Scarne on Card Tricks

On the other hand, there's a lot of boring and tedious count-down stuff in there as well.

The book is BIG--over 300 pages of carefully detailed effects. It can be a little overwhelming to someone the first time he picks it up. How do you separate the wheat from the chaff?

Best, in my view, are the tricks that can be done TOTALLY impromptu, with very little or no stacking, when a deck is shoved into your hands and somebody says "Do a trick!".

Here are some of the effects that I have judged to be best, based on the above criteria:

The Upside down Deck by Francis Carlyle
Hit the Deck
Scarne's Follow the Leader
Cardini's Color Discernment
Card on the Ceiling
Card through the Handkerchief

Of course, You Do as I Do is also a classic, though it is fairly well known among magicians.

In short, a little work digging out the best tricks will make you a true card magician in most people's eyes, with enough practice and performing experience.


Still the best   October 26, 2001
Saifol Shamlan (Kuala Lumpur, Fed. Territory Malaysia)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

This is the definitive collection of non sleight-of-hand (you don't have to be quick with your hands) card tricks. I bought my first paperback copy in 1974 when I was still a schoolboy. Some of the tricks are easy but astounding, such that I've memorised two of them and have amazed my friends over the years until now. Since then, there hasn't been any other card trick manual that can beat this one, to the best of my knowledge.


The best book on non-sleight-of-hand card tricks available!   October 12, 1998
Ordovicn@execpc.com (Milwaukee, WI)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful

John Scarne is today perhaps best remembered as a leading authority on gambling scams and card cheats. However, in his prime, he was one of the best magicians in America. In the late 40s, as stated in the Introduction, Scarne decided to gather for magicians a set of card tricks involving no sleight-of-hand. The result is "Scarne on Card Tricks". The 155 effects in the book range from quick tricks and puzzlers to more elaborate card demonstrations. All of the effects are attributed to either the originator of the effect or to a magician who used the effect frequently. The book clearly bears Scarne's unique genius not only in the selection and variety of effects, but in Scarne's improvements of the original effects. There is no doubt that anyone can put together a most entertaining routine with the material in this book. Two words of caution. First, the copyright of the book is 1950 and so some of the patter is clearly dated and needs to be revised for contemporary audiences. (Patter is the words or story that accompany the effect.) Second, because the effects are easy to do when practiced, there is a tendency to perform the effects before fully thought out. For every hour learning the basic effect itself, two hours should be spent on how to present it in an entertaining and interesting manner. The book itself, however, remains one of the very best in card magic. Scarne's work clearly stands the test of time. Frankly, the book is a steal at the published price. I bought two copies because I knew I'd wear one book out. I did. The book is that useful.