P 57 "[H]e enjoyed the walk through the darkening streets, the cold air turning to smoke as it left his nostrils. Poof the Magic Dragon, he thought ironically." -- Val McDermid, Killing the Shadows (2000) "[A] poof of dust . . ." -- Michael Spooner, Daniel's Walk (2004) "The bag lands not far away from Ruby but explodes with a satisfying thud and wonderful poof, a big white cloud like a gloved magician might produce." -- Sara Pritchard, Crackpots (200 ) • Transformation "Someone waves a magic wand and poof -- everything that was ugly is magically new and remarkably gorgeous." -- Mary E. Hunt, Cheapskate Monthly Money Makeover (1995) "No abracadabra and poof." -- Jim Munroe, Flyboy Action Figure Comes with Gasmask (1995) • Unexplainable occurrence "It's a mystery. That catchall phrase was used by her parents as liberally as salt for all unexplainable occurrences, the equivalent of poof to prestidigitators." -- Nina Solomon, Single Wife (200 ) • Vanish into thin air "Poof! Into thin air they went." -- John Griesemer, Signal & Noise (2004) "I wanted to tell you, but you disappeared, poof, like a magician's dove." -- Jenny McPhee, No Ordinary Matter (2004) "[I]f you want to make a set of car keys go poof! pull one key from the ring and vanish it instead." -- Joel Bauer, How to Persuade People Who Don't Want to be Persuaded (2004) "Poof! Gone like magic! Now ya see it, my friends, now ya don't." -- Stephen King, The Drawing of the Three (1990) "Poof! You are vanished, invisible." -- Stephen Hunter, Havana (200 ) "[P]oof off to oblivion . . ." -- Reneau H. Reneau, Misanthropology: A Florilegium of Bahumbuggery (200 ) "'You need only say the word, and poof!' Like a sorcerer, she opened her fist in the air, flinging magic. 'We'll be gone.'" -- Lauren Belfer, City of Light (1999) "Yet it was gone. Vanished, poof!" -- Patricia Monaghan, The Red- Haired Girl from the Bog: The Landscape of Celtic Myth and Spirit (200 ) Common Magician's Applications. Flame effects. Vanishing. For example, "A coin sits on a table. You pick it up, toss it high into the air, where it vanishes at the peak of its arc. 'Poof! Where'd it go?'"17 Variations and Incantations: • Ay, fo! Poof "Ay, fo! Poof, bad thoughts be gone." -- John Leguizamo, Extreme Exposure: An Anthology of Solo Performance Texts from the Twentieth Century (2000) • Ka-poof -- Pam Smallcomb, Trimoni Twins and the Changing Coin (2004) 17 Klutz Press, Coin Magic (1997)