Asi Wind Brings the Art of Magic to New Book How Did You Do That?

You know that moment when a magician does something impossible right in front of you, and your brain immediately starts arguing with your eyes? Magician and mentalist Asi Wind has built a career around those moments, and now he’s opening up some of the process in a new book, How Did You Do That?, arriving November 17, 2026.

The book is designed to welcome beginners into magic using familiar, everyday objects rather than elaborate equipment. Readers can explore sleight of hand, mind-reading-style illusions and prediction effects, learning not just how the routines work but how to present them to an audience. That’s a meaningful distinction. A secret method might fool somebody once; a great performance can make them remember the experience for years.

Wind brings a distinctive artistic element to the project, too. The book contains 176 original watercolor paintings created by Wind himself. Those illustrations guide readers through the routines while giving the book the feel of an artist’s personal notebook rather than a dry instruction manual. For a performer whose work depends on directing attention, using hand-painted imagery to explain technique feels especially appropriate.

Among the routines introduced in the book are Haunted Matchbox, Haunted Ring, Double Take and The Domino Theory. The collection explores different ways to create an impossible-looking moment, with lessons that connect the mechanics of a trick to confidence, perception and storytelling. Readers don’t have to arrive knowing a thing about professional magic to get started.

Wind is known for close-up magic and mentalism, including his acclaimed Off-Broadway production Inner Circle. His performances emphasize the relationship between the person doing the trick and the people experiencing it, which is why a book about the craft can offer more than a pile of secrets. It’s also a look at the choices performers make to guide an audience’s attention and expectations.

I’ve always respected the entertainers who can hold a room without giant screens, explosions or a hundred people working backstage. That’s what makes close-up magic so fascinating. You’re standing there watching somebody with a handful of ordinary objects, and suddenly your brain has a problem it can’t solve. If Wind can help a new generation experience even a little of that feeling, that’s a pretty good trick in itself.

How Did You Do That? is scheduled for publication November 17, 2026. The book is aimed at curious beginners, aspiring performers and anyone who wants to understand how an impossible moment gets built from the ground up.