The Magic Hand of Chance

A staple of the New York music scene, Ethan Lipton & his Orchestra have released three albums, most recently MR. SOFTY, and have played venues from Los Angeles to Camden, Maine. The band includes Eben Levy (guitar), Ian M. Riggs (bass), Vito Dieterle (saxophone), and Ethan (vocals). Their music has been featured on NPR’s Weekend Edition and radio stations across the country. Also a playwright, Ethan was a member of the Public Theater’s 2008 Emerging Writers Group. He hails from Van Nuys, California; and now lives with his wife, Heather, in Brooklyn, New York.

Website: www.ethanlipton.com

Lynn Lauber is a fiction and nonfiction author, teacher, and book collaborator. She has published three books of her own with W.W. Norton & Co., as well as many collaborations with other authors. Her specialties include fiction, personal narrative, and self-improvement. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times. She has abridged audiobooks for such authors as John Updike, Oliver Sacks, Oprah Winfrey, and Gore Vidal. Visit: www.lynnlauber.com

The Magic Hand of Chance takes readers into a world like no other—the circus! This charming and inspiring story focuses on the character Voronin in his pursuit to become the greatest magician in the world.

Following a colorful cast of characters in a traveling Russian circus—the fire-eater, the juggler, the trapeze artist, the acrobats, the contortionist, and the clowns—we see hopes dashed, dreams realized, lies told, and love grown. Through a series of twists and turns, we watch as Voronin hones his craft while performing around the world. Through his journey, we learn the importance of believing in yourself and your dreams even in the face of negativity. We see that against all odds, it is possible to become who you really want to be.