It's Monday and you know what that means... Monday Mail Call!
Each Monday (give or take), I use this feature to highlight a few of the things that have made their way in over the past week or so. Packages, purchases, and emails -- oh my!
First up, with pure excitement: Genii's 1000th Issue! It arrived a day or two after the first of the month which is kind of odd, normally it gets here the week prior but hey, no complaints (I wasn't finished with the previous one yet anyways).
The past few issues of Genii have felt like they're a little more ad-packed than usual, though I haven't actually compared older issues to confirm. Just a feeling I'm getting. March's issue though has two main features: When Houdini Comes Back and Me and Jerry's Nugget Cards. I'm not sure which I want to read more, both sound like they're pretty fun =P
Speaking of fun, that brings us to my second package! A little background first, but a few weeks ago I saw one of the coolest "cut to the aces" routines on Instagram. It seemed impossible, but still, there it was. The author credited the book Less is More by Ben Earl and after a little research, it was added to my collection! I tried to find that post but sadly it's lost in the ether.
I dove into the book as soon as I received it, spending a few hours that night reading through. I'm about half-way into the book already, helped by the fact that it's formatted to read front-to-back. I have a few first impressions about the content that are rather mixed. On one hand, the routines are great. On the other, Ben's coming off a little extra smug in his words. This book will definitely deserve a proper review once I'm through it though, so check back in the future for that!
Last, but not least, the March edition of The Hermit Magic Magazine! This e-zine launched this year and is delivered straight to my inbox. Personally, I'm not a fan of eBooks. I very much prefer the physical, but I understand that sometimes it's easier and more cost-efficient to go the electronic route. I don't have a tablet either, so I have to read these on the computer as the content's way too small to read on a phone. From my experience so far, it's actually better to read on the computer anyways.
This magazine's packed with quality content so far, and tons of references (which being on the computer lets me easily open up additional tabs). I haven't had the time to scroll through any of the March issue yet, which is a consequence of having "too much to read," but I'll get to it in time. I was planning to do a review of each issue, but I think that since it's a new magazine I'll do a kind of "up-to-now" overview to see if it's reaching its potential.
You may have noticed, but I didn't receive any decks last week! I feel the void, but I do think one or two are on their way -- both from subscriptions, and from Kickstarter campaigns. I don't have any tracking info so who knows when they'll arrive but, in the meantime, I have plenty to read to keep me busy =]
Stay tuned for the next iteration of Monday Mail Call, there's a lot more to come!
Oh also, if you'd like to offer suggestions for books, tricks, decks or if you have questions about magic (performing, routines, sleights, etc.), just reach out here.