Rating: 
Summary: surely an illusion
Review: I think one of Blaine's greatest illusions is that this book is worth reading. I'm a big fan and was really disappointed. Did I expect to learn all the secrets of magic or how he does his illusions/tricks, no. But neither did I expect a magic history lesson, nor a biography on Houdini. When you break it all down, there is really only about 30% of the book actually pertains to his life, and what you get out of that is he loves and misses his mother, he jagged around in France for a while practicing magic, he's got some oddball friends (duh, they're magicians), network TV paid him a bunch of money to visit exotic places to film and, he planned well and trained hard of his NY stunts. I know all this, I thought I was getting about book about him, not how wonderful he thinks he is. Sit in the bookstore, read the middle couple chapters about him and save yourself the money.
Rating: 
Summary: WOW!
Review: I'm a fan of David Blaine and picked this up at the Library. I started reading after dinner and finished the book at 11 p.m. I just couldn't stop reading -- was totally mezmerized! For those who have studied magic or are more familiar with famous magicians, perhaps this book covers old ground. But for someone like me who enjoys Blaine's magical stunts and personality but who didn't know much about the old-time magicians in the book, it was totally fascinating! The photos, illustrations, and artwork on the pages also help to make it an interesting read. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: I'm a fan of David Blaine and picked this up at the Library. I started reading after dinner and finished the book at 11 p.m. I just couldn't stop reading -- was totally mezmerized! For those who have studied magic or are more familiar with famous magicians, perhaps this book covers old ground. But for someone like me who enjoys Blaine's magical stunts and personality but who didn't know much about the old-time magicians in the book, it was totally fascinating! The photos, illustrations, and artwork on the pages also help to make it an interesting read. Highly recommended!
Rating: 
Summary: Good book for David Blaine fans
Review: If you're a David Blaine fan, chances are that you will enjoy this book. It's basically a mix between autobiography, magic history, and how to do some simple magic.
The autobiographical parts are probably the most interesting. I always find it fascinating to see how famous artists got their start. In Blaine's case, it seems to be a mixture of a lot of practice and patience and some luck. Besides how he got his start, Blaine gives some background to his TV specials. I found these parts interesting but not particularly modest. This man obviously thinks a lot of himself, which is not necessarily bad for an artist. Magicians are notorious self-promoters.
The magic history in the book is interesting, but won't be new if you've studies this before. I did like his chapter on Houdini, who Blaine obviously sees as a major influence.
The magic tricks in the book are hit or miss. There are a couple of good card effects and some decent tricks to play on people. One effect is good but illegal (it involves stealing). Blaine says not to actually try the effect, but I guarantee you somebody out there isn't going to listen.
Other than that the book has a lot of pictures. I thought this was a nice touch because it gives the book personality. However, there were two photos I objected to. One is a picture of Blaine standing on a rooftop with the burning Twin Towers in the background on Sept. 11. Given the seriousness of that event, I thought it was in poor taste to view it as a photo opportunity. There are a million pictures of the Twin Towers on fire. We don't need another one with Blaine in it. The other picture is one of a naked David Blaine with some stuff painted on his arm. He's in a position where you can't see anything "private", but frankly I found it more silly than artistic. I think sometimes Blaine takes himself too seriously.
All in all I enjoyed the book. As I said before, if you're a fan go ahead and buy it. There's also the matter of the $100,000 'treasure' that the book supposedly helps you to find. I haven't found any clues yet, so all I can tell you now is that it ain't gonna be easy. We'll see how that turns out.
Rating:
Summary: I believe in magic.
Review: If you're expecting David to talk about the secrets of his more famous tricks, this is probably not the book you want to read. It's more about the history of magic and the people behind it, how his career started, a few card tricks, his experiences with his last three stunts, and some of his personal moments. The way the chapters are written, they blend so seamlessly that you don't even notice how smooth it is. It was a thoroughly enjoyable read because I'm easily fascinated by magic and in David. People think he's weird and I can understand why but I believe that makes him more interesting in an unconventional way. Isn't that gravitation to another individual worth looking into? Sidenote: There is a 9/11 picture in there that David included (with him in it) that actually surprised me and I can understand the distasteful aspect of it being featured, but David has always been one of those people that looks on things like this in a very reflective manner (and he does talk about his experience) and he's slightly more ballsy than others [to dismiss the fact that it happened].
Rating:
Summary: blaine's greatest illusion ....
Review: is to get people to buy this book. I'm a huge fan of his and was really looking forward to something meaningful and interesting. Did I expect the secrets of his illusions revealed? No. But what I didn't expect was a history of magic (which was boring), a Houdini biography (which someone else, has probably done better), nor a bunch of self-congratulatory chapters. All one really gets out of this as far as his life is concerned, is that he really loved and still misses his mother. I already knew that he jagged around in Europe and practiced magic, had a bunch of oddball friends (duh, they are magicians after all), he planned and trained really hard for his stunts, and network TV paid him bunch of money to go to exotic places to do magic and witness different cultures. I recommend spending 20 minutes in a bookstore, reading the couple of chapters that have any relevance, and letting someone else buy it.
Rating:
Summary: and pooooooffff, blaine appears
Review: Like millions of others, I have witnessed David Blaine's many television appearances and enjoyed them. Always impressive as he wanders the streets of major cities (and at least on trip to the backwater south american jungles) performing his magic for all who care to observe, Blaine impresses here as well. In his first book, the first of many no doubt, he is good....really good.
The book is part history of magic...yes. But the most impressive information in the book is about Blaine himself - and his magic. The book is easy to read because it flows smoothly from one topic to the other. Photographically powerful, the book uses the photos to support the text.
Get the book and read it. If you don't want to buy the book, at least go to your public library and check it out.
Rating:
Summary: Great Introduction For People Who Don't Know Blaine's Magic
Review: Okay, I admit it; I have a weak spot for the kind of magic that Blaine does. I watch all of his specials with guilty pleasure and unfailing awe. The best thing about Blaine's magic is that he convinces you that his magic is not about deception, but about manipulation of human will. The line that separates 'magic' and will/spirituality becomes blurred when he does his shows, and that's why he is one of the most compelling magicians in the history of magic.The book captures much of this. The background information on history of magic, etc. might seem trivial and boring to people who just want to find out about Blaine, but Blaine himself is a dedicated student of magic and values the history behind the craft he practices. The pictures are very good, although, like one other reviewer said, I found the Twin Towers picture a bit gratuitous. All in all, this is a very good book, but after finishing it, I felt like I was fed a piece of a David Blaine promotion by some publicity machine. I wanted more insight and telling biographical details. Blaine is a fascinating public persona and deserves a more probing and in-depth treatment. But for the fans, this book will be a pleasant enough read, and for those that don't know of him too much, the book will be an eye-opener.
Rating:
Summary: on the road to history
Review: other than the brevity of the book, I believe that this is an important first edition of a book to own. Blaine is a performer unlike we have ever known. The old copies of books by houdini are priceless as this will one day surely be. The images are strong and there are great ideas to provoke creativity. I enjoyed his quotes as well. His take on magic inspires me in what I do. All in all I really enjoyed this book.
Rating:
Summary: This is a good book
Review: Overall I enjoyed this book. I think any fan will like it. I think even people who aren't fans would find this book pretty interesting. My only complaints are that I didn't really like all the biographical info on Houdini, PT Barnum and others. I wanted to know more about Blaine etc. A LOT of this book is not devoted to David Blaine and that is a bit frustrating at times. I liked the tricks he included and like I said, overall, it was pretty good. I'm a big David Blaine fan and I think I just wanted a bit more insight into him.
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