Several years ago, Mentalist Thomas Baxter offered an ebook version of his notes on the think-of-a-card theme for sale on a very limited basis, for a very short period of time. After that, the notes were withdrawn from sale. In the ensuing years these notes have become much sought-after by students and collectors, including some of the most successful performers on the planet. Now the author has agreed to finally publish these notes in an expanded, hard-cover book format, making them again available to the Mentalism and magic communities.
A Card Merely Thought Of... describes the history and methodologies behind one of Mentalism's strongest plots - The Divination of a Spectator's Thought-of Playing Card. The focus of this work is the use of a normal, non-stacked, non-gaffed pack of cards to determine cards merely thought of by the participants. Imagine it... a card not touched, removed, cut-to or peeked at with a thumb break. The card is merely thought of and remembered. To the audience, this is real mind-reading.
Included in these notes are a thorough analysis of the Erdnase variations of "Think of a Card", with further examination of the published thoughts of others who have worked with the concepts, such as Vernon, Dingle, Berglas, and Bowyer.
The author's own discoveries and work on the 'Think of a Card' theme are clearly described with photographs and illustrations. Along with the history and theory behind the techniques, several full presentations are explained, including:
Fish Fry for Two
Imagine the audience's reaction as you spread a normal, shuffled pack of cards slowly and fairly in front of two different participant's eyes, asking then to just THINK of any card that they see. You immediately remove two cards from the pack, and the participants jaws drop... You've read their thoughts.
ThoughtControl
One spectator just THINKS of any card in the pack. A second spectator IMMEDIATELY tells the first which card they are thinking of. No stooges, instant or otherwise. Both are astonished, with no sense of how this could be possible.
Smythled
Two participants merely THINK of cards in a shuffled pack. The Performer cuts the pack into two face-down piles. He turns over the top two cards, face-up onto the table, and continues to deal the top cards from each pile face up, simultaneously onto the table, asking each participant to call "stop!" when they see their card arrive. To the amazement of all, both participants call stop at exactly the same time, both of their thought-of cards appearing at exactly the same time!
Separate But Equal
An extremely direct and clean ESP Card Match-Up routine.
...and Much More, including contributions from David Alexander, Hector Chadwick, Mick Ayres, and Sean Waters.
When Tom Baxter writes about a conjuring topic, he is always thorough and diverse, leaving no stone unturned. For me, Baxter's book A Card Merely Thought Of... is far more than a collection of well-structured routines---it has become a frequently visited source of reference for both methods and presentations.Mick Ayres
Books like this - where a quality professional tips his work -- don't come along very often. If you want to ramp up your skills and impress laypeople by finding cards that have been merely thought of, this is what you should buy.David Alexander
I must say in all honesty that this is the most well-researched and finely-written manuscript that I have ever read. The author explores nearly every aspect of this line of thought, and what he has produced is a complete course on this group of related effects. Every stone is overturned and explored in detail with the thoughts of those who have worked on this such as Erdnase, Vernon, Dingle, Berglas, and more, as well as the insights and experience of one, Thomas Baxter. I am in awe of what he has done.Tony Iacoviello
I thought this was a good book in 2007 when I bought a copy for myself and one for a friend. Can't wait to see what Tom has added to the expanded hardcover edition (you shouldn't wait either- Tom's books and products have a funny habit of selling out quickly).Michael Weber
Fantastic! Just finished reading it and blown away by the depth of the content! Everything has been completely covered and continues to be referenced and brought together as the book progresses. The routines are also excellent and I smiled with the 'cheekyness' of a number of them... some very crafty thinking indeed! This book is highly recommended for anyone who wants to be able to achieve what it says on the tin or for anyone looking to perform a 'Radar Deck type' routine (ala Richard Osterlind) impromptu with a borrowed deck. Very impressed and pleased with the work Mr. Baxter has created!Colin McLeod
Pages: 108 - 9" x 6" - Hard cover - Black and white images.