Interesting list, Austin I agree with most of it but there are a few other stops, one in particular, my own
MENTALISM Resource & Guide. While there are those that have "problems" with this book, at least it will give you an honest purview as to what Mentalism is all about vs. the more censored points of view we've seen surface in the years since the 1997 summer of Blaine & Angel and of course the British invasion that never was -- Derren Brown (he failed miserably in this country, especially given his "you're a fool for believing in things" approach).
(Does it show that I'm jaded?)
Mentalism is in fact performance reliant; the effects are typically simple when it comes to method but it's your patter and general presentation along with your ability to actually be your character/claim that makes things come together. Unlike magic, mentalism depends on that investment of belief from your patrons so don't treat it as you would a magic trick or performing a magic show. A true Mentalist needs little more than a few bits of paper and a writing instrument and he can deliver a full hour show . . . and I do mean this as it sounds -- a "True" Mentalist doesn't rely on gimmicks other than maybe a trusty Swami or impression system; we don't run around with a pocket full of junk but rather, a head filled with know how and a body full of skill.
Understand, there is a big difference between a Mentalist and a Mental Magician; the latter does tricks that are designed for public amusement, most of which looks like they came off the shelf at the local magic shop. Many of the effects they do you will see in Magic shows and sin of all sins, they seem to love enjoy getting the cheap laugh using the same corny lines magicians have used for over half a century now.
A Mentalist shoots for realism and yes, that includes people like Banachek and Brown. They shoot for believability and not all of them believe in the use of disclaimers because of the adverse affect such things can have on your program and related claims (which is to say that many of us do not mimic the current "safe" persona or antagonist we've seen in the past few years.)
SKILLS?
Cold Reading -- it goes with most everything we do, so learn to be proficient at it. Don't waste your monty on the Rowland book; a.) it's not based on real world work; b.) it is based on cynical bias and encourages some very dangerous as well as cruel practices so simply ignore it! For the basics in Cold Reading start with two key resources; Lee Earle's Gentel Art of Cold Reading and Bob Cassidy's The Real Work of Cold Reading followed by the two most important books; Richard Webster's Psychometery from A-Z and Brad Henderson's THE DANCE (it is a limited release with less than 2 doz. legal copies remaining available). There's a lot more to this niche but this will get you rolling; the link I provided will give you a ton of other resources to look at.
Know Your Billets! It's one of the most important skills you can learn so put your money to best use by subscribing to SWITCHCRAFT followed by the Alan Zingg Master Billet Course DVD Collection.
Muscle Reading -- This is one of the primary skills that will allow you to do most anything a Mentalist/Psychic is known to do without the need of a single "prop". It is, in my experience (close to 25 years doing Mentalism & Bizarre Magick exclusively) the second most important skill you could ask for in this niche area of study. I would recommend that you start with the Banachek book PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL THOUGHT READING and Disc 3 of this PSI Series DVD collection followed by Jerome Finley's THOUGHT CHANNEL I & II and finally (after about 3 years of practicing the basics) get Jerome's Full Contact Mind Reading course. There are many other books on the subject including the Wolf Messing and Erik jan Hanussen materials from Bob Cassidy and Hanussen's own course (which is pretty good -- I also suggest you get the biographic works on Messing & Hanussen, you'll learn tons from them and just what is possible with this method).
Words, Command of Words & General Psychology is the next biggie and something you won't find in those "Bibles" of Mentalism but you will find intimated in many of the older compositions by Hull, Nelson, Boarde, etc. specifically, you want to learn about Ericsonianian or conversational Hypnosis and related linguistic techniques which includes NLP long before it became the pseudo-science it is today. Being able to manipulate people by way of your words is priceless! Schooling in this arena is, especially for the 21st century Mentalist, a must in my book (at 54 I'm seriously thinking about going back to school just to learn these techniques).
Related to this are other communication techniques such as FACS (which ties to Muscle Reading and "Tells") and general body language study.
When it comes to this niche I will point out that it includes things like Forcing Techniques as well as the use of Progressive Anagram systems.
Memory -- the old timers were sticklers about mnemonic systems none of which I was ever able to master in that most I felt were illogical, given that you had to remember your abstract anchor as well as the item you anchored to it. . . this is why I developed my Easy Reading system (currently heading to a major expansion & up-date btw. . . ER II due out next spring). My system is based on known factors which is an extension to the Paul Hadley Code system (How to Develop Mental Magic -- Hades Publishing), which uses what we already know -- things that are first, second, third, etc. as the anchor but allows for other flexibility such as numeric & color associations. While I'd love the business, I'm suggesting you wait till the new book comes out (save your pennies, it's a big two volume set that will prove a bit expensive); the new book has loads of corrections & up-dates when it comes to the original release plus, dozens of additional techniques associated with Reading work as well as the mnemonic keys. In the meantime try your hand with Harry Lorrayne's The Memory Book or the original Roth system it was based on.
Master Your Swami -- I'm not a big one for gimmicks and admittedly, I don't use this sort of device as much as I could (it's just personal preference) but the Swami is the single most powerful physical tool in a Mentalist's arsenal, so learn it! You'll be glad you did.
I know you asked for "tricks" but I believe in the old axiom about teaching a person to fish rather than giving them one; with little other than the skills I've listed here, you can do a two hour show totally impromptu -- you've only to rehearse the sequence and your script, everything else will flow naturally, based on what you know. You will be able to execute the miraculous whenever you desire and under most any set of circumstances.
When it comes to effects go back to your Corinda & Annemann texts, there's dozens of little gems that will give you that Wow factor, don't think they're worthless just because they are old -- think of them as proven!
Authors to Study, in my opinion, starts with everything penned by Richard Webster, Ron Martin, Kenton Knepper, Bob Cassidy, John Riggs and as you advance I'd have to include both, Jerome Finley & Neal Scryer. From the yesteryear vault I'd track down the Burling Hull, William Larsen (Sr.), Robert Nelson, Will Dexter, Ormond McGill, and Orville Meyer collections.
Hope this gives you some perspective and serves you (anyone curious about Mentalism) well.