I was looking at his book absolute magic. what are your thoughts on it. if possible can you pleae give a goo ddescription because I don't want to waste my money. thanks

Denny

I'm curious aswell, anyone?

Check the Genii forums.
It's currently being discussed in the book of the month section.

Just fyi

Think the book was written long ago when derren was still doing cards and hence, the thinking then and now actually varies. Anyway, check out the Café where they interviewed Derren

And by the way, his name is spelt Derren not Darren . correct me if I am wrong

cheerios

Yes, it is Derren...don't waste anymore time, just get the book. It's VERY well written, and even though it was written when he was doing straight magic, the paradigm he holds for mystery entertainment is surprisingly consistent with what he has now. He has only decided that straight magic as a medium is not powerful enough for his purposes, though he concedes that his model of thinking is not the only valid one. I really wish this was on the required reading list of ALL magicians, Derren is one of the deepest and most insightful thinkers in our art, and when he speaks, the wise would pay attention.

Thank you all very much!!!!!!!

It's one of my favorite books, a great read. It's all about the theory and thinking in magic, no tricks are in this book.

Its amazing I've read it about seven times and I find something new everytime.

Darren is actually his real name, lol!

It is a must read. Without going into too much detail it offers derrens ideas on performing close up magic. (some of his thinking can also be applied to the stage as well!)

He sets out his ideal which basically states that in order to make magic more wonderous one has to shift from being the god figure in performance to being a hero figure who has to over come conflict in order for the routines to work. this makes for a much more entertaining performance since the spectators themselves will be drawn into the performance emotionally. (he gives a great example of his theorys in action, when he describes his handling of a classic magic trick).

He then goes onto describe how given the limitations of some performance venues in ana attepmt to describe how one can still perform with this ideal.

Whether or not you find yourself ascribing to derrens perforamnce ideal what he does do is seriously make the reader consider his own perofrmance, his character, and what he wants to achieve in the minds of spectators.

As well as this there is a section on creativity, a different take on pick pocketing and an alternative use for cold reading. And some essays on magic as art.

Whilst on this book could anyone explain the reference to, Becketts "waiting for godot" at the beginning of derren's book. (Before chapter one it says, "enter godot" !!!!....?)

I think it's just Derren being ironic and mock heroic...very typical of his style. The figure of Godot represents a promise that is never fulfilled, and has become stale; the clinging to this promise itself becomes the meaning of the play. Derren in making the reference warns us against taking his ideas as the last word on the subject, but it is funny because taken out of context it would seem as if "Godot" - the promise - has been delievered.

Apologies for the crappy attempt at literary criticism...it's 4 in the morning...but Derren's books are punctuated by little nuggets of humour like this that really make them an enchanting read compared to 99.9% of the rest of magic literature.

Oh right. I did have an idea which was that "waiting for godot" is an urbsurdist play, where nothing happens. The two tramps are waiting for godot who never turns up. There waiting (much like life in these plays) is compleltely random and pointless.

Perhaps derren is saying that if one takes on these ideas and thinks about their perofmrance is thus becomes meaningful instead of pointless and random. Hence enter godot.

Or perhaps its not meant to mean anything at all! just a random funny phrase derren put in!

I hate to be picky but. . .

"a"bsurdist play

"Their" waiting is . . . (possessive)

And for what it's worth Godot is a metaphor for God.

So, either Derren is telling us he's God, or he's being ironic. Either is very funny.

Again, sorry to be picky.

Mark

Lastnitesfun...I don't mean to be picky, but your username is incorrect. There should be an apostrophe before the "s" so your name would read "lastnight'sfun".

And then there's the capitalization and missing spaces, too. Your name should really be "Last night's fun."

I enjoyed reading this book. It has som awesome thinking on performing magic.

Derren is indeed one of the most brilliant minds in magic theory.

Excellent book for sure ! There are no effect in Absolute Magic but you can catch the thinking of Derren Brown. And I think it's more important than the tricks itself. If I had to choose among Pure Effect and Absolute Magic, I choose this last one.

How difficult is the card work in his books.

I heard it is advanced.Is he a good card handler?

Anyone know?

Card (and others),
Don't buy the book to learn Derren's 'tricks'. They are not earth shaking effects, and much of what he did back then was pretty standard stuff. He was the product, not his tricks. Buy and read the book for what he writes about performing, and magic itself. He is irreverent, sometimes a tad tasteless, but I truly enjoyed both of his books. If he released another, even though I am not a mentalist, I would buy it. I have never spoken to anyone who said they wished they hadn't bought his books. I have only read of praise. When new, they both reviewed quite well, and both were breaths of fresh air at the time. There is little risk here. I don't perform any of his tricks, but a part of both books is in every trick I perform.

Derren's card skills are excellent but the stuff in Pure Effect is pretty standard and not earthshattering in the way Lennart Green or Pete Duffie's stuff is. If you want to see it in practice, check out The Devil's Picturebook which contains his card repertoire and a brilliant skit at the end.

That's funny, my birth certificate says "Lastnitesfun".