"Reading Colm Mulcahy’s book on mathematical card tricks
is a lot of fun. It's clever, instructive, and clear. Learn
some tricks. Learn some math. Impress your friends."
— John Allen Paulos, mathematician, author of
Innumeracy, A Mathematician Reads the
Newspaper, and other books.
"Mathematical Card Magic
is filled with many original ideas that will
keep mathematicians and magicians busy for a very
long time."
— Arthur Benjamin, Harvey Mudd
College, and author of Secrets of Mental Math:
The Mathemagician's Guide to Lightning
Calculation and Amazing Math Tricks
"Colm Mulcahy has produced a stimulating collection
of novel card magic tricks that not only form a wonderful
introduction to important ideas in combinatorics but
also contain some very nifty magic effects as well.
By reading this book, the reader will be well rewarded
in both disciplines."
— Ronald Graham,
University of California, San Diego, and co-author
of Magical Mathematics
"In the early 1900s there began a new blossoming of mathematical
magic, via such brilliant inventors as Charles T. Jordan, Stewart
James, Robert Hummer and Martin Gardner. You'll meet the
above-mentioned people, plus many other worthwhile thinkers,
in the book that you are about to read. Colm Mulcahy has joined
those ranks. His bi-monthly Card Colm has appeared on
the website of the Mathematical Association of America since
2004 … If you have been a Card Colm reader, you already
know the quality of his imaginative output. You will find much
of the best material from that column here in this collection,
revised and improved. You will also encounter a wide variety of
previously unreleased material, with some lovely surprises."
— From the Foreword by Max Maven, Magician and Mentalist
"… fantastic [book]! There are so many principles
and ideas in it that it is one of those rare books that
I will continually look through, study, and use as a
reference for as long as I do card magic (which means
the rest of my life)."
— Mark Setteducati
"Colm has invented many important and practical
mathematical principles and tailor-made them for card
magic. He ’ s a skilled teacher and creator, and
with his book in hand you ’ ll be able to construct
lots of new effects. A must for your magic library."
— Lennart Green, 1991 World Champion in
Card Magic, Sweden
"Printed on glossy paper with many colour illustrations,
it is not only fun, but also a pleasure to read. The
apprentice magician will have a lot to practice on but even
the professional magician will find many things to think
about while mastering this wonderful calculus of the card deck."
— A. Bultheel, KU Leuven, The European Mathematical Society
"Successfully combines two of my great loves – math and magic –
in a way that avoids the monotony that is characteristic of most
math-oriented card tricks. I’m enjoying this book immensely."
— Mark A. Ratekin, Senior Vice President, Consulting Services, Walker Information
"This is an amazing volume!
Prof. Mulcahy has left one mystery for his readers to
solve: Is it a really good math book, using card tricks
to explain the math, or is it a really good magic book,
using math to explain the magic? Either way, there ’ s
not a wrong answer to this question."
— S.
Brent Morris, PhD, author of Magic Tricks, Card Shuffling,
and Dynamic Computer Memories
""It's a great book even if, like me, you are a complete math moron.
There are very few really good books on this subject and this is one of
them. Also, physically, this is a very handsome book: thick paper and
color throughout. A great job all round"
— Bob Farmer
"In this delightful book, the author of the bi-monthly online
articles Card Colm for the Mathematical Association
of America shows just how magical mathematics can be. The mathematics
ranges from simple to deep and the magical effects range from
subtle to stunning. Most of the mathematical principles underlying
the effects are original, and many are appearing in print for the
first time in this book. I ’ m looking forward to using this
material to intrigue and inspire young people to learn both
mathematics and magic!"
— Neil Calkin, Department of
Mathematical Sciences, Clemson University
"This is an amazing book! Like a magician ’ s well-stacked
deck of playing cards, the 13 chapters are packed with 52 punchy
effects guaranteed to amaze and amuse. Each chapter deals
generously with mathematicians and professional magicians alike.
Bursting with new effects, the chapters detail the method and Colm
’ s favoured presentation — each is ‘ pick up and
use ’ perfect — but also provide a springboard for
readers ’ imagination to create their own presentations.
Those with a more mathematical interest won ’ t be disappointed
either; reading further into each chapter is a fascinating exploration
of the mathematical questions underlying the effects. This is a magic
book that will get you thinking and entertaining in equal amounts, in
essence a perfect shuffle."
— Peter W. McOwan, Vice Principal
Public Engagement and External Partnerships, Queen Mary, University of London
"Colm not only provides lucid exposition of how
certain mathematical principles work, but he also clearly
describes subtle performance pieces that entertainingly
illustrate them. Then, to boot, he drills down as to
why they work. In other words, he gives you the
‘ body ’ of everything, plus its ‘ x-ray.
’ Highly recommended."
— Jon Racherbaumer,
Preposterist and Author
