Yeah, absolutely James.
The best mentalism books to start off with include:
Bob Cassidy's Fundamentals - Teaches you how to be a mentalist, rather than just tricks. It's like having someone who knows tricks - but you know they're not really magicians, just because they can do the 21 Card Trick. Same thing with mentalists.
Tony Corinda's 13 Steps to Mentalism - Possibly the most comprehensive coverage of all aspects of mentalism. Includes a section on card mentalism.
Theodore Annemann - Practical Mental Magic - A great compilation of effects from his vast publications over the years.
These are the basic books mentalists should own. There is of course a lot more compulsory reading, but they're the best to start off with - how to be a mentalist and exactly what that means - what mentalism is.
As far as card mentalism goes, there is a lot that is scattered. Barrie Richardson's Theatre of the Mind, two volumes, both contain very good material. Also, I quite like Derren Brown's The Devil's Picturebook DVD set.
For more extended recommendations, check out this comprehensive list...
http://www.lybrary.com/thirtynine-steps-mentalism-a-10.html
Note that it is written by Bob Cassidy and hence doesn't contain his own works, but I would put Fundamentals at the top of that list. Note that Corinda and Annemann feature prominently in his list as well - being first and second most important respectively. Also note that Practical Mental Effects = Practical Mental Magic, just an earlier version. Although he recommends Annemann's Jinx over Practical Mental Magic, he acknowledges that the latter is a more to the point work, and for that reason I'd actually prefer it. There's no substitute for the Jinx, but especially when starting out, I find that it's hard enough to visualise Corinda and Annemann as it is - it is sometimes a little difficult to read and bring to life - so any abbreviation in the massive Jinx is a good thing to start off with. He also recommends Henry Hay's book, which is probably a good idea.