Review of A Cut Above Msgr Vincent Foy

Guest Review by: Alexander Yuen

Before you read on, you must know that my skills in flourishes are average. I am able to do a basic Sybil and a couple of one handed cuts, one handed revolution cut (Brian Tudor) being one of them. A Cut Above is essentially a collection of one handed cuts in which Msgr. Vincent Foy have created and ‘collected’ over the years. This book is a dedication to this form of skill display. The level of difficulty varies as well. But for a pure beginner, even the simpler cuts would have to take you at least 3 weeks to master (and I say this because I am not a fast learner). For more intermediate and advanced flourishers who already have the manual dexterity, most of the cuts should not be too difficult to handle. Some of the cuts would remind you of already published cuts in Generation X (Brian Tudor) and some of De’vo’s material.

This book is very well written, it has an interesting introduction and foreword about the stories of the author Msgr. Vincent Foy himself. He shares the time he sessioned with Derek Dingle. He also shares stories in which he learnt from the great Ross Bertram. Also, he has published articles and books under a pseudonym of Dr Casaubon.

The instructions are very clear, they are written in a stepwise form so it is easy to follow. The pictures are well taken and are in accordance to the instructions. Also the pictures allow you to understand where the fingers ought to be when you are doing the one hand cuts.

While I am able to foresee the potential this book has for a flourisher as well as magicians who want to enhance their magic with feats of dexterity. This book also serves as a reference book in which one can always refer to when looking for a particular type of one handed cut to fit into a certain routine (magic or flourish). There are also some false cuts taught like the Lower Level Charlier Cut. Also, the last section on Tabled one handed cuts would certainly appeal to some magicians who are inclined to do gambling demonstrations or effects t hat begins with “I met a gambler who only had one hand….”

I will not recommend this to beginners who are starting out in their magic career because more time can be invested on sleights and performance which has a faster rate of returns then these flourishes. However, this book is recommended for those who are more advanced and wants to add something fancy in their card routine.

Ratings: 3.8/5