Richard Kauffman has reprinted all of Dai Vernon's monthly Genii Magazine columns from 1968 to 1990 in a book called "The Vernon Touch," which was the name of Vernon's column.

At $69, the book is not cheap, but it is worth every penny. The columns have been reprinted in chronological order, with a wealth of photographs, many of them previously unpublished. Reading these columns is almost like sitting down with The Master himself and getting personal instruction. When I first read these columns as a teenager in the '60s and '70's, they seemed like interesting ramblings, but nothing special -- heck, there weren't even any magic tricks in them! (grin). Now, from the perspective that maturity and some experience brings, I can see that each column contains real nuggets of information about presentation, routining, style and a zillion other things that can dramatically improve your magic.

The book itself is quite well done. The typeface is easy to read, the layout is good, and the paper is of good quality (glossy paper was used, probably because of all the photographs that accompany the text). The binding is heavy-duty, which is good because the book is quite thick at 600+ pages and this is one book you will likely be re-reading often!

"The Vernon Touch" is not sold in magic stores and is available only from Genii Corporation, click HERE for more info. Suffice it to say that if I could only take two magic books with me on a desert island, I think they would probably be Ortiz' "Strong Magic" and "The Vernon Touch." SETH