple of simple Bizarre effects to get you going and also which is the best book to start with.

Also all of our effects carry a 90-day money back guarantee. If for any reason you do not want to keep the effect you have purchased you can return it up to 90 days later for a refund of the purchase price.

Good luck

Keith Hart

Keith

I have been to your site in the past and have read great things about your products here on the Café. Being on the other side of the pond, was wary of making my initial foray into bizarre magic an international one. If you have a book recommendation for a starter, I would be glad for it. If I continue down this path I see many appealing items on your site I would like to explore.

Hello Evil

I have many customers on your side!

Big Black eBook @ just £16.00 is great value and a perfect starter - you could be reading it today!

Keith Hart

Devil of a Bar and Pub is quite good. Of course there’s Sheherazade by Borodin if you can find a copy.

Black Hart is a pleasure to deal with, and his products are all top notch. Watch out though, they are priced very reasonably which makes them very addictive!

Here are a couple of other wonderful sources:
https://www.lebanoncircle.co.uk
https://www.geminiartifacts.com

Enjoy!

Free from Craig Browning http://www.magictao.co.uk/About-Bizarre-......DOWNLOAD starting out, we don't always have money to spend. I hope this helps?