Best Mentalism Books
Out of all the fantastic mentalism literature out there, including the essential mentalism write ups I’ve recommended, you want to know which ones are the best mentalism books ever written.
Although I can’t help but recommend that you get all the ones I mentioned on the main article, I know that a lack of time, money or even patience can make that a bit hard so today I’ll be showing you the very best mentalism books you can get.
They are absolute explosions of mentalism knowledge and if I could only choose 5 books out of all to keep, these would be the ones.
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Top 5 Best Mentalism Books
Without further ado, here are the choices that are, in my opinion, the best mentalism books out of all, reviewed in a straightforward manner.
1 – 13 Steps to Mentalism
Author: Corinda
As I mentioned in the main article, 13 Steps to Mentalism is as close to the Holy Bible of Mentalism as books get. Extremely popular and filled to the brim with gorgeously useful knowledge and tricks, it’s a true classic that you just can’t afford to miss. It’s excellently written by Tony Corinda, easily accessible and even with its age (first published in 1961) it still features some of the very best information one could ask for.
All the way through the 13 steps, you’ll learn about the more psychological part of the arts such as cold reading and body language and also about the more practical, physical part of Mentalism like constructing devices and props such as billets.
Praised by some of the greatest mentalists in the game such as Derren Brown, Larry Becker, Richard Osterlind and Banachek, this is arguably the best mentalism book of all time – in my opinion. A must have.
2 – Tricks of the Mind
Author: Derren Brown
Derren Brown’s most popular write up – and with good reason – Tricks of the Mind is a fantastic piece of literature that shows you how a lot of beautiful tricks work and how to perform them while also giving you a general view at the art, all while being charmingly written with the unique style of the author.
It delves into psychology and hypnosis as well, but in a way that anyone can read and learn about it with ease, instead of going in too deep and losing your interest in the process – great for beginners!
It’s entertaining, easy to read and deeply useful especially for newcomers to the art.
3 – Prism The Color Series of Mentalism
Author: Max Maven
Giving you essential knowledge about the central ideas and concepts behind Mentalism while also teaching you a mind blowing amount of tricks and effects – 53 to be exact – this is another excellent mentalism book that you can’t miss.
While any edition of the book is a great read, the latest one that features gorgeous and insanely useful illustrations by Ton Onosaka is by far the best version. It’s an enjoyable read, deeper than what you might expect at first and it will offer you a great amount of utilities and concepts (not only on tricks but on showmanship, effects, and ideas) that’ll surely be useful not only now, but for the rest of your Mentalism journey.
Newcomers will be blown away and experts will add a new level of knowledge and greatness to their skills.
4 – Encyclopedia of Mentalism & Mentalists
Author: Corinda
Combining both Corinda’s “13 Steps to Mentalism” and Rauscher’s “Mindreaders – Masters of Deception” into one big, 600 pages long and gorgeously illustrated tome of Mentalism knowledge, this beauty is by far, in my view, one of the best mentalism books ever put together and it’d be worth the buy even just for showcasing.
The first part will guide you through the popular 13 steps, as you’d expect, while the second will give you an in-depth look at the history of Mentalism and some incredible performers of both the past and present.
A true explosion of Mentalism goodness, it deserves a spot on everyone’s shelf.
5 – Absolute Magic: A Model for Powerful Close-Up Performance
Author: Derren Brown
Last but not least, Derren Brown’s “Absolute Magic” is an insanely potent and highly focused book that’s completely written for Mentalists instead of being aimed at the general public.
Written in the author’s uniquely humorous and charming style, Absolute Magic will not only offer you a look into bar-raising tricks and how to put them into practice but it’ll also tell you how to perform them, and any other mentalism trick, successfully.
From presentation to mesmerizing ideas and unmissable tips on how to increase the impact of your performances and much, much more, it’s probably my favorite Derren Brown book of all time.
Conclusion
Unbeatable in quality, usefulness and knowledge, these are easily among the very best Mentalism books of all time as far as I’m concerned. Even if you get just these 5 books and decide to start all of your learning with them, you’ll be on the perfect track and on your way to becoming a truly excellent Mentalist yourself.
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2 comments
Deepak May 18, 2020
Which book should i start from if i am noob and want to learn metalism.
Mike May 18, 2020
Hey Deepak - I've written a whole article focusing on exactly your situation, you can check it out by going to the main menu > Learn > Mentalism Books > Mentalism Books for Beginners. Thanks for stopping by and good luck!