I thoroughly enjoyed this witty, yet poignant story. I loved the back and forth of the story line from World War II to the present. The writing would make a wonderful film.

This takes place in two locations and eras – 1930s to Holocaust-era Europe and current day Los Angeles. A young boy Max is convinced the only way to keep his parents together is through the magic of an old magician the Great Zabbatini, while the Great Zabbatini is working hard to forget his past and winds up helping Max first out of desperation but then out of friendship. While I enjoyed both characters Moshe’s (Zabbatini) disdain and general rudeness seemed to be a big departure from how his character was portrayed in his early years.

Favorite Quotes:

Though officially a Buddhist, she seemed to thrive on conflict. Harry always joked that she was a “Raging Buddhist,” but she didn’t find that funny.

They were “Death Camps,” which, as it turned out, had absolutely nothing to do with the Death Star in Star Wars.

“His heart had given up the struggle,” Grandma continued. “His bowels, too. Typical of your grandfather, making a mess like that.” Max was totally creeped out that he had to sleep in a bed where a man had shat and died.

After the argument with his mother, he had climbed out the window and walked to the bus stop. His plan was as simple as it was daring. He was now officially a runaway child. How exciting! The police were probably already after him, maybe even the FBI. His mom would be worried, but he couldn’t think about that right now.

Zabbatini had devoted his life to lying. To trickery. Now that the end was near, there was no one left to fool. His greatest regret was to have lived a life without regrets. He had only ever looked out for himself, never anyone else. And now he was alone.

When Max went to school on Monday, he felt like the star witness in a mob trial. Suddenly, he was all the rage. Joey Shapiro couldn’t wait to hear what had happened with Zabbatini. This was, without a doubt, the coolest birthday party he had ever been to.


My Review:

The Trick was found treasure and not only has it earned the top spot as my favorite book of the year, but it is also one of the best books I have ever read. It was brilliant and utterly fantastic in every aspect. I adored each and every perfectly chosen word. A five-star rating is not enough – it needs at least ten! The narrative was crisp; the writing was delightfully observant and humorous; and the storyline was extremely well-crafted, full of feels, mesmerizingly addictive and top-shelf entertainment. Even the tragic and heart-squeezing moments were deftly handled with cleverly insightful and amusing details tucked into the corners. I had eight pages of favorite quotes. Eight pages! Mr. Bergmann’s characters were hopelessly flawed yet simultaneously alluring and endearing despite their selfish and peculiar quirks. I was quickly hooked and frequently laughed aloud and wiggled in my chair with gleeful merriment, although my eyes occasionally stung and leaked a bit as I read with a quivering lower lip during the poignantly touching, profoundly moving, and simply magical arrangements of words. Mr. Bergmann obviously recalls with clarity the illogical parallels drawn by the inner workings of the mind a child. He is a skillful wordsmith who definitely has the word voodoo. I. Am. In. Awe

I loved this little boy, Max, in this book. He was so hellbent on his parents not breaking up.

One day when he finds a record that belonged to his dad, a magician that his dad really liked, he finds a spell. A special, magical spell. One that will make people fall in love. Only one problem, the record is scratched on the one and only spell he needs.

Max decides to take off and find this magician. His travels, his discovery of the magician and what he will do to get his parents back together back this such a great book.

I really enjoyed this one and even though I am writing this review two months after I read the book, all I had to do was read the blurb and this one came right back to me. Total enjoyment.

Thanks to Atria Books and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I honestly could tell by the writing of the first 2 chapters that it wouldn't be a good fit for our box and had to put it down. I may read it again in the future!

I had THE TRICK on TBR pile and finally picked it up. Very nice surprise, I enjoyed it and read it quickly devouring Bermanns words. Emanuel words told an amazing, yet gentle story of survival during WWII most darkest moments. Where in 1934 a rabbi's son Moshe Goldenhirsch can become The Great Zabbatini and use his secrets to navigate the horrors of concentration camps. Zabbatini navigates thousands of secrets and survives the nightmare before he meets ten year old Max Cohn decades later. Max wants The Great Zabbatini to help his family through separations, it's not really clear who saves who. The Trick is my first historical novel that didn't leave me with nightmares only hope for us so called humans. I read that The Trick was perfect for fans of All the Light We Cannot See and The Nightingale, I felt the tone of the book more like Fredrik Backman A Man Called Ove and Pam Jenoff The Orphan's Tale. Will recommend to my book club.

A great read if you like World War II centered novels. Kinds of reminded me of "Life is Beautiful" and "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close". I recommend this book.

I feel like this is a young adult version of some of the books it is being compared to. ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ and ’The Nightingale’ pop up in a variety of places as to be compared to. I have read both. This feels like a lighter version. Lighter is better for YA but it is currently not classified as YA. I am rating as 3 stars. If it was a YA, it would be a solid 4.

I found a few flaws. One of the silliest annoying flaws was name dropping Dolce and Gabbana as to what someone was wearing at a magic shop. What 10 year old boy would know that and how is that relevant to the story? I did read an ARC (thanks Netgalley) so hopefully others pointed that out and it was changed.

I did enjoy it and thought the character development was good. The 'surprise connection' was interesting and done well. Not giving anything away...it is in the book description. I liked how it went from the past to present and it was clear where you were. Some books when they attempt to do that have issues.

It was worth the read. Just know if you are expecting a deep and profound adult book you will have a pretty deep and almost profound YA book.

Moshe Goldenhirsch grew up in Prague in the 1930's. His family was far from perfect and Moshe decides to run away. Moshe comes across a circus run by the Half-Moon Man and is entranced by his magic tricks; he eventually is eventually taken on as an apprentice by the Half-Moon man. Moshe eventually transforms into the Great Zabbatini, a Persian mentalist. However, as the war grows, Zabbatini's facade is broken and he is found out as a Jew. In 2007, Max Cohn is trying to deal with his parent's divorce. As his parents are moving out, Max finds a record of the Great Zabbatini's performance and one of his tricks is a spell for eternal love. The record happens to be scratched on the eternal love spell sending Max on an adventure to find the real Zabbatini and ask him to perform his spell.


This dual time story was an emotional journey that ranged from sorrowful to sweet. The writing flowed seamlessly as the alternating time lines switched between Moshe and Max. Moshe's story drew me in with the complexity of family issues and his desire to find escape within the magic of the circus. I was further impressed with Moshe's transformation to Zabbatini and his path to becomming a mentalist. The suspense grew as Zabbatini interacted with officials from the Nazi party. Seeing some of the mentalist tricks in action was very intriguing. Max's character evoked a lot of sympathy as his parents went through the trials of divorce and Max clung to the hope of a magic spell. When Max did fine Zabbatini, the tone of the story changed as both characters found hope in one another. The relationship they formed was similar to grandparent and grandchild and exactly what the other needed at the time. I loved the eternal love spell that Zabbatini performed as well as the unlikely connection that he found. Overall, an emotional story that incorporates history, magic and hope.


This book was provided for free in return for an honest review.

I read this novel at the end of summer and it was a treat. This was a at times humorous at times touching story of a young boy who wants to find a (basically) old, washed up magician, because he wants him to teach him how to keep two people (his parents) in love. It is sweet yet funny (the magician is rather cranky and is happy to take advantage of people), yet there is a twist to the story, too.

Moving between two time periods, the writing flows easily, and I read it in two days. I didn’t want to stop reading! They liken it to All the Light… and The Nightingale. Well – no. I’ve read both and they are not like this novel at all, except that they both do include WWII and All the Light has the young girl in it. This novel is much lighter with much more humor (though there are certainly serious moments, esp. in the section on WWII), and has a true feel good ending.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for my e-copy!

The Trick by Emanuel Bergmann tells us the story of a young boy, max who discovers a magical record recorded by the Great magician Zabbatini. In a auest to get his divorcing parents to reconcile he searches for the Great Zabbatini. This is a multi plot story. On one side we are told of the present and max's search for Zabbatini, on the other we are told the story of Moshe the jewish boy during the WWII era and his search for magic.

I enjoyed the plot overall and the character development. However, it seemed as if something was missing for me. It wasn't as good as some of the other historical fiction I have read of this era. I did like the bond that formed between the max and Zabbatini.

This was a fun read and an interestingly coincidental story. I guess my only problem with the book was how many things did fall into place that were not totally believable. That said, it was heartwarming. Max is a little boy who is feeling the loss of his dad after his parent's separation. He finds the only person who he believes can bring them back together, The Great Zabbatini. Unfortunately, this magician is an old, lonely man with no desire to live. Both are a bit precocious and as such become friends in spite of their rocky start. Surviving the concentration camp has given the old magician a rough veneer, but he still has the capacity to care and respond to the needs of children like Max. My favorite part of the story is how his cold heart does warm, and he finds the peace and appreciation that he has searched for all his life.
This is an affecting novel that will probably engage most readers. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys an emotional tug on the heart.
My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Emanuel Bergmann for the opportunity to read this debut novel - it was a wonderful mix of historical fiction, quirky characters and magic!

The story is told in two different time periods and from the vantage of two characters - Moshe is a rabbi's son who leaves Prague to join a circus during World War II, eventually becoming The Great Zabbatini.

Contrasted is the story of 10-year-old Max, living in LA in present time, heartbroken over his parents' impending divorce. He comes across an old album of his dad's featuring The Great Zabbatini who promises a spell of Eternal Love that Max is convinced will save his parents' marriage.

When the two finally meet, the real magic of the story begins. And it is not one to be missed!

The Trick by Emanuel Bergmann had all of the elements of a novel that could have been one of my favorites of the year, a dual storyline that went back and forth between 1930s Prague and Berlin and modern day Los Angeles, a child narrator who believes in miracles despite the world around him believing otherwise, and the search for hope and redemption. It had beautiful, compelling sections and characters that didn’t quite seem believably drawn. It compelled me to read it, but made me want to recharacterize part of it at the same time. I love reading historical fiction, and, yes, I understand what fiction means. But, I also want the characters to act in a believable way for the historical era. The first storyline begins in Prague in the 1930s. Moshe Goldenhirsch , born to a rabbi and his wife, is tired of the way he is treated by is often drunk father, and runs off to join a traveling circus. (The characterization of Moshe’s father did not ring completely true with me for the era, ). As Moshe travels with the circus, he successfully hides his Jewish heritage and begins a transformation into a magician/mentalist called the Great Zabbatini. He also meets the love of his life, Julia Klein, who becomes his partner in his magical endeavors and transformation. After leaving the circus, they end up in wartime Berlin where he becomes very famous and successful due to the interest in occultism in Nazi Germany. (This part of the novel did ring historically true.). The second storyline takes place in modern day Los Angeles where 11-year-old Max Cohn is dealing with the angst of his parents impending divorce. Max is beautifully characterized as a very human but idealistic boy. On the day his father is moving out, Max picks up a record featuring the Great Zabbatini that falls out of one of the boxes of his father’s things. Max keeps the record, listens to it, believes in the magic of Zabbatini and is upset when the record jumps on a portion containing a “ spell of love” which he thinks might make his parents keep from divorcing. So, he sets out to find Zabbatini in Los Angeles. He finds Zabbatini—now a lonely, lewd, rather offensive old man on the verge of suicide and an unlikely friendship develops between the two. Will Max redeem Zabbatini? Will Zabbatini’s “spell of love” bring Max’s parents back together? The elderly Zabbatini was a rather unlikeably drawn character to me, but the ending of the book was incredibly powerful. This book was flawed in my eyes, but touched me at the end so much that I wanted to “redeem” the portions I found incongruous. Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader’s Copy and for allowing me to review this book.

In 1935, what Jewish boy didn’t wish for some magic to carry him away from the rapidly deteriorating social conditions in Europe? In this story, Moshe runs away from his home and joins a forlorn circus, renaming himself The Great Zabbatini, and creates himself anew. Eighty years later, 11 yr old Max faces the, for him questionable, fact that his parents are getting a divorce. These two tales will merge but not before Moshe will have all thoughts of magic erased from his mind through the inexorable betrayals of the 20th Century that lead to concentration camps and the loss of everyone he holds dear. But he didn’t count on Max and the idealism that runs through a young child’s mind when everyone counsels against it. This is a book that wins over the reader despite its well-known topic. The author has woven a beautiful tale with a wonderful ending. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

THE TRICK is a very different kind of Holocaust story. It’s humor, similar to that contained in the 1999 movie Life is Beautiful is skillfully entwined with the pessimism contained in A MAN CALLED OVE as author Emanuel Bergmann uses a perfect mixture of will, irony and imagination to tell this duo story of the relationship between a quintessential angry and isolated old man and an optimistic ten year old boy and the surprising event that inextricably joins them.

With lives separated by 70 years and very different life experiences, readers will soon find themselves intimately embroiled in the lives of young Max Cohn and Moshe Goldenhirsch aka the Great Zabbatini’. What emerges from the pages of this narrative is a remarkable and heartwarming tale of unusual charm, where unreliable first impressions and uncommon solutions to life’s problems serve as gentle reminders that reveal to us that life is truly full of extraordinary magic moments that can change not only ones perceptions but can also alter the trajectory of ones future in wondrous ways.

Emanuel Bergmann has a definite gift for characterization and details. He succeeds in painting a landscape ripe with memory and emotion that succeeds in making THE TRICK one of those books that gets under your skin and remains in your thoughts long after you close the cover.

This was such a wonderful fable, or fairy tale but beautifully written and absorbing. I loved it. Great gift book.

This is an entertaining and fascinating read; one that discusses the horrors of World War II but with a sharp, well-defined level of personal humanity.
Moshe Goldenhirsch can’t understand why, no matter what he does, his father still dislikes him. The mental and physical abuse becomes so bad that Moshe takes off on his own and learns to fend for himself long before becoming an adult. In his endeavors, he crosses paths with the traveling circus and immediately is enthralled by the magician, but more so by his beautiful assistant. He strengthens his ties to both, training and becoming The Great Zabbatini, and falling in love with Julia, now his assistant.
Jump ahead a few decades and we meet Max, who is shocked and heartbroken that his parents are divorcing. He finds his dad’s copy of an old album, Magic Tricks by The Great Zabbatini. The last trick is for everlasting love. The album is damaged and Max can’t understand the steps. He sets out to find The Great Zabbatini in order to learn this trick and do it to his parents.
This is the only part of the book and seems a bit far-fetched. After all these years and with no knowledge of one another, Moshe and Max are within bicycle riding distance of one another. Other than that, the rest of the story is extremely plausible and enjoying.
The details of Moshe’s life are captivating. His career is taking off right when the war is cranking up. Moshe hopes to keep his Jewish faith a secret thru his costumes and magic acts. This works for a while until he is reported for money and arrested. His tricks help him during his time in the camps, but there’s only so much a slowly dying magician can do to survive and save his remaining family.
I really enjoyed this book. Mr. Bergmann writes in a manner that I find very easy to read and flow along with. His sense of humor comes thru, but his sense of respect and honor maintains the story. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in historical fiction during the WWII era.
(I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for making it available.)

4.5 Stars

am shocked to stay this but this was a lovely book. Shocked right a book about Nazi Germany was lovely! But it truly was. Part of the story takes place in Europe as the Nazis come into power and the other part takes place in LA current. I loved the contrast of these two different times. Then along the way these two stories become one.

I loved how this story meshing the old and the young. I am always saying the young should spend more time with the old and really learn from them and in my opinion this story echos that. I highly recommend The Trick!

This book felt like a fairytale, but unfortunately I don't like fairytales. I read about a third of it and wasn't enjoying it at all, so I quit. This just wasn't for me. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.