The Artistry of Magic - by Helen de Cruz (Paperback)

About the Book

Since his youth, Maarten has wandered the Low Countries, living from one handful of silver stuivers to the next. Without the expensive accoutrements of his craft, he can never call himself a true magician.

Book Synopsis

That sense of glory was worth the occasional beating...

Since his youth, Maarten has wandered the Low Countries, living from one handful of silver stuivers to the next. The urge to channel magic through his street art is like an itch, yet without the expensive accoutrements of his craft, he can never call himself a true magician.

One day, as he paints animated birds on the cobblestones before the college library in the proud city of Haltra, an irate librarian arrives to tell him off...

Born the daughter of a lowly shopkeeper, Johanna de Vries has spent her entire life working towards her modest position as a junior Scholar. She takes no pleasure in asking the young man to erase his artwork, but it is her responsibility to maintain the magical tomes of the library and prevent anyone from disrupting their delicate balance.

After their first rocky meeting, this unlikely pair find that perhaps their perspectives on life and art are not so different after all. Yet can love triumph amid the harsh realities of life on the streets?

Eric Kaplan, Television writer and producer (Big Bang Theory, Futurama):

In this love story between a homeless magician and a scholar of ancient books De Cruz brings to life an Oxford that is as once as real as a slap and as sweetly lyrical as a childhood dream. Her world is a world of class divides and chalk drawings that come to life: poignant, beautiful, romantic, and wry. Maarten and Johanna are characters you will take into your heart and treasure. And who will teach you things you always knew but somehow never saw as clearly - about art and love. And magic.

Review Quotes

"In this love story between a homeless magician and a scholar of ancient books De Cruz brings to life an Oxford that is as once as real as a slap and as sweetly lyrical as a childhood dream. Her world is a world of class divides and chalk drawings that come to life: poignant, beautiful, romantic, and wry. Maarten and Johanna are characters you will take into your heart and treasure. And who will teach you things you always knew but somehow never saw as clearly - about art and love. And magic."

-Eric Kaplan, television writer and producer

(Big Bang Theory, Futurama)