Joke-shops, novelty-stores... are packed with "explosive" and surprise items which have far too long been regarded as "practical jokes", when, in actual fact, they can be used to good advantage by magi and other entertainers.

This book is divided into three main sections..."BANGS"..."FLASHES" and "SURPRISES"! Maybe I have cheated a little in the items I have included in the latter section...but they were all good, and had no other place to go! Now that you have this book, I'm going to watch you pretty closely next time we meet! You might use me as a guinea-pig. Seriously though ...close-up workers will, I know, be particularly pleased with one or two items in particular...because "surprise-gimmicks" for this type of work are rare!