Magical worlds, wands and wizards' hats are the things that get kids reading. The magical world of Harry Potter brought reading back into the mainstream, even for adults.

Sandy resident Lance Nielsen was doing magic long before his counterpart Harry Potter was. For 20 years, he has been reading books about magic and honing his skills as a magician.

Now he's bringing his passion for reading and magic together at the Salt Lake County Library to encourage children to read and follow their dreams.

While making everything from money to rings disappear and pulling bunnies out of purses, Nielsen gives the children in the audience three cardinal rules about reading. First, he tells them to read 15 minutes every day.

Second, he says, to an audience of shining eyes and smiling faces, "If you become a good reader, you can become anything you want to become." Of course, he draws the line on unreal expectations by saying some kids won't ever grow tall enough to become like NBA basketball center Shaquille O'Neal, who plays for the Miami Heat.

Finally, Nielsen adds: "You have got to take care of books."

Nielsen is a living testimony that you can achieve your goals through reading books.

As a seventh-grader, Nielsen had a friend who owned a magic set. This friend could manipulate a thimble, and Nielsen was awestruck. His friend showed him how to do the thimble trick - a trick Nielsen still uses in his shows today.

Nielsen wanted to learn more about magic, but he didn't know where to start.

"I went down to the bookstore and found a book," says Nielsen, adding he then devoured book after book about magic.

Through books, Nielsen found magicians he wanted to emulate - specifically, magicians who infused humor into their magic. David Ginn and Sammy Smith are two of Nielsen's favorite magicians.

Nielsen has since written his own book for children, titled Amazing Magical Secrets for Kids!

During a recent magic show at Bingham Creek Library in West Jordan, Nielsen performed his tricks and even showed the kids a thing or two about doing some magic tricks themselves. One nifty little trick is simple: Two-sided tape helps coins stick to your hands, which makes coins appear to disappear.

Nielsen thrives on children's laughter. Taking volunteers from the audience, he lets the children become a major part of the show.

The children many times are so enamored with Nielsen's magic, they don't forget him.

"I've had kids see me at the grocery store, come up to me and give me a big hug," Nielsen says.

Following in their father's footsteps, several of Nielsen's children have taken an interest in magic.

Magic can help people relate to one another in many arenas. For example, as a young church missionary in Brazil, Nielsen found ways to infuse magic into discussions of gospel principles such as truth or obedience. And as an insurance agent by day, Nielsen brings magic to the office.

Nielsen also has used magic to teach about drug prevention and safety, among other topics.

"Magic has been a great podium to teach," he says.