Once ordered the book, but never got it. Now its reprinted. When I first ordered it I was interested in the "moving hole" effect (one two punch) - but since then I've on developed my own routine - meaning I'm no longer interested in the book for that reason. However, nobody ever really highlighted other effects from the book from the posts I have seen.

Now - I'm confident that M. Weber is a great magical thinker and there is for sure some great effects I thise book. But which. My question is - are any of you familiar with this book really using any of this material as a true worker in your repetoire. In other words - in a world full of magic material - why would you recommend this book.

Don't just say its brilliant - tell me please that you are actually performing one of these effects in your working performance repertoire.

Thanks a lot

Still interested in that original hole effect - anyway - darned!

I had it, but eventually sold it. The concept of the book isn't about "workers" it's about what you would do in a totally improvised setting when your regular performance material isn't available. Thus the name "Lifesavers." By design, you shouldn't be performing these regularly as that would cancel the the whole idea of the book. I read it to get a handle on his way of thinking, not for the effects.

I gave the book away to magic club youngster.
It had a great hype but I didn't care for it.

This is a wonderful book that belongs in the library of any serious magician.

So.. what are some of the effects people like? I'd like to buy this book but I'd like to get a taste of what people who've read the book use on those impromptu moments.

You notice how nobody yet has said anything about performing any of the tricks contained in the book? That should tell you all you need to know. It's a good book, but it's not about the tricks.

I just received the reprint version of Lifesavers. I've only just started reading through it. Michael has a version of a Bottle Cap penetrating inside the bottle...which reads fairly well. I can see lots of possibilities for this effect. Also, he has a nice take on Salt & Pepper shakers, which he uses in a "Monte" type routine (spectator is unable to guess where the Pepper is)..ending with joining to two ingredients into just one shaker (melding the two shakers together). I also found a nice bit with a makeshift salt shaker (performer creates with a napkin)...which is used to pour Salt from, then Pepper and finally, some sugar. I aslo found some intriguing ideas about adding cream and sugar to your coffee, stirring them into the coffee with your spoon...then immediately showing (Matrix style) that there is no spoon! And, if desired by the spectator...offer a small taste of your coffee which now contains no sugar or cream!

Michael suggests that these effects should not be the basis of your entire routine. However, perform just one of the effects contained within the pages of this book...should the circumstances be right. He calls them "improvised", not "impromptu". Most of the effects I have read through thus far, do require preparation. I can see myself using some of these ideas down the road. I think that Lifesavers is a good book, Michael put a great deal of thought into the effects. You'll have to decide whether or not this book is right for you.

Here's some of what I like about this book...
"One Two Punch" was (is?) a favorite, before I discovered the Pothole Trick. "Knot the Truth" is really startling. "The Wrigley Device;" not quite impromptu, but it will seem very much so. "Dispensed Deception," in the right hands, is worth more than the price of the book. Flat out amazing! "Appealing Illusion" has been recently re-released as a bonus item on a new DVD (not sure if proper credit is being given, but I certainly hope so). This idea is very versatile and can be quite astonishing. "Stretching It" (a linking rubber band routine) requires a good deal of practice and struggles in places to look "natural" but is another item worth more than the price of the book.

I paid a "market" price for this during its out-of-print era. Even so, I found it well worth the cost (and then some).

I've performed one of the "tricks" many times on stage and consider a nice mid-act effect - one for which I have received numerous compliments, btw. I did dress it up quite a bit from what is provided by the book, but the original idea started there, and I consider the book well worth it for that alone.

TW

I've performed several of the effects from Life Savers. They blow the audience away. To be honest I don't think you need another magician to spoon feed you the effects you should and shouldn't perform. Grow balls and try them out. You will be happy. I prefer you not use any of the effects so us who do perform them can have them to ourselves.

This is one of the better books with everyday object tricks. They contain great ideas...and like all magic effects, we can always modify the handling to suit ourselves better.

One of my treasured books in my collection

You don't need to read this book.

These are not the tricks you seek.

Okay, move along

Just picked up this book over the weekend. I've gone through a third of it and I must say, this is practical material. It's also very mind expanding as you see where a lot of major effects originated from (such as Sankey's ring through bowl of spoon, the effect name for which I can not remember for dear life). There's a great torn and restored sugar packet trick using two sugar packets which is really brilliant and looks very convincing. There's a variation on the moving hole/sliding safety pin on silk which is quite amusing and an excellent take on a very old principle/effect. A lot has been said about the material in this book needed prep work but the majority of the prep work can be done in under a minute and often times in less time than that. The major drawback is that these effects are not the kinds of effects you will be making your ends meet with. These are not workers material but instead they fall in the Paul Harris LipSmackers style of effects. When presented correctly, this is material which will leave a lasting impression on whoever you perform these effects for because they will see and remember the effect as "I was missing a spoon so ________ took his/her spoon and split it in two for me!" Simple, direct, and the examples of situations to perform the effects in are brilliant. Excellent book but I can also see how many people will disregard it since it doesn't contain the kinds of effects that they can use to pay their bills with.

All the Best,
Sleightly Steve

I believe the effects in this book are brilliant, only that it was not written in a bombastic way.
I must admit I had trouble in understanding some of the effects in the book, but in terms of the quality of the effect, they are great.

Compare this with Joshua Jay's "Session". It had some brilliant effects with everyday objects in the restaurant, which has a similar style to Lifesavers, but probably due to the creative way it was written, Session received better comments.
Just my 2 cents

Session had better reviews and comments due to the fact that it also contained a truckload of worker material. A lot of the better reviews out their are written by the folks who actually use the material to make a living off of. In that sense, Life Savers does not really meet that requirement. Looking at Life Savers from a purely magic as magic aspect, it is a treasure chest full of incredibly magical effects. Sessions has some of these but it also contains a lot of commercial cards and coins work which one can safely perform for paying audiences. Different material for different audiences. Look at it like this, if you're getting paid for a gig, you're not going to be going to the venue empty handed and just grabbing odds and ends from all over the place doing the effects in Life Savers, it's not that they are not strong but it's just that they hired a professional entertainer, not a magical friend/guest for the party. Life Savers and Session are incredibly different books. By the way, it's not really Joshua's book, he wrote it but it's really Joel's material.