The Aretalogy of Vanni Bossi – Complied by Stephen Minch

There are very few magic books I found that are a pleasure to look at, touch and read. Many are great in one aspect or another but very few hit the mark in all three categories. “The Aretalogy of Vanni Bossi” is one of those books that ticks the boxes in all categories.

The book is hard covered and beautifully crafted with brown cloth covers and a darker brown shaped leather spine with gold type. The pages are beige and the stock is slightly heavier than normal page stock. The edges are not cut even so there is a sensation of handling something that has ancient wisdom within it. Up until I got this book, I had no idea who Vanni Bossi was. Not one to thrust himself in the limelight, Bossi was an Italian magician who had the respect of many of the greats of magic, not just for his skill and creativity but for his extensive knowledge of magic history.

The information in this book was gleaned from numerous sources. Vanni himself never kept complete records of all his magical creations. Not only was he innovative when he developed his routines but he was an inventor as well. Unfortunately, the inventions are not included in the book because recreating them would not only be costly but near impossible since many of the materials used are not available anymore. However, amongst the 206 pages is a collection of 56 original tricks, routines and slights. In addition, there are over 400 drawings clearly illustrating the most important information.

The simplicity and cleverness of his magic are quite apparent when you read the first trick in the book called “La Belle Captive”… or Card in Glass. His method for getting a chosen card into an empty drinking class is brilliant in its simplicity. The second trick offered is “Framing the Sandman”… a torn corner from a card that ends up in a frame which was on the lap of a spectator the whole time. There is no expensive prop used, just simple and justified handling of a cheap photo frame from an Arts and Crafts store. The first few pages are only an indication of the great magic that is within these cocoa colored covers. If you are looking for an easy but great read, I highly recommend this book.

To watch a trailer about this book click here:
http://www.penguinmagic.com/p/7619