What a lovely book! It's an odd thing to say about a novel that deals in part with Nazi Germany. But Bergmann pulls off that delicate balance between creating a charming story without minimizing the historical backdrop against which it's told. Part of the story takes place in Europe as the Nazis come to power, and part of it takes place in contemporary Los Angeles. The older story focuses on young Moshe who feels trapped in his strange and sad home in Prague, and literally runs away with the circus. The contemporary story focuses on young Max whose parents are recently separated, who hunts down an old magician hoping to bring his parents back together. The two strands quickly come together. What works about this story are the characters. They aren't particularly nice, but they're not simplistic and they elicit real emotion. There's also a fair bit of humour. And the end -- although depending on an extraordinary coincidence -- was particularly potent. Light but far from fluffy. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy.

Max Cohn is 10 years old, and his parents have just told him they’re getting a divorce. He’s heard about the drill from a friend at his school in Los Angeles: They’ll take him to a restaurant he likes to break the news. He figures it’ll be fun for a while, with his parents vying to do nicer things for him, but pretty soon he’s just not happy with the new reality. So when his dad is going through some boxes to move and Max sees an old record from the ’70s with a magician sharing his “greatest tricks,” including one for love, he decides to use the love spell to reunite his parents. Unfortunately, when he plays the record, there’s a scratch and he can’t hear the spell. So Max does the only thing he can do: He decides to track down this “Great Zabbatini” and get the spell.

Moshe Goldenhirsch was born in Prague to a poor rabbi and his wife soon after the end of World War I. Moshe lost his mother when he was young and didn’t enjoy much of his upbringing with his despondent and books-focused father. But when he was 15, he was taken to a circus by a neighbor and transported by the magic of “the Half-Moon Man.” When he met the magician’s beautiful assistant, Moshe fell in love and decided to run away with the circus. Eventually, he became “the Great Zabbatini.”

The stories of Max and Moshe alternate and intertwine in The Trick. The later-in-life Moshe is old and living in a retirement home in Los Angeles and tired of it all. His decade or two of success is long past, and his bank account is empty. The determined Max finds him and, through a series of events, manages to get him to his house, where he is sure he can save his parents’ marriage.

Readers learn about Moshe’s experiences in pre-World War II Germany, where he hides his identity as a Jew for as long as possible. But he ends up in a concentration camp, where his beat-up trunk of magic tricks actually proves useful.

The interaction between Max and Moshe is the heart of this book. In the wrong hands, the “determined boy and world-weary old man” trope could be trite, but here it’s utterly charming. The viewpoint of the 10-year-old Max is amusing and sweet, and his valiant attempts to reunite his parents are entertaining even as the reader — as an adult — knows, sadly, that life isn’t that simple. Moshe’s background is vital to the story, in large part because it’s the necessary yin to Max’s yang. The story doesn’t spend too much time in the concentration camp, for instance; the scenes there are just enough to remind readers of the horror of those places before the story moves along. It is also just enough to pull in a satisfying and poignant end to the book that brings meaning to the lives of the people in the story. Overall, this book is a gratifying read because of the relationship of the two protagonists.

Rated: Moderate. There are five or six uses of strong language and some instances of mild and moderate language. Sexual references include some crude terms and a few scenes that have little detail. There’s an understanding two male characters are carrying on a relationship. Violence is fairly limited.

I normally limit myself to one or two World War II novels per year, so this description really got me! However, in this dual timeline narrative, the past is mainly centered around the time leading up to the war. You will not be thrust into the day to day of Auschwitz, plunked down in London during the blitz or thrown into Paris during the Vel' d'Hiv. It is not just a story about war, but about the reverberations of war, or any actions of our lives on the future.

Some of the actions of Moshe throughout his very complex life are quite despicable, but I couldn't help but find him an endearing, hilarious and heartbreaking character. Equally endearing is Max's story in the present day timeline, attempting to prevent his parents divorce by finding Moshe to perform the 'eternal love' trick. The juxtaposition of the young and 'magical thinking' boy, set against the curmudgeon-y old man is rife with moments of great humor and heart. There are many laugh out loud moments that balance out what could have been too saccharine on one hand, or horrific on the other. The final scenes from both narratives had my heart pounding for vastly different reasons. Bergmann must have children to convey with such hilarity and accuracy a visit to a thinly veiled version of Chuck E. Cheese, and the way he depicts Moshe/Zabbatini's performance of the eternal love spell there had me RIVETED. Then as I went back in time to Auschwitz to finally discover the plot connection to the present day, I was biting my nails in fear and hope.

If you enjoy dual timeline historical fiction, family drama, plot driven narratives, witty writing, I would highly recommend The Trick. It is also a perfect transition from super light summer reading, to something with a little more heft, but not too much. Many thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for providing an advance copy for my honest review!

Emanuel Bergmann strikes all the right notes in his first novel, The Trick. It's moving, funny, nostalgic, sweet, and thoughtful. Bergmann artfully weaves together the stories of two young boys from different eras who hope for more than what life seems to offer. Moshe, the son of a rabbi in Prague, runs away to join the circus, leaving behind his family and his faith. He learns the magical arts from a seasoned showman before striking out on his own as the Great Zabbatini, a decidedly non-Jewish identity, a necessity under Nazi rule.


Max, a little boy in modern-day southern California finds a record in his dad's old things that includes a love spell by the Great Zabbatini. He hopes that this can bring his divorcing parents back together, so he goes out in search of the old magician. The intersections of these two disaffected lives results in both comic and profound situations.


Bergmann's best bits capture the wide-eyed wonder of these two boys as they step out of their familiar surroundings. We share young Moshe's first glimpses of the drama of magic and the circus, especially the stunning beauty of the magician's assistant (who later becomes his assistant and life companion). We see Max's exposure to the realities of aging, of grown-up problems, and the darkness of certain periods of the past.


Bergmann balances the humorous, sometimes slapstick story with sensitive treatment of Max's feelings about his parents' divorce and Moshe's experiences performing for Nazis while hiding his identity and his survival of the death camps after he is exposed. I enjoyed Bergmann's story-telling style, as he flipped back and forth from Moshe's youth to today. The Trick is a real treat to read.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

Life was difficult in a one room tenement in 1934, Prague. Moshe Goldenhirsch, son of a rabbi, experienced even harder times upon the death of his beloved mother. Father and son were virtual strangers. The rabbi, while even tempered at shul, lashed out at Moshe at home, especially when drunk. Moshe escaped by running away and joining the Zauber Zircus after being infatuated with The Amazing Half-Moon Man's assistant. In 2007 Los Angeles, Max Cohn, unable to cope with his parents impending divorce, ran away as well. Max believed that the divorce was his fault since he wished on a penny that his dad would be gone. Did he curse his family?


Moshe Goldenhirsch has reinvented himself. He forgoes his yarmulke, cuts his payos, and obtains false documentation as The Great Zabbatini from Persia. Half-Moon Man mentors him in the art of transformation (a red hankie turns blue), teleportation (an item vanishes then appears elsewhere) and levitation (objects float in midair). Moshe as the Great Zabbatini learns that an audience or individual, especially during wartime, wants to be deceived. Moshe, himself, is deceived when he is reported as being Jewish and interred in a concentration camp. He now believes in nothing.

Max Cohn's childhood innocence and hope is tested. He expects his parents to announce their impeding divorce. His friend advised him not to have the "divorce discussion" over pizza. This might cause him to associate pizza with divorce. When asked where he would like to eat, Max requests sushi because he dislikes sushi! Harry Cohn, Max's dad, boxes up his belongings. A vinyl record spills out of one of the boxes. It is Zabbatini: His Greatest Tricks: including the Spell of Eternal Love. The Great Zabbatini, a popular stage magician during Harry's boyhood, gives step-by-step instruction on how to perform each trick. Max asks to keep the record, determined to learn the Spell of Eternal Love, pinning his hopes on magic to make his parents fall in love again. Oh,no! The record is scratched and skips just where the spell should be revealed. Max has a mission. He runs away to look for the magician in order to save his family.

"The Trick" by Emanuel Bergmann encompasses many themes. We see the world through Max's eyes in 2007 Los Angeles alternating with Moshe's experiences in 1934 Prague. Childhood innocence contrasts with concentration camp horrors. Max has hope, Moshe despair. However unlikely, their paths intertwine producing a poignant pairing of wide eyed youngster with disillusioned oldster. An excellent read that I highly recommend.

Thank you Atria Books and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "The Trick".

A magical and clever first novel with alternating storylines of a cranky old magician and a hopeful 10-year old boy trying to save his parents’ marriage through the magician’s ‘love spell’, the times alternating between present day Los Angeles and war-torn Berlin. The storylines blended beautifully, the characters colorful, their adventures and unlikely friendship irresistible.

*will post in additional online outlets upon publication.

He picked up the penny, squeezed his eyes shut as hard as he could, and wished Dad was gone. Just like that. When he opened his fist, the penny was still in his hand. He heard the distant rumble of thunder in the San Gabriel Mountains. It would rain soon. Max suddenly felt bad. He looked around and immediately squelched his thought, but it was too late. Someone–God, maybe?–must have heard him thinking. A terrible chain of events was set in motion.

Weaving together two narratives, Emanuel Bergamann crafts an endearing tale about the ways the magic of the world helps us to survive in his debut historical fiction, The Trick.

The book opens in Prague at the start of World War I when the parent of our soon to be narrator struggle with the new responsibilities of war. Upon his return from the front, Labil Goldenhirsh, a Jewish Rabbi, is quick to welcome a son into the world. Though the dates don’t quite compute, he accepts the work of God that his wife swears by. When his wife succumbs to cancer, Laibl struggles to raise his son, Moshe, knowing deep down that he may no be the boy’s true father. As a result their relationship is broken and when Moshe sees the circus for the first time, he is so captivated that he risks everything to join into the world where he feels he belongs.

One day, while Laibl was at temple, Moshe packed his few meager belongings–some provisions, his pocket knife, and his papers– and left his father’s apartment. He went to the cemetery and stood by his mother’s grave, asking her forgiveness for what he was about to do. He touched her headstone with his fingers, and then, with a heart both heavy and free, he turned around and walked toward the riverbank.

Moshe finds two things in the circus: skills as a mentalist and a new, non-Jewish, identity both of which prove invaluable as the threat of the Nazi party and WWII looms large. When an affair with a fellow circus performer sends him fleeing, Moshe’s life takes a dramatic turn. They find shelter and success in Berlin, though Moshe, better known as The Great Zabbatini, a Persian prince cum magician, lives with the fear of his true Jewish identity being discovered.

Now in twenty-first century Los Angeles, Max Cohn is a young boy trying to cope with the recent announcement of his parents divorce. In a bout of childhood resentment for his chores, Max wished his father gone, but little did he know that his wish would soon come true. Now riddled with guilt, he desperately searches for a way to erase this mistake and repair his parent’s marriage. What he finds brings our two narratives together in a unique and captivating way.

Max carefully pushed the record back in its sleeve and turned it around. On the back, he saw the list of the “greatest tricks” that the man in the silver toga had to offer: THE WONDERS OF THE FAKIR, Max read, MAGICAL NUMBERS, TOAD MAGIC, and, all the way at the bottom: THE SPELL OF ETERNAL LOVE. Apparently, its entire purpose was to explain magic spells to the listener, for “the amazement of family and friends…and to change your life!” It was just what he needed. The wheels started turning inside Max’s head.

Max sets out to track down The Great Zabbatini and request his assistance with The Spell of Eternal Love. What Max finds is a cantankerous and slightly perverted elderly man who is ready to leave this world behind. Misery loves company and together Moshe and Max wade through their dilemmas, both past and present. Little do they know just how much they need the other. As the story continues we learn more of Moshe’s life in Berlin and the many ways he continues to impact Max’s life.

Filled with humor and heart, The Trick is an understated historical fiction that skillfully mixes whimsy with historical richness.

When Max looked up and saw the sunlight streaming through the trees, he understood, with sudden clarity, that he owed this man more than simply his life. The Great Zabbatini has given him a glimpse of the strange wonders and weird beauty that lay hidden in the world around him. This was not just a trick, Max realized. It was a miracle.

Quirky, sweet, and humorous!

The Trick is set in both 1930s Prague and twenty-first century Los Angeles and centres around two main characters. Moshe Goldenhirsch, or more famously known as the great Zabbatini, a Jewish survivor of WWII who learned from a very early age the true power of magic. And Max Cohn, a brave, determined 10-year-old on a mission to uncover the love spell he's confident will fix his parent's marital woes.

The prose is witty and emotive. The characters are stubborn, unique, and endearing. And the plot is a captivating tale of life, love, heartbreak, family, friendship, and survival.

The Trick, overall, is a well-written, amusing story that ultimately reminds us that magic is a set of tricks, tools or suggestions that give us the freedom to see what we want to see and believe what we want to believe.

This was an amazing story of the journey of Moshe who later became known as the Great Zabbatini. Moshe’s great tale began even before he was born when his parents, a rabbi and a young woman, tried to conceive a child. I laughed at this portion of the novel, so creative and bizarre but this chapter just becomes another interesting fact about the Great Zabbatini. There are twists in his life as he grows up, poor Moshe had lived quite a life before he joins up with the circus. After linking up with the circus, Moshe tries to fit in and make a life for himself but it must be something in his blood, as his life is far from quiet and settled. He studies under the eyes of Half Moon Man, learning the trade of magic. It seems like a competition really, between these two, Moshe must try to be original in his new trade and what he does after hours he tries to hide from his boss. He becomes Zabbatini and he ventures off the road, leaving this circus behind him. He’s not alone and it is now that he begins to make his name in the world. He hides that he is Jew, the war is underway and he is worried about his life. Zabbatini is good, whether he is great and can survive this time period is another story. This time in his life was a wonderful story that added to the enjoyment of this novel. Zabbatini, the magician with quite a story and just the person that Max needs.

Max is eleven and his parents are getting divorced. Max doesn’t want his family to fall apart yet he doesn’t know what he can do. While his father boxes up his things at the house, Max comes across an album of The Great Zabbatini. The album catches Max’s attention, Zabbatini’s Greatest Tricks is sprayed across the front. Flipping the album over, Max sees hope, there listed among the tricks on the album is a Love Spell. The hope that will keep his family together, is found. It has been seventy years since Zabbatini made a name of himself, Max needs to now locate this famous magician and see if he can still perform his magic.

I enjoyed these two stories, the way they were told simultaneously throughout the novel. I wished that each section of their story would have been longer before it switched over to the other individual’s story as I felt there was a lot of switching and sometimes the storyline was just getting started when the story would change. I thought the two stories were terrific and as they merged upon one another, it was hard to put the novel down. I highly recommend this novel, I really enjoyed the story of Moshe and adding in Max’s tale, created enticing drama and excitement. 4.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster, Inc. for providing to me, a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The title of this book just doesn’t quite live up to the story. A trick means to prank, fool or cheat in some way. None of those words describe how I felt as I read about these two boys, from different countries and different generations, who just happen to form a friendship that has a meaningful impact on everyone around them.

Set in dual time frames, readers first meet Moshe, who lives in Prague with his Jewish family. The story follows the life of Moshe as a child, up until he becomes an old man, living in Los Angeles. Or maybe I should say he was waiting to die in Los Angeles. His best days seem to be buried in the past and he has become a cynical and grumpy old man.

In Los Angeles, we meet ten-year-old Max, who is upset about his parent’s impending divorce. Max stumbles upon an old record about a magician named the Great Zabbatini and becomes convinced this man can work his magic in reuniting his parents. As Max begins his search for the magician, readers are taken back and forth in time as Emanuel Bergmaun weaves his magic in revealing the life story of the Great Zabbatini.

From Prague to the circus, to theaters, to Berlin and the concentration camps of World War II, we follow Moshe’s path up until the point where it merges with the path of ten-year-old Max. The two form an unlikely bond and Max’s parents have no choice but to allow the relationship to run its course. Max convinces Moshe to perform his magic tricks at his 11th birthday party and what unfolds is deeply moving, especially for Max and his family.

This is a wonderful story and a treat to read. It is touching, yet humorous and hopeful. Moshe reminded me a bit of Ove in Fredrik Backman’s novel, but the stories are very different. This is Bergmaun’s first novel, but hopefully not his last.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me an advance copy to read and give my honest review.

This book is about WWII but so much more. It also has something that is unique to most books in that genre and that is humor! How can a book about the war contain humor? It’s because of the marvelous characters that Mr. Bergmann has created and the dual time frame and storylines, alternating between the story of Moshe Goldenhirsch and ten year old Max. I’m always amazed when an author is able to tell a story from the views and thinking of a child, not an easy feat in writing.

The beginning of the novel is a bit slow to start but hang in there, it’s worth the wait. We first meet Moshe Goldenhirsch who is 15 years old and living in Prague, around 1934. He becomes fascinated when the circus comes to town. He is tired of being the rabbi’s son and the restrictions that are imposed upon him. Following a hasty decision, he runs away and joins the circus, learns magic from the “Half Moon Man”, the star of this circus and falls in love with his assistant. After an accident that sends the circus tent up in flames, Moshe and Julia run away and start an act on their own. Moshe has studied the magician’s tricks and understands that most magic is really controlling what the audience thinks, he considers himself to be a mentalist. Moshe and Julia’s act, presenting him as “The Great Zabbatini” does very well even as the country is taken over by the Germans and Hitler begins his purge of the Jews. Moshe claims to be Persian and even has a visit from Hitler during the early years.

The dual story line begins with 10 year old Max living in Los Angeles in 2007. He is very troubled, his parents have separated and are considering divorce after his mom discovers that her husband has been unfaithful. When his dad is moving out of the house Max stumbles upon an old record that features “The Great Zabbatini” performing his famous “Spell of Eternal Love”. Max is determined to track down the magician in the hope that he can perform this spell and bring his parents back together again. He finally finds him, living in a senior living home and about to be forced to move because of an incident which almost killed Moshe and put the home and it’s residents in danger. (can’t describe what happened as it would be a major spoiler). Eventually Max decides that the magician should stay in his garage until he can convince his mother to welcome him into the house and perform his magic. “The kid had put out a few flattened cardboard boxes and old blankets in the garage for him . . . . .so this was what he was reduced to! Hiding in a cluttered garage like a stray dog! Unbelievable!”

The humor comes from the little boy and the now old and somewhat disgruntled Moshe who is in his late 80’s and has now been talked into performing magic by a little boy whom he opens his heart to. He finally performs his act at Max’s birthday party being held at Mickey’s Pizza Palace which Moshe describes as “the place was loud, garish, and much too brightly lit. It smelled vaguely like old gym socks. The worst thing was the children. They were everywhere, like an alien species poised to take over the planet. This is hell, Zabbatini thought, I’m in hell”

This is a very unique book, one which made me laugh out loud and also tugged at my heart with reminders of the terrible days Moshe spent in a concentration camp. This book is about love, hope and perhaps believing in a little magic that can be found in some of the simplest things.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and NetGalley.

Will also post to Amazon upon publication.

The Trick is a fascinating book because of its unique plot and interesting characters. The story begins in Prague in 1934. Moshe Goldenhirsch is fifteen-years-old when his mother dies and he is left with his father, a rabbi. Moshe runs away and joins the circus because he has fallen in love with the magician's assistant. Moshe eventually becomes the Great Zabbatini and hides his Jewish identity. The plot navigates between Moshe's story and Los Angeles in 2007. There we meet ten-year-old Max Cohn. Max's parents are getting divorced and Max wants to bring them back together before it is too late. He discovers a record album recorded by the Great Zabbatini and is convinced the magician can cast a love spell on his parents. Max leaves home in search of the magician and this act of defiance becomes a life changing lesson for Max and his entire family.

Thanks Atria Books and netgalley for this ARC.

Sadness, redemption, and unexpected love make this novel hard to do just in a few words or even paragraphs. You wont regret reading this one- it stays will you.

2.5 but rounding up because was well written though nothing that took my breath away. That said, despite many rave reviews, it just didnt do it for me. Never really captured my attention. Two story lines--a format I like. This book, however, just didn't do it for me.

Billed as:

"A deeply moving, humorous story of a boy who believes in everything and an old man who believes in nothing.

In 1934, a rabbi's son in Prague joins a traveling circus, becomes a magician, and rises to fame under the stage name of the Great Zabbatini just as Europe descends into World War II....

Seven decades later in Los Angeles, ten-year-old Max finds a scratched-up LP that captured Zabbatini performing his greatest tricks. But the track in which Zabbatini performs his love spell—the spell Max believes will keep his disintegrating family together—is damaged beyond repair. Desperate for a solution, Max seeks out the now elderly, cynical magician and begs him to perform his magic on his parents."

The depiction of Zabbatini's early life [then Moshe], though very dark, was the most interesting. How he became Zabbatini, joined the circus, learned his "magic" [he's a mentalist], and so on. Add in friendship, romance, war, the Holocaust, hope, and a bit of humor [I disagree with the blurb--it wasnt humorous to me]. And a multitude of flawed characters--some more interesting than others.

Piece by piece, the storyline comes together. And about 40 pages from the end [no spoiler alert from me--just to say I didn't like it--a few words would give away why]--a spark of life in the story.

So, proceed with caution.

I am a big fan of historical fiction and this book was described as perfect for fans of The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, which is one of my all time favorite books. This book is set in the same World War II area, but lacked the intense emotions and events that occurred in The Nightingale. I don’t like comparing books and obviously these are two very different stories. The Trick was a very interesting book but because of the two alternating story lines, I didn’t feel like I connected with the story or the characters as much as I could have. This book of course touches on some very important topics and occurs during a very difficult time in history. The 2 main characters, Moshe and Max, are living in different time periods; Moshe who leaves home to join the circus in 1934 and Max who finds a photo album of his father’s of The Great Zabbatini in 2007. The story alternates between the two characters and time periods.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book, but felt because of the two alternating perspectives and stories, I didn’t connect with the book as much as I could have. I enjoyed the author’s writing and the book is filled with moments about friends, family and love, as well as the hard issues from the time period during the Holocaust and WWII. If you are a fan of historical fiction, I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to the publisher, Atria Books for sending me an ARC of this book.

I love books about children and elderly people interacting. I love books with two stories occurring throughout the book. This book fit both my preferences. This was delightful!

Like with last year’s The German Girl, The Trick is a dual timeline novel with the historic timeline set amidst the rise of the Nazi’s and World War II. Moshe Goldenhirsch is a young man living in Prague in the 1930s. Tired of his oft-drunk father and being forced to study Jewish traditions, Moshe rebels by joining the circus. That is where he reinvents himself as the Great Zabbatini, a magician/mentalist who would later go on to wow crowds and offer his services in wartime Berlin. Moshe also falls in love with Julia Klein, his partner in his magical endeavors. However all good things must eventually come to an end, but how will that happen?

In the modern era storyline, Max Cohn’s parents are getting divorced and he does not want that to happen. As his father leaves, an old record falls out. This record was one of spells recorded by Zabbatini and the last was a “spell of love” which the record skipped over. Max sets out to try to find Zabbatini in order to learn the spell. Max’s quest does not fully go as planned, but there are unexpected consequences and surprises along the way.

Overall, I think that the novel drove several points home. One was that no matter what, your past shapes your future (All the Light We Cannot See also drives this point home). Another was that there is always hope no matter how bleak things seem. A third is that simple acts of kindness can have unexpected results. All three are seen in both timelines. Historically speaking, I do think that Bergman accurately represented the desire for occult topics in Nazi Germany and how hard it was for a Jew to openly hide. However, I did not care for the older Moshe in the modern timeline as he was a lusty old geezer and his actions and language sometimes reflected that. As for Max, he epitomizes the hope young children have that anything can be fixed and without that the story would have lost its drive.

This review is based on a copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

If you like a good World War II story, this is the book for you. Told in alternating voices- a young man who becomes a mentailist -the great Zabbatin- and that of a 10 year old boy in search of a love spell to bring his parents back together. At times sad, at times sweet and endaring, definitely recommend this one.