"Transformations: Creating Magic Out of Tricks" book by Larry Hass
Suggested Retail USD$40.00
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In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

"Transformations", a book by Larry Hass, is a collection of essays aimed at helping to create better, stronger, more powerful magic and with some excellent effects used as examples, it's easy to see Hass' theories put into practice in what amounts to a wonderful book for all magical performers.

It's also an unusual book as well. Normally when (or, more accurately and dreadfully, if) performers talk about making magic stronger, they talk in terms of mechanics and dramatics. Which version of this trick is more deceptive? Which move looks more natural? What if the vanished object were found here? Would this be better if I worked a story into it? What if I used a spectator's object instead of mine?

Hass isn't thinking along those lines: his essays are more philosophical in nature (the man quotes Heidegger, for heaven's sake) and explore old problems in new ways. When he discusses naturalness of action (something a guy named Vernon was taken with), Hass ties it into a form of misdirection. When he talks about method versus presentation, he does so in terms of how too much of one affects the other. Even his thinking about being different from other performers takes on a turn that is as unexpected as it is enlightening.

Or, put another way, this ain't your typical magic book.

Hass' thinking is a joy to read. It's refreshing, it is, and constantly as thought-provoking as it is thoughtful. Rather than gather together a re-hashing of popular thought about all things magical, he's jumped into a whole new territory, one hard to put a name to, that is terra incognita to way too many of us.

But does it work? Does all the high-falutin' thinking Hass presents us with make any difference to magic, to our magic?

That's always the test of such theories and Hass, I'm pleased to report, puts his money square where his mouth is. Each essay is backed by an effect or two that serves to both demonstrate the ideas Hass has shared and explain in the most practical of terms their application to what we do. The end result is, as could be expected, simply marvelous; it appears every old plot becomes stronger, more entertaining, by the time Hass has run his ideas across it, smoothing it out and making it so much more than it was before. Let's put it this way: chances are you won't do a torn-and-restored card the same way again after you read Hass' take on it, and the same goes for "cards across" and a few other of the classics.

Okay, so it's pretty obvious Hass has what it takes to make his magic stronger, but does he teach us to as well? Not in a step-by-step fashion, no. Hass doesn't hold your hand here and politely tell you "Put tab A into slot B and isn't that oh-so-much better?" You'll have to work for the transformations to come to you, and it will be a truckload of work. But Hass has given us the tools to make those changes happen to our already-existing work and, in the end, that's really saying something.

All told, this is a marvelous book that every serious performer of magic should read. Hass' thinking is beautiful and solid and will, when applied, change how you do things and, in turn, change audiences' perceptions of you and your magic for the better. To me, "Transformations" is the whole ball of wax here: great ideas backed up by great demonstrations and, as such, this is one I whole-heartedly recommend.

"Transformations" book by Larry Hass
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

Material: 10
With seven essays detailing the important work of making your magic stronger and more entertaining, and eleven fully-presented effects that both backup Hass' thinking and demonstrate it more eloquently than a thousand more words ever could, this is one wonderful book for magical performers of all stripes.

Quality: 10
Hass' writing is clear and entertaining; he's created a page-turner of a book. Throw in some of the most comprehensive crediting seen and we're talking quality of the highest caliber.

Illustrations: 10
Black-and-white photos are placed throughout the work, helping to teach the mechanics of Hass' effects.

Presentation: 10
This is what it's all about and Hass shows his mastery of the presentational skills. There is some outright gorgeous work here.


Shane