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Joe Diamond: Journal of Alchemy Review
One book, 51 pages, 6 effects, a couple of essay and $10 bucks. Is it gem or is it rubble? Stay tuned to find out.
Disclaimer
Joe and I have been friends since we met on Jay Sankey's Underground Jam filming in November of 2005. He was a clever, yet still wet behind the ears, young (17 years old) magician. He had a lot of smart ideas. One of them, Point of View is found in this book. Not only do I know Joe D. (a.k.a., Jody) but I read this book in rough draft form a while back and gave feedback regarding grammar, spelling, punctuation, typos, etc.
I tell you all this up front so you have full disclosure. Having said all that, none of that affects my opinion of the quality of the book, and its possible worth — I work very hard to not be biased, and hopefully this review is no exception. Also, know that I have no financial stake in this book whatsoever.
Effect/Method
This is a simple, yet powerful, book of six effects. All of which are in keeping with the sub title: Turning Old Gems into Professional Gold. The goal of this book was to share with the community these effects that Joe has used for many years in his actual working repertoire. The effects all have one main thing in common: they are classic effects in magic that can be found in the classic books — Point of View is the only exception.
These classics are effects that Joe has added his own spin and/or combined it with other principles to create a piece of magic that is very motivated, makes sense, has a workable and simple method, and has serious connect-with-your-audience potential.
The theme of the book is journal entries. It's about keeping track of ideas as they come to you, and reading your journals to continue to find inspiration. All of these effects came from journal entries and notes over the years. There are a a couple of "essays" and "discussions" throughout the book that give good pointers and ideas about keeping a journal and how to use it, and what to write in it. I found several really good ideas in these sections, one of which, I've already implemented.
As far at the effects go, it's really about the presentations that you're getting rather than the actual "trick." You can certainly use Joe's presentations, but I think the bigger lesson is to learn from how he made these effects his own. Every presentation that you'll learn is one that I would describe as "clever" and "smart" and "engaging." So know that as I briefly mention each effect. You can insert those words liberally throughout the descriptions to follow.
First is an offering that adds a (here's where you could insert "clever") script and theme to Doc Daley's Last Trick. It's really (here's where you could insert "smart") and (here's where you could say "engaging") . . . that ends with a physical and metaphorical gift. It's a feel good piece but not the yucky sentimentality kind of feel good piece.
Next is a combination of props and ideas found in Tarbell for a card to impossible location that leaves the spectator with a good luck charm. Following that is Half Twins which is a coupling of a Sankey idea and a Karl Fulves effect (Gemini Twins). What you end up with is the best of both worlds, and a much better piece from a presentational standpoint. This effects is nearly self-working and very easy to perform, and seems totally impossible.
Joe's effect Point of View is an effect that is all about perception and reality. It's a simple effect that has one or two of those "weird" moments in magic. Again, simplicity for the method.
Lastly, the effects wrap up with two different presentations for the Haunted Key effect. One with a Houdini-based them, and another with a Dicken's Scrooge theme. Both of which have an extra added something that makes this a full routine rather than simply, "hey watch this key move." You'll also get some excellent tips on handling the key for the effect which I found very valuable.
The book finishes up with a few more paragraphs about journaling and some parting thoughts from Joe with a fun little moment found in the very last line of the book that brought it all full circle and gave me a warm fuzzy all over. Don't spoil it by reading ahead. It only works if you read the whole book.
Ad Copy Integrity
The ad copy is a simple statement of the effects. It is 100% accurate.
Product Quality
The book is well written; the explanations are very clear and easy to follow. There are just the right amount of pictures, and with each effect, there's a brief intro and a brief afterthoughts section that gives more value to the overall piece. When I read it in its early draft, I was very impressed with the clarity of the writing. A lot of e-books are basically just a Word Doc saved out as a PDF with no thought to format, fonts, layout, etc. This one, however, clearly had a lot of attention paid to it. A+ on product quality.
Final Thoughts
As I mentioned, I know Jody, so that makes it hard for me to give the rating I'm going to give. I'm giving it 5 stars, but due to the fact that we know each other, my rating may appear biased. I assure you that it is not, but you'll just have to take my word for it. For $10 bucks, it's worth the risk to test me.
Final Verdict:
5 Stars with a Stone Status of GEM!
Available at Vanishing Inc. Magic
21 Comments
OK. You’ve sold me.
One of the things which will always get my attention, is when someone goes back to the classics and digs out new works. Those “old” mines have not run out of pure ore yet. The smart ones bring out new gold – that is, they find their own ways of presenting the classics.
And that’s what you’ve described here. Ergo, I go find it, then I go read it. With luck (and a Dexterity of 3) I’ll even perform some of it. But to do them justice – and the classics from which Joe mined – they’re gonna look really different when I get through with ’em.
Don’t forget to remind me to remember to not forget to plug this in strange and diverse places.
@Chet – You go girl!
All my girls grew up, left home, and got married. Now I can’t go anywhere.
@Chet – I challenge you to go an entire day without making a single pun!
I did that once, Jefferoni. And then I learned to talk.
@Chet – Now That . . . I believe.
Nice review. I’ve been friends with Joe for a long time and I too know that this is material he has tested and uses everyday. No apologies needed for all the praise heaped on our mutual friend, it is well deserved.
@Brian – Thanks for the comment. Agreed. He’s a worker for sure.
Like the sound of the Scrooge patter for haunted key
But how simple are the other effects?
Rob, the most complicated move in the book is the Mercury Card Fold. One effect is moveless, and one effect has only a double lift in it. I don’t teach the moves in great detail, but I give resources of where to learn them if you don’t already don’t know how to do a glide or double lift. I pride myself in getting simple effects to perform and for the audience to understand.
@Joe – Thanks for swinging by brother. I was very impressed at how easy everything is, yet it’s still very powerful in potential impact.
@Rob – Thanks for the comment. Everything is very simple to do, if that’s what you’re asking. All of the methods are practical and doable. The hardest thing in the book is a Mercury Card Fold.
The other effects are just about as simple as Haunted Key. And now that I think of it, the patter is (IIRC) Marley’s, not Scrooge’s.
Let’s put it this way: the effects are so simple, that I can do them.
@Chet – Thanks for that correction. It is Marley. I generally refer to the book, A Christmas Carol as “Scrooge.”
That would be a musical. A very good musical, in fact.
thanks for the feed-back – nice to know those moves are comfortably within my skill set
Firstly, thank you (again) Jeff for a clear, honest review that directed me to this “magical” value that I might otherwise have overlooked.
That said, I would like to toss in a couple thoughts…
The contents are more like five effects with six presentations. And, just about anyone of them is worth the price of the book to anyone who performs magic regularly.
As to the level of difficulty, as others have said there is almost no manipulation. However, a lot of the entertainment value comes from personality and presenttion. Not everyone can pull that off and needs to rely on passes, back palms, split fans, and all the other things I can’t do.
As for the general lack of slights… I have a running gag with another magician who frequently lectures when he’s not working conventions. I’ve been to his lectures several tiims and there is one effect that always draws gasps when he demos it. The explaination begins, “this effect usees two double lifts…” and we both smile slightly as everyone quite visibly stops listening until he moves on to the next trick. Thing is, we both know through using it that it is a mind numbingly effective trick for laymen. Just from my reading the same will be true for just about everything in the JoA. (I’m skeptical of Point of View and will still give it a try.)
Bob, I, too, was very happy to learn of Diamond’s amazingly reasonably priced Journal of Alchemy. And as I have shared with Jeff before, I am thrilled to have his reviews to draw on, since they routinely provide far more reliable information on magic I care about than any other single source.
But I was also very intrigued by your friend’s gasp-creating trick that you mention that uses two double lifts, since like many that visit this site, I have zero qualms about the lifts involved, especially when it gets the kind of reactions you mention. Is there any chance you might share more about where we might find the notes in question?
Thank you very much, Bob–and as always, thank you, Jeff!
Eric
After all the reviews I’ve read of yours, Jeff, I would not doubt that you’d give an honest review of this. This does sound like professional gold, and for $10 and six tricks, it’s a win-win deal!
Eric,
OK, you wore me down. It’s Paul Green’s “The Odds Are With Me”. It’s in his lecture notes and again on his Classic Force DVD.
Bob
Wow, Bob–thanks a million! Crazily, I actually think I have those notes around here somewhere (some things have never quite resurfaced yet since our last move), so I should have noticed the trick myself. It’s thanks to people like me that things get “buried in print.”
Thanks again for your super fast and helpful response!
Eric