Alright does anybody have this? If so how hard is the stuff in it? I would imagine it to be pretty difficult. But I don't have it
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Expert at the Card Table
- Thread starter Gnarlycardz
- Start date
Expert at the Card Table is an amazing book and should be in everyone's libraries. It does not teach a lot of actual tricks, but many sleights are taught. They range from easy to S.W.E Shift (basically near impossible). Still, if you have the patience to practice and to work your way through it, it is a godsend. there's a reason why it's called the Erdnase bible, ya know 
This is the kind of book that you probably won't fully understand the first time you read it. Not only because it was published in 1902, and therefore containing occasionally archaic language, but because there is so much finesse and subtlety packed into the descriptions of each technique. Sometimes, when studying one move from the book, the description will provide an extra clue as to the execution of another sleight. This is a book that should be your constant companion, to be read and reread over and over again.
Erdnase starts you off apparently fairly slowly and easily, with some overhand shuffle technique, but even there, he includes gems of insight and elegance that it is very easy to gloss over on first reading. He takes you all the way to shifts that will seem impossible when you first try to tackle them. My recommendation, therefore, is to not study Erdnase exclusively, expecting to master it all before you move onto something else. Familiarise yourself with the text, and the mechanics of the moves, and then return to them every now and then to polish and smooth the rough corners, gradually adding the finesse that he describes, and making new discoveries on the way.
So, to answer your question more directly. Yes, it's pretty hard, but properly studied it will improve all your magic.
Erdnase starts you off apparently fairly slowly and easily, with some overhand shuffle technique, but even there, he includes gems of insight and elegance that it is very easy to gloss over on first reading. He takes you all the way to shifts that will seem impossible when you first try to tackle them. My recommendation, therefore, is to not study Erdnase exclusively, expecting to master it all before you move onto something else. Familiarise yourself with the text, and the mechanics of the moves, and then return to them every now and then to polish and smooth the rough corners, gradually adding the finesse that he describes, and making new discoveries on the way.
So, to answer your question more directly. Yes, it's pretty hard, but properly studied it will improve all your magic.
This is so true. Expert at the Card Table was the first book I really tore apart. I actually have three copies of it, and each one has its own beating of scribbles, footnotes, highlighting, page foldings, etc. Every sleight and effect in the book requires a lot of attention. I honestly wouldn't recommend it to someone who is very new to card magic or gambling demonstrations. It's more of a graduate's course. However, with the proper dedication, I think it should be kept at every cardman's side and studied very often. Bill Kalush recently released a pocket-bible sized edition of the book, and I hear good things about it.
The copies I own are of the same Dover paperback variety found in most mainstream bookstores.
RS.
Yeah, I've got a few copies, including the pocket edition. The only problem with that one is that it's got gilt-edged pages, and it looks so nice I don't really want to carry it round in my pocket and let it get all beaten up...I might have to get a couple of backup copies. My view on recommending it to beginners is that it's never to early to start investigating it, as long as you accept that you won't get it all until you've grown some more in the art of magic.
Go ahead and buy it. It's only around $10 new, $5 used. Even if you don't like it, you're only out ten bucks and you can look up references that people make online.
If you do like it, it will do complete wonders for your magic life AND life outside magic. That may sound a little religous, but after reading this, hopefully you could agree.
I always felt like describing Erdnase was a little like describing a sunset to a blind man. There is just no substitute for discovering it yourself. Erdnase jump-started many of the trends that are still visible in modern card magic. In some ways they are easier to understand in Erdnase because he needed to spell them out explicitly. For example, his thoughts on controlling selections (shuffle controls, palming directly from the middle of the deck) are excellent case studies in looking at the common way that something is done, analyzing its flaws, and working towards something better.
I think that Erdnase is a wonderful book for beginners. I'm not talking about the difficulty of the material. Some of it is very easy (although it still requires practice to do well), and some of it is challenging, but all of it is explained from square one. The book assumes no prior knowledge on the part of the reader. Erdnase tells you everything that you need to know in order to execute the maneuvers described. There aren't very many other books about which I can say such a thing.
If you do like it, it will do complete wonders for your magic life AND life outside magic. That may sound a little religous, but after reading this, hopefully you could agree.
I always felt like describing Erdnase was a little like describing a sunset to a blind man. There is just no substitute for discovering it yourself. Erdnase jump-started many of the trends that are still visible in modern card magic. In some ways they are easier to understand in Erdnase because he needed to spell them out explicitly. For example, his thoughts on controlling selections (shuffle controls, palming directly from the middle of the deck) are excellent case studies in looking at the common way that something is done, analyzing its flaws, and working towards something better.
I think that Erdnase is a wonderful book for beginners. I'm not talking about the difficulty of the material. Some of it is very easy (although it still requires practice to do well), and some of it is challenging, but all of it is explained from square one. The book assumes no prior knowledge on the part of the reader. Erdnase tells you everything that you need to know in order to execute the maneuvers described. There aren't very many other books about which I can say such a thing.
Go to Erdnase.com. It's a site made by dan and dave buck devoted to "expert". Free PDF is available there as well.
Cheers!
Cheers!
