ESCAPE KING: The Story of Harry Houdini

Filling in with some perfunctory bits of biographical background, Ernst describes some of Houdini's more spectacular escapes and offers at the end--though ""many of Houdini's secrets were buried with him""--a few general clues as to how he managed them: ability to half-swallow and bring up objects, muscle control, manual dexterity even in his toes, and above all grinding effort. The subject recommends itself where book baiting is in order; Ernst's contribution is minimal.