I got this since the Henry Hay is out of print. Should I still be on the lookout for the Amateur magician's handbook ?

How different are the 2 ?

Guess you have Wilson's book. It is great and will keep you busy for some time.

BTW, great choice to start.

Andy

If you are new, you might want to read this as well

http://www.themagiccafe.com/forums/viewt......um=41&29

You can get used copies of The Amateur Magician's Handbook on eBay for very reasonable (cheap) prices.

The approaches of Hay and Wilson are different. Along with the easier sleights, Hay also shows some of the more difficult ones. And Hay gives more philosophy on presentation. Wilson's tricks tend to be easier, which may help you gain more confidence before you try the harder stuff.

I obviously have both and think each has something of great value to offer to the beginner, as well as the experienced performer.

:banana:

The Wilson book is terrific and, in my opinion, offers a much broader overview of Magic. I also prefer the explanations, pictures, teaching and overall layout of Wilson's book. As a beginner book, this would be my recommendation of the two. You might also want to check out Harry Lorayne's The Magic Book. From there, any one (if not all) of the Tarbell books are a wise investment.

Best of luck!

I already have all the tarbell books, that's actually what got me started. I'm not really a beginner either I'm just adding some books to my collection. I figured if my son takes an interest I could hand him the wilson book instead of the 8 volumes of Tarbell. I just got it to look thru and learn some different approaches to things.

I was just wondering how many beginner books you need.

I mostly have mentalism books and just wanted to broaden the range of collection.

My favorite book in my collection right now is Encyclopedia of Suspensions and Levitations, not because of the material, although good, because it was hard to find and I had to hunt for it and in the end I actually got a good price on it.

For a beginner, you've got all they'd need for the moment. Spending time studying the Mark Wilson book will give a beginner a great foundation to start with and a fantastic introduction to many different types of magic.

You can't go wrong with that.

Mark.