"Magic is a word we use to describe something amazing, awe-inspiring, or spectaular. Truly great magic makes us believe in things we know can't be real. In the hands of the greatest magicians, even a simple card trick can become truly wondrous. Now, in this nonfiction narrative of magic through the ages, HP Newquist explains how the world's most famous tricks were created. From the oracles of ancient Egypt and the wizards of medieval Europe on to...

"An illustrated, illuminating history of magic from the world's greatest and most successful magician, capturing its most audacious and inventive practitioners, and showcasing the art form's most famous artifacts housed at David Copperfield's secret museum"-- "In this personal journey through a unique and remarkable performing art, David Copperfield profiles twenty-eight of the world's most groundbreaking magicians. From the 16th-century magistrate...

Mangus the Magician and his thirteen-year-old servant, Fabrizio, are commanded to go to Venice, on pain of death, to find a book by Friar Luca Pacioli which reportedly contains a magical means of making money; but Venice is a strange and dangerous city, and someone else is also after the book--then Mangus is arrested, and taken to the prison, and Fabrizio and Bianca, an orphan he has met, must find a way to secure the book, save Magnus, and themselves....