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21. Houdini: A Pictorial Life by Milbourne Christopher | |
Hardcover: 218
Pages
(1976-10)
list price: US$52.00 Isbn: 0690011520 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
22. The Secrets of Houdini by J.C. Cannell | |
Hardcover: 279
Pages
(1989-08-02)
list price: US$6.99 -- used & new: US$20.74 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0517676745 Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Customer Reviews (5)
Great for a fan!
The Secrets of Houdini
Another one for the bookshelf
The best book about "how he did it". Not so about himself. This is a very no-nonsense book, with only two minor negative aspects. First of all, it is somewhat light on the explanations of several tricks in the ending chapter, which is devoted to general (non Houdini-specific) stage magic, and I suppose dead wrong in a couple of instances. And no, the Chinese Torture Water Cell is not described. But that Tony Curtis movie was very incorrect about it anyhow.
What more could you ask for? There are chapters on Houdini's life, details of ALL his famous escapes (except the water torture cell), chapters on tricks/rope ties youyourself could do, and chapters on his fight against fraudulentmediums. Touroughly interesting andwell written, great for all ages. ... Read more |
23. The Man Who Killed Houdini by Don Bell | |
Paperback: 260
Pages
(2005-09-28)
list price: US$17.95 -- used & new: US$10.87 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 1550651870 Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Editorial Review Book Description Customer Reviews (4)
Lots of legwork, little result
ok book but wrong
A MUST for the serious Houdini scholar
A personal look into the past. |
24. Houdini's Escapes and Magic: Prepared from Houdini's Private Notebooks and Memoranda With the Assistance of Beatrice Houdini, Widow of Houdini, and B by Walter Brown Gibson | |
Hardcover: 316
Pages
(1976-01)
list price: US$13.00 Isbn: 0308102207 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
25. The Original Houdini Scrapbook by Walter Brown Gibson | |
School & Library Binding: 234
Pages
(1976-07-01)
list price: US$11.69 Isbn: 0806980494 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
26. The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero by William Kalush, Larry Sloman | |
Paperback: 608
Pages
(2007-10-02)
list price: US$16.00 -- used & new: US$9.00 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0743272080 Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Editorial Review Book Description The Secret Life of Houdini traces the arc of the master magician's life from desperate poverty to worldwide fame -- his legacy later threatened by a group of fanatical Spiritualists led by esteemed British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Initiating the reader along the way into the arcane world of professional magic, Kalush and Sloman decode a life based on deception, providing an intimate and riveting portrayal of Houdini, the man and the legend. Customer Reviews (40)
three faults in a good book
Decent
The Handcuff King
A terribly written biography
Marvelous biography of the great magician, escape artist, entertainer and...spy? |
27. Houdini!!!: The Career of Ehrich Weiss by Kenneth Silverman | |
Paperback: 544
Pages
(1997-10)
list price: US$18.00 Isbn: 006092862X Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Editorial Review Amazon.com Customer Reviews (11)
conflict of interest
Houdini Escapes!!!
Informative - Yes.But, boring Of course, I knew then that my father never reads books, and my hopes that he would break that pattern and read this one were lost.So, I took it home and read it. Er, read most of it. I enjoyed the historical aspects of the story, but I couldn't get past the fact that the manner in which the book is written was less than enthralling. I just couldn't stay interested! I wanted to, I wanted to!! If you're interested in learning about Houdini, I'd find something smaller to being your foray - like a three-fold brochure or something. Houdini ROCKED! This book doesn't.
Revisiting a Childhood Hero However, this book actually managed to surprise me. First of all, most of what I read from the ages of seven to fifteen were biographies written in the "Boy's Life" mode, heroic tales which read more like dime novels than actual biography. Not only does Silverman present an accurate, well-researched account of Houdini's life, he also accounts for many of the myths surrouding Houdini, even in some cases explaining how Houdini himself contributed to some of the confusion. Because the book is so even-handed, I walked away from the book still admiring my childhood hero. Second, Silverman brings a magician's perspective to this biography. He describes at length the presentation and details of the effects that Houdini accomplished, such as the Metamorphoses, the Milk Can Escape, the Chinese Water Torture, and numerous jail and handcuff escapes. However, he does not "give away the store" by spilling the secrets to the man's life. Sure, some of Houdini's secrets are now known, others not, but Silverman refrains from writing a kiss-and-tell book, and I had to admire that. Lastly, Silverman went a lot further than I've ever seen in describing both the man and his times. While I've known for years that Houdini lived in a very exciting time, Silverman portrays him as truly a man for his age. From Houdini's interactions with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Theodore Roosevelt, H.P. Lovecraft, Sarah Bernhardt, and Hollwood's silent film stars, to his involvement with aviation, spiritualism, movie making, and more, Silverman makes a case that Houdini brought together much of what first made the modern age modern. Houdini!!! did not perpetuate the same tall tales that all the movies and Houdini himself put forwrd. Instead, this biography exposed Houdini for what he was--a physically accomplished, master showman, sometimes ego-driven, yet principled man who always struggled to accomplish more. Given the wide array of misinformation that exists about Harry Houdini, this book outshines the rest. Quite enjoyable.
the Index of all Biographies for Houdini |
28. Houdini Houdini (Cleveland State University//C S U Poetry Series) by Lynn Luria-Sukenick | |
Paperback: 55
Pages
(1981-11)
list price: US$4.50 -- used & new: US$4.50 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0914946293 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
29. The Secret of the Great Houdini by Robert Burleigh | |
Hardcover: 40
Pages
(2002-07-01)
list price: US$16.95 -- used & new: US$1.86 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0689832672 Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Editorial Review Book Description I am one whom nothing can contain. I free myself. Do you believe me now? At last? A master of deception, Harry Houdini spent his life entertaining audiences with his own particular blend of illusion and magic. Whether he was escaping from locked trunks submerged in the water or dangling by his feet from the tops of skyscrapers, Houdini always tested the boundaries of the body, the forces of nature, and the imagination. In The Secret of the Great Houdini, Houdini must once again escape from a seemingly impossible bind. In the astonished crowd, a little boy finds himself mesmerized by the powers of freedom and human will that Houdini represented in his life. He discovers that Houdini's secret goes far beyond his illusions, to something all people can attain -- if only they believe they can. Customer Reviews (4)
4 1/2* "Kavalier and Clay" for the Young Set
A great book!
A great book!
Magical and mysterious |
30. Houdini: A Musical by Muriel Rukeyser, David Spangler | |
Paperback: 150
Pages
(2002-10)
list price: US$14.95 -- used & new: US$4.99 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 1930464053 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Editorial Review Book Description This previously unpublished work presents the spectacular life of world-renowned escape artist, Harry Houdini. Part biography part fantasy, Houdini unlocks Rukeyser's worlds of illusion and reality as she leads us from Houdini's childhood in Appleton, Wisconsin (picking up pins with his eyelids) to his acts under water and onstage. We meet his wife Bess, his mother, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the poet's own Marco Bone, vehicle of voices, spirits, and songs. Rukeyser presents Houdini's shocking congressional testimony against spiritual mediums. She shows his great feats of escape, his complex relationships with his mother and his wife, and his ironic, untimely death. In addition to revealing the story of this country's tantalizing icon, Houdini offers a new understanding of Rukeyser's own work and life. Written at the height of the women's movement, the musical gives us Rukeyser's most famous lines, spoken by Houdini's wife Bess: "What would happen if one woman told the truth about her life? The world would split open." Houdini's response, "It has. Now I am going after it-all pieces." With subtexts of desire, race, grief, and love, Houdini presents Rukeyser's gorgeous, reaching language and her brilliant observations of the human psyche. The musical will appeal to young bell-bottomed readers as well as Houdini devotees, poetry fans, drama people, and escape artists everywhere. A recipient of an NEA, Houdini joins the Rukeyser resurgence that is well underway-with the Paris Press publications of The Life of Poetry and The Orgy, and the University of Pittsburgh's 2002 reissue of The Collected Poems. Muriel Rukeyser (1913âÂÂ1980) published fifteen collections of poetry, translations, children's books, and several works of nonfiction. Her "toys of fame" include the Yale Younger Poets Award, the Copernicus Award and the Shelley Memorial Award. She served as president of P.E.N. American Center from 1975 to 1976. About Muriel Rukeyser, Kenneth Rexroth said, "If any American poet deserved the Nobel Prize it was she." Also available by Muriel Rukeyser |
31. Death and the Magician: The Mystery of Houdini by Raymund Fitzsimons | |
Hardcover: 194
Pages
(1981-03)
list price: US$44.50 Isbn: 0689111223 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
32. Houdini's Last Trick by Elizabeth Hass | |
Paperback: 96
Pages
(1995-04-25)
list price: US$4.50 -- used & new: US$3.99 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0679850872 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
33. Houdini (Great Mysteries) by Laura Alden | |
Paperback:
Pages
(1989-09)
list price: US$6.95 Isbn: 0516462172 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
34. Houdini: His Legend and His Magic by Doug Henning, Charles R. Reynolds | |
Hardcover: 190
Pages
(1977-12)
list price: US$15.55 Isbn: 0812906861 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
35. Houdini: Master of Illusion by Clinton Cox | |
Hardcover: 194
Pages
(2001-11)
list price: US$16.95 -- used & new: US$5.93 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0590949608 Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Editorial Review Book Description Customer Reviews (12)
A Wonderful Book
Houdini: Master of Illsusion
houdini
Great Book!
This book shocked me |
36. Running Out of Magic With Houdini (Capers) by Elizabeth Levy | |
Library Binding: 121
Pages
(1981-10)
list price: US$4.99 Isbn: 0394946855 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
37. The Great Houdini by Anne Edwards | |
Library Binding:
Pages
(1976-12)
list price: US$5.99 Isbn: 0399610200 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
38. Escape!: The Story of the Great Houdini by Sid Fleischman | |
Hardcover: 224
Pages
(2006-08-01)
list price: US$18.99 -- used & new: US$14.81 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: B0013L4DBC Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Customer Reviews (12)
Escape!: The Story of the Great Houdini
Escape:The Story of the Great Houdini
Okay
For Magicians Of All Ages!
A 2007 Association of Jewish Libraries Notable Book for Older Readers |
39. Nevermore by William Hjortsberg | |
Paperback: 308
Pages
(1996-01)
list price: US$5.99 -- used & new: US$4.81 (price subject to change: see help) Asin: 0312956959 Average Customer Review: Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
Customer Reviews (11)
Totally unrewarding
Houdini & Conan Doyle meet Poe
I Liked It
Busy and not very flattering for Houdini If the story sounds busy, that's because itis.The various threads seem to coexist without mingling for quite sometime.In fact, the serial killer all but disappears for a substantialportion of the second half of the novel.With the standard suspense aspectthusly diminished, the novel becomes more of a combination of a periodpiece and an exploration into the two men's obsession with supernaturalphenomena.The historical aspect of the mystery often works well, thoughHjortsberg does seem to revel a bit much in the minutiae of the period,from cigarette brands to characters.The supernatural aspect does notwork, as Houdini is clearly the loser; there is never really any doubt butthat spirits exist and influence the world.Also, it should be noted thatHoudini's character, while heroic, is also decidedly unflattering,especially in his dealings with Isis. "Nevermore" begins with agreat deal of promise but ultimately fails to fulfill that promise as thethreads never mesh entirely satisfactorily.While Hjortsberg writes wellfor the most part, he never truly unites the several threads, and a few ofthem are left dangling.
Slow |
40. The Great Escaper by David Warren, Annabel Large | |
School & Library Binding: 31
Pages
(1979-06)
list price: US$14.25 Isbn: 0839301529 Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France | Japan | |
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