Visual Magic

A collection of over thirty visual tricks and illusions involving colors, shapes, patterns, and perspective offers insight into the way the human visual system operates

Grade 5-9-- A presentation of more than 30 intriguing optical illusions accompanied by clear, brief explanations. With many full-page illustrations, plenty of white space, and excellent reproductions, the book is accessible and inviting. The illusions are well chosen to demonstrate various aspects of ``visual magic,'' including lines, color, brightness, and depth. Instructions on how to view the illusions are sometimes followed by brief explanations of how the effect is caused. Unfortunately, two punch-out props--three-dimensional glasses and a spinning disk--are essential for several of the examples to be effective. If libraries can get past this difficulty, this is an attractive browsing book that will complement more informative (but less graphically appealing) books such as Lawrence White's Optical Illusions (Watts, 1986) and The Optical Illusion Book (Morrow, 1984) by Seymour Simon. --Steven Engelfried, Pleasanton Library, CA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

An intriguing compilation of optical illusions: images that sort themselves out when studied or that can be read more than one way; op art; an Escher; pictures that gain a third dimension when viewed through the special glasses provided, etc. Several of these have appeared elsewhere, but it's instructive to have them together in this handy eight-inch square book--especially with Thomson's brief but lucid explanations of what is happening when the eye and mind try to decipher images that are designed to confuse them. A dandy introduction to the concept of perception. (Nonfiction. 9-12) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.