Kids filled the lanes between the reference and non-fiction sections Tuesday afternoon starting at 1:00 p.m. to see Magic Mr. Nick, a 30-year-veteran of such shows use sleight of hand and deft movements of curtains to entrance and astound.  His coupe de gras trick was turning a balloon into a puppy.

After his nearly hour-long performance, which used many children as helpers, the festivities adjourned to the outdoors just south of the building where Farmers Bank & Trust gave away grilled hot dogs and water and a cluster of young library volunteers provided soft drinks.

Throughout the show, which is part of Hempstead County Library’s Color Your World series, Mr. Nick spoke of the influence on his repertoire of books on the subject of magic.  The trick with colored rope that somehow changed lengths before the kids’ eyes had come from a book he had found in the library.

When the children got outdoors, Mr. Nick turned on a contraption and began sending columns of soap foam toward the crowd of kids who had followed him.  As the foam built up on the library lawn’s grass, kids grabbed at it and threw it at the unsuspecting or else just danced in the suds.  

Magic Mr. Nick’s appearance marked the last production of Hempstead County Library’s summer reading program.