Life Is Magic: My Inspiring Journey from Tragedy to Self-Discovery

Jon Dorenbos is a magical person. Life Is Magic shows how we can all choose happiness in the face of overwhelming odds. Ellen DeGeneres An extraordinary and empowering story of resilience, forgiveness, and living a life of purpose in the face of unfathomable obstacles. You may know him as an NFL All-Pro or as a world-class magician who made the finals of Americas Got Talent, but Jon Dorenbos says that what he does is not who he is. He is someone who coached himself, at the most tender of ages, to turn tragedy to triumph. One morning in August 1992, when Jon was twelve years old and living a seemingly idyllic childhood in suburban Seattle, he woke up for baseball camp. His dad waved goodbye. Later that day, Jon heard the news: his father had murdered his mother in the familys three-car garage. In an instant, his life had shattered. Hed essentially been orphaned. Thrust into foster care while his father stood trial for murder, Jon struggled. Left to himself, he discovered an unlikely escape performing magic tricks. If you found a way to alter your reality, after your dadyour herokilled your mom, wouldnt you cling to it too? Then came football, which provided a release for all of his pent-up anger. Together, magic and football saved him, leading to fourteen NFL seasons on the gridiron and raucous sleight of hand performances to packed houses across the globe. In 2017, he was diagnosed with a life-threatening heart condition leaving him with a choice. To either break down oras hed by now long taught himselfbounce back. Life Is Magic shows how we can all choose happiness in the face of overwhelming odds (Ellen DeGeneres) and provides a roadmap for overcoming even the darkest of times. Jons story is poignant and powerful, told by a charismatic and optimistic man who has overcome life-or-death challenges with grace, persistence, a childlike sense of wonderand jaw-dropping card tricks.