Book Tests in Mentalism & Spiritism

Two books that seem to know things they have no way of knowing.

From the creator of Tube and The Method Impossible series comes a brand new kind of book test, one that talks to the spectator and tells them what they are thinking!

Instead of using a book to select a word, these two book tests are active participants in a mysterious experience.

Hand someone a book. The book asks the spectator a few questions. Then it tells them their star sign — or the exact card they were thinking of. The questions have nothing to do with their birthdate or selected card. They are just silly questions...

This intro price will go up to $30 from August 31, 2026.

A special surprise gift worth $12 is included inside.

This book test is based on The Reverse Force. But you do not need to own that ebook to use this book test. This is not a physical book to carry around. It is a PDF which you can easily carry on your mobile phone, and you are ready to perform this anytime, anywhere, to anyone.

In this powerful book test, you don't just divine a single word but you can divine multiple words and an entire sentence also. You can even repeat the effect to the same participant, if required,...

The ultimate digital book test.

A mind-reading experiment like no other. Imagine peering into a spectator’s thoughts as they browse a digital book on their own device, freely selecting a word from thousands. No gimmicked books, no apparent restrictions. Yet, against all odds, you reveal the exact word they are thinking of.

Phantom Whisper redefines the classic book test, leveraging modern technology to create a seamless, direct, and utterly impossible experience. Whether you're performing live, at corporate events, or in casual settings, this effect delivers a cutting-edge demonstration...

A minimalist book test.

Some years ago I decided to design my own minimalist variation of a book test and I sat down and set myself some criteria with the idea of producing some sort of dictionary-style book test that doesn't actually use a dictionary or any other type of magic shop prop.

I wanted something customisable that I could use in cabaret but also for walkaround close-up gigs, so it had to take up minimal pocket space. The prop had to be innocuous and reasonably examinable so a spectator could handle it with minimal audience management, and I wanted the selection process to appear...

There is finally a complete history and encyclopedic reference book on book tests, all explained, described, and routined. Hundreds of book tests for mentalists and magicians are categorized by method and sorted chronologically. Examining the premise from 1584 to 2020, The Book Test Book explores hundreds of variations on the use of books to read minds. This ebook lists over 500 book tests as detailed in books and magazines and describes over 400 commercial book tests published and sold from the 1930s up to the present. The book includes 130 original color illustrations and over 1200 color...

Another brilliant mental effect from the mind of Ed Stoddard. This time, Stoddard presents a book test, using any book, that you can perform anywhere. A spectator chooses a word and you name it instantly.

Utilizes an ingenious, natural method that can't be beat. Plus a healthy dose of Stoddard's brand of subtlety and refinements that make it so easy to use. Imagine the shock and awe when you present this at the home of a friend or family member, using their own book.

(To be upfront about it, while the original dealer ad stated that you can use a borrowed book, and do it impromptu, you...

Do not be fooled by the low intro price. This is an absolute killer. Hands Off Book Test or in other words, HOBOT is very much like a ROBOT, fully automatic, very efficient, highly effective, self-working, and self-sufficient. Once you hand over the book to the participant, you do not touch it again during the entire routine. You do not just reveal a single word (although you can do that too) but you reveal about 10 to 15 words - one from each line from top to bottom of the page in the correct order as the participant is silently reading the page to himself. It appears as if you are plucking...

This may well be the last word in Book Tests! Here is a totally gimmick-free test that looks like mind reading at work. Imagine this...

Two spectators read just a few words from one of three books. The page has been arrived at by chance, with the performer concentrating on just one stand-out word. Following a few moments, the performer announces what that very word is!

As mentioned, a total absence of extras - no cheat sheets, stooges, playing cards, slates, electronic devices, or specially printed books. None of the usual stuff. For the working performer, this is an exceptional, completely...

Digital Book Test is an ebook in PDF format that you can easily carry on your mobile phone. It takes up very little space on your phone. With a physical book, a participant riffles through the pages. But here on an ebook, a participant will scroll through the pages up and down.

The core method is a word divination. A participant chooses a random word based on his birthday (he never reveals his birthday at any point) and you will reveal the word with zero fishing. You will be able to first reveal the first letter of the word, which will always hit accurately and never be wrong and then you...

Here's an incredibly direct book test that not only will amaze your audience, it will stun magicians, as well. There have been book tests with external paraphernalia and book tests with specially printed books... but never one so diabolically bold, clever, simple and direct as this.

The spectator simply opens a book, notes a word, and you can reveal it immediately or later. No involved mathematics. No stooge. None of the old thrusting of a card into the pages and all of that. No force, never the same word twice, and the book is an ordinary paperback that you can buy at any drug store. Or...

The Sync Book Test is a completely impromptu routine that can be performed anytime, anywhere, using two borrowed books. It is built around a strong, consistent presentation that turns the effect into a genuine test of how in sync the mentalist and participant are. The routine centers on a coincidence between a number and a word, but it sets the stage for a compelling telepathy demonstration - framed as yet another uncanny coincidence: the mentalist is silently thinking of the exact word randomly chosen by the participant.

Here's how the effect appears to the audience:

A participant freely...

Here you will find the history, method, and routine of the famous Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine book test developed by Richard Himber and staged to perfection by Stanley Jaks.

This Ellery Queen booklet from 1951 can occasionally still be found second-hand in its original edition. This means that nothing stands in the way of a faithful re-enactment of this effect.

1st edition 2024, PDF 20 pages.

Two for the price of one here as with Credit Transfer you get a mental effect and a piece of magic together. A borrowed credit card is slipped into a small envelope. Two paperback books are shown and the pages are riffled of one of the books until a spectator calls 'stop'. The credit card in the envelope is dropped into the book to mark the place. The second book is now opened to reveal an envelope is already inside it, and the page it rests on turns out to match the page just selected in the first book. Then the credit card vanishes from the envelope in the first book and arrives inside the...

A presentation for any book test that uses the flashback method.

Have you heard of the Bookbearer? This is a storytelling, bizarre presentation to be used with any book with the "flashback" principle. If you own such a book, you could use this.

I see many performers using such books, some presentations are good, but most are not as they merely riffle the pages, tell the subject to stop them and remember the first word on the page, and then reveal it. Bah. Here you will tell the brief story of the Bookbearer, and in the end, either subtly suggest you're the actual Bookbearer. Or that you're...

The Freestyle Book Test is a powerful book test that you can make at home, with practically any book.

"This book test is unlike any other I have seen." - David Regal (review in Genii magazine)

"Wow, very, very impressive. I like the way so much information can be divulged, this info on the mnemonics certainly applies to many, many effects. I am guessing that even if someone does not use the book test, they will walk away with something from this. Good stuff." - Banachek

You display a book that you say you've had for a long time and have even written and doodled inside of it. Throughout the...

Like a book test on a postcard.

Epitome is like a book test on a postcard. The theme here is "Greatest Books of All Time". The card supplied to you contains a list of some of the world's greatest books and other related content. The card supplied is about postcard size and can be comfortably carried in your pocket.

You can perform about 15 different effects using the card. And the effects use various combinations of different principles. You do not need any physical books to perform these effects. In fact, you do not need any other props except the card supplied. But this is not for rank...

No prizes for guessing who it was that did more to popularize mentalism than anyone else. Certainly, a steady stream of impressive performers and writers have kept the kettle boiling over the years, but it was Theo Annemann who, beginning in the first half of the twentieth century, set the pace with ingenious methods and presentations that still influence material today.

He wrote: "It is my theory that any effect to be successful must first be founded upon a simple method, and then be performed with a direct, to-the-point presentation." Hard to disagree with a compelling narrative such as this.

Australia's...

A book test, a 3-card trick, and a 5-envelope impossible selection routine - all self-working.

A prediction envelope is placed on the table, along with the performer's favorite novel. The spectator is handed a magazine that has had the staples removed and is asked to select any one of the double pages she likes. It's a free choice. She is then asked to add all the page numbers together. Let's say the number totals 170. She turns to page 170 in the novel ... and the prediction reveals which city is mentioned, the make of car which is talked about, and the unusual word on line 4! In fact,...

Discover and process natural force books.

In his "Autome" book test video, Max Maven demos a book test and a forcing method. What he does not do is explain how to find and process books other than the one he demos. That's what this manuscript does. My process, including all the required worksheets, teaches how to use almost any 300+ page popular novel, in any language, as natural force books.

The Effect: The mentalist introduces three popular paperback books and hands them out to the audience. As the books are examined, the mentalist has members of the audience record several random numbers....

If you liked Bookworm: The Ultimate Impromptu Book Test Act, then you will love The Bookworm Deck. An entire "Word Test Act" combined into a single deck that you will always carry with you.

Not only can you now perform the "Bookworm Act" without having to borrow three books, you can perform the act in absolutely any venue, including walk-around, table hopping, and even stage situations. The entire act is kept in your pocket. The Bookworm Deck also makes the act much easier to perform.

Here is the act:

The performer borrows three business cards and a pen (obviously, he can use his own if the items cannot be borrowed). The performer...

This is one of the most amazing things you will ever see. Looks like real mind-reading. A spectator is given a copy of a newspaper. It can be your local paper. The paper is not gimmicked in any way. The spectator chooses a paragraph from the front page. No force. He reads the first few words and spells each word to himself. The magician instantly reveals the words the person read. This is a little-known principle that Al Mann developed in 1979 that will fool magicians.

It's a show-stopper. Use any newspaper. No pre-show, done on the spot with any person. Can be done long-distance over zoom calls....

This is a 'stand-alone' application as a variation of Thrifty Telempathy for use in a "no-touch" or social distancing environment, to include senior centers and venues with physical disabilities. It features several mechanical forces in place of Beta Framing including the "Manna Concept" that will be new to many performers.

(All author proceeds support the woodHenge Wildlife Sanctuary.)

1st edition 2021, PDF 18 pages.

This is a 'stand-alone' application using a standard book test in a two-phase presentation that can greatly enhance its impact and astonishment. The book test must be of a novel "can be passed out" variety book. This can easily segue into Thrifty or Basic Telempathy. ABAT experience is recommended but not essential.

(All author proceeds support the woodHenge Wildlife Sanctuary.)

1st edition 2021, PDF 19 pages.

Any book - any time

This is a 'stand-alone' application for a completely impromptu demonstration using any novel found at the site or provided by a spectator. This has less potential astonishment impact than Thrifty or Basic but gains in the completely "free choice" area. It features the "Teach Posture" and Beta Framing. This approach is an ideal back-up for the other applications and essential for the completely prepared mystic performer.

(All author proceeds support the woodHenge Wildlife Sanctuary.)

1st edition 2021, PDF 18 pages.

This is a 'stand-alone' application for situations in which no printed novel is common or available. This unique approach gets around the "your book" taint of a standard book test and features the "Mental Test Posture" and Beta Framing. Maximum flexibility for a variety of venues and audiences. The recommended "best place to start" in the Series.

(All author proceeds support the woodHenge Wildlife Sanctuary.)

1st edition 2021, PDF 22 pages.