The Magician

Magic is based on illusion, and law is supposedly based on truth. Or are they? The Magician is peopled with men, women, and youngsters we know, in situations as frightening as they seem to be unavoidable.

There are two magicians in the story: Sixteen-year-old Ed Japhet, who gives a skillful performance of magic at a high-school prom, and George Thomassy, an unusual lawyer who performs his magic in - and sometimes out of - the courtroom.

The leader of the school gang is infuriated by Japhet's success. What he does about it leads to a criminal trial, an attempted murder, and death. Finally, the story brilliantly demonstrates the illusion of justice in a court of law by proving that the guilty are innocent.