New book: The Vernon Companion

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Leonard Hevia
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Leonard Hevia » December 13th, 2014, 8:59 pm

The Vernon era at the Castle (1960s/70s) was also well documented by the late Ron Wilson in Tales from the Uncanny Scott.

"Dead 22 years and he's still puttin'em out. He's the Tupac of magic."
Pepka

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Andrew Pinard
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Andrew Pinard » December 14th, 2014, 9:19 am

Michael Perovich's The Vernon Companion arrived yesterday (two days earlier than expected) and I took it with me to my performances yesterday to read before while I awaited the opening of the event. I am about a quarter of the way through now and have to say that this is likely going close to the top of my book list of magic books. I'm not going to write a complete review (I haven't finished the book and I don't want to rush through it as I am savoring the experience).

The exterior of the book is designed to emulate The Expert at the Card Table (cloth cover, foil stamped, typeface, ruled box and ornaments). It looks and feels quite charming. The endpapers are rich "marbled" paper and there is a sewn-in ribbon to keep your place.

The title of the book employs a bit of work-play that I didn't perceive on first reading. Now that I've broken the spine and gotten into the book's content, I truly appreciate the title.

The writing is absolutely charming. The short chapters run the gamut detailing stories of Perovich's time immersed in the community formed around The Magic Castle, and specifically his time spent with Vernon. This is not a heavy book of dry facts and numbers, but a series of stories by, of and around Vernon and the Castle and captures the author's excitement and enthusiasm for the characters and culture he experienced. This is not a detailed narrative or history, but a wonderful collection of stories that reveal much of the time and individuals who were drawn to what was becoming a mecca for magic.

The stories are brief (even terse) usually only encompassing two or three pages, but each has a specific perspective and a sense of whimsy that usually carries with it a bit of wisdom to be learned. This lesson is not presented as pedantic ramblings, rather as amusing anecdotes that a thoughtful reader might interpret in a way to better their perspective not only on magic, but also on life. Perovich's choice of stories reveals much about the author without any of the usual grandstanding that oft accompanies this type of work. His writing has created a wonderful magic trick - the vanishing author. I am finding myself repeatedly engaged by this book in way that makes me feel like I am in the room listening to Perovich telling me the stories. He has a warm, unaffected style that really draws you in.

The illustrations (by Colin Fleming) add an additional layer of charm to the book. His style is amusing, and has a cartoon-like style (without be cartoon-y) that adds a contemporary sense of nostalgia to the proceedings.

Looking ahead, the book contains remembrances of other Vernon students (also Castle aficionados) that I look forward to reading as well.

Only 600 of these have been produced and less than 200 remain. I hope that you don't miss the opportunity to add this to your library...

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MManchester
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby MManchester » December 14th, 2014, 10:37 am

Does the book arrive as depicted on the Hermetic press Web site with a plain green cover and gold lettering, or has a dust jacket been added? The reviews are great and they're no doubt proud of the result. But with magic book sales declining you have to make that extra effort to get attention and the cover as shown would represent a missed opportunity. Admittedly not as big an issue with this book that has sold well with a very appealing subject.
Michael Manchester
Literacy magic for library and school performances - http://www.librarylegerdemain.com

Bill Mullins
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Bill Mullins » December 14th, 2014, 11:42 am

No dust jacket.

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erdnasephile
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby erdnasephile » December 14th, 2014, 3:07 pm

MManchester:

Believe me, I love those liquid-coated heavy dustjackets.

However, I love the design of this book.

It's meant to hearken back to EATCT, and a dustjacket would have been out of place, IMHO.

I suspect if you purchase it, you won't be sorry!

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Richard Kaufman
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Richard Kaufman » December 14th, 2014, 3:18 pm

Every publisher makes design choices for each book he publishes. Sometimes books have a dustjacket, and some do not. It's a design choice.
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Bill Mullins
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Bill Mullins » December 14th, 2014, 3:20 pm

It is a very handsome book and would look good on anyone's shelf.

I wonder, though, if the "marbled" endpapers are actually marbled, or if they are only white paper with an offset printed pattern on them. Not that it makes much difference, I'm just curious.

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MManchester
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby MManchester » December 14th, 2014, 4:44 pm

erdnasephile wrote:It's meant to hearken back to EATCT, and a dustjacket would have been out of place, IMHO.


My suggestion that it was a missed opportunity implies a mistake and there's no denying that any book by Hermetic will be a quality publication. Maelstrom and Vortex have two of the most striking covers I have seen of almost any book. They succeed perfectly at evoking the mystery of magic and the performer. I was expecting the same, or perhaps thinking of The Vernon Touch which has that wonderful photograph of the Professor. It would have been better to seek insight into Stephen's choice, and erdnasephile's comment certainly satisfies that need.
Michael Manchester
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Andrew Pinard
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Andrew Pinard » December 14th, 2014, 5:03 pm

Re: the "marbled" endpapers... The "quotes" were intentional. They appear to be printed facsimiles of marbled paper rather than actual marbled paper (which would have been prohibitively expensive). That being said, I want some of the paper to make troublewit with...

I love the simplicity of the design. It is elegant, understated and evocative.

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Andrew Pinard
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Andrew Pinard » December 16th, 2014, 10:50 am

It has been many years since I have sat down and read a magic book from cover to cover in only a few days, but it happened with Michael Perovich's The Vernon Companion. The book arrived Saturday, I started reading Saturday evening and finished the book this morning. I read it in fifty- to sixty-page binges and then finished with a push. I've already written my thoughts on design, organization and writing style, but would like to follow up with comments on the content in the last section of the book.

In addition to the line art illustrations throughout the book (by Colin Fleming), there are eight pages of color photographs (11 images in total) that range from childhood images of Vernon and his brother Charles, to images of Vernon's father and uncle, and then images of Vernon with contemporaries. The selection of images is interesting in that the early ones don't necessarily connect with any particular stories and the latter ones are candid shots that reflect some characters in the stories. It seems to me that I have not seen any of these images before.

Back to the written content. About halfway through the book is a collection of stories and observations from friends of Vernon. Most of these are "related by" in that they are in Perovich's voice, but a few are in the contributor's words. I really enjoy Perovich's writing style and, thankfully, the contributor voices mesh pretty well. There are additional stories "related by" others in other chapters as well and Perovich has done a wonderful job of tying them in where they best fit the discussion at hand.

Looking back, has done a wonderful job of introducing the reader to aspects of Vernon (and early Magic Castle culture) that have not really been articulated in other sources. I admire the thoughtfulness of the approach as it is crafted to engage the reader in such a way that keeps the interest level high. A list of the chapter titles gives an idea of the approach: Introducing the Professor, The Grandfather Stories, Vernon and Company, Commentary, Observations, The Professor Himself, Stories and Observations by his Friends, The Raconteur, and The Urban Legends.

The final sixty-four pages consist of a series of appendices and an index that detail the physical experience of The Magic Castle as it was in the 1970s (I would have loved to see a floor plan and some photographs); an encapsulated history of Vernon described by the decade (this is a remarkably concise, yet thorough overview of Vernon's life); a chapter on "Vernon's World" - those people (patrons, gamblers, magicians, etc.) who influenced him; a glossary of the "Magicians of The Magic Castle circa 1970-1980) who were significant parties in the culture enabled by The Magic Castle (founders and "family"). The book concludes with an Index of Names for easy reference (something we see too little of these days in magic books).

If I had to boil a characterization of this book to one word, I would say, "Lore." The author has provided a wonderful gift to the magic world he has provided a glimpse into the people and culture surrounding Vernon which was enabled by The Magic Castle, its founders and habitués. While not a teaching book, there are many lessons to be learned and for those of us who have never met Vernon and have never been to The Magic Castle, this book is the finest way to experience a time gone by: through the eyes of thoughtful watcher and participant.

I truly enjoyed the ride and it gave me an appreciation for a place and time that have influenced (and will continue to influence) magicians for years to come...

Terry
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Terry » December 17th, 2014, 10:14 pm

Agree with Andrew's assessment of the book.

I found it very engaging and a fun read that caused me to laugh while reading certain stories.

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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Ian Kendall » December 22nd, 2014, 12:10 pm

It's looking less likely that mine will arrive before Thursday :(

I'll have to console myself with Classic Correspondence II...

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Q. Kumber
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Q. Kumber » December 22nd, 2014, 12:32 pm

Mine arrived at the end of last week Ian.
The new John Henry Anderson book arrived today.
With any luck the new Paul Vigil book will be here by Thursday.

Happy Christmas to Me! :)

Leonard Hevia
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Favorite Magician: Dai Vernon, Frank Garcia, Slydini, Houdini,
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Leonard Hevia » December 22nd, 2014, 1:13 pm

I'm slowly savoring this book. It's one of those bedside readers. Some interesting stories and tidbits have made their way through the pages. Vernon's method for opening a new deck of cards was intriguing but never the way I would do it. I use a pocketknife to slice the stamp and always try to leave the cellophane intact on the box. The earflaps always stay on, even though Vernon admonished to tear them off because they were useless and got in the way.

I didn't know that Tony Giorgio could be as mean as Perovich described him, and I wish he had described Giorgio's technique for the correct way to produce an object from behind your knee.

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Richard Kaufman
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Richard Kaufman » December 23rd, 2014, 8:30 pm

Giorgio was a very nice guy, but he took no crap from anyone. If he was mean to someone, they probably deserved it. Despite the fact that he disagreed with Vernon about his thoughts on Expert at the Card Table, Tony was close with both Vernon and Larry Jennings.
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John McDonald
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby John McDonald » January 28th, 2015, 3:48 pm

Glad I got mine. It is pure joy reading this.
Best John

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Andrew Pinard
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Re: New book: The Vernon Companion

Postby Andrew Pinard » January 28th, 2015, 9:06 pm

SO pleased to hear this. I know that all the owners will benefit from reading this book. I hope that there will be a second printing so that more people can dive into Michael's world...


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