Books by Harlan Tarbell

Harlan Tarbell was an American graphic artist, magician, and author. Tarbell earned his living through graphic work for various clients. In 1926, at the age of 36, he was commissioned to write and illustrate a correspondence course in magic. In just two years, 60 lessons of the "Tarbell System," named after him from the outset, with approximately 3,100 drawings, were completed. The course was promoted with considerable effort, and Tarbell himself was prominently featured as a promotional figure. This Tarbell Course in Magic became his main and life's work.

The course was reprinted between 1941 and 1954 and expanded into a six-volume series with 83 lessons. In 1972, twelve years after Tarbell's death, a seventh volume of the Tarbell Course was published, and an eighth volume followed 21 years later. The complete work is now divided into 103 lessons in the original English version, covering 3,400 pages and 8,200 illustrations. It is the most comprehensive work on magic ever published. The Tarbell Course is published in German as the series "TARBELL - The Fundamentals of Magic" by Magic Center Harri.