View Full Version : any opinions on this tarot card book?
i ordered "Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Book of Tarot" and did some research and i saw all the good reviews on it, so not sure about the flaws! has anyone read this book or some of it? any opinions on it?
thanks
metal_romantic
29-06-2009, 22:35
It's a classic, so I'm sure you find threads about it if you do a search :)
I think it's "required reading", but some will enjoy it more than others (as with everything!)
I found it a little dry and prefer Robert M Place's "Tarot: History, Symbolism and Divination", but it is definitely worth a read. ;)
firefrost
29-06-2009, 22:40
The majority of readers I know here have it. It was one of my first tarot bibles, although I can't remember the last time I looked at it.
Wouldn't ever part with it, though...! :) ;)
"I found this book to be pretty useless.
The meanings described in the book are plain confusing because they are wrong. Someone who'd been studying tarot before would not find one single match between their card meanings and the card meanings there. I was wondering which deck did the author use to get inspiration for the card meanings. I have been reading Tarot for a while and I found zero useful information in this book, I believe it could confuse someone who just started studying tarot. As for more experienced tarot readers, it is completely useless, as they will not be able to add anything to their knowledge and experience.
I also didn't find any other Tarot related information that could be of interest"
this was quoted from a review on the book, can anyone relate to this? it's 1 of the 2 bad reviews out of 55 on this book, the other bad review was similar, can anyone relate to this? is this person wrong or right?
thanks
is this book on Rider-Waite or Thoth?
________________
later i read that it's on RW
metal_romantic
30-06-2009, 18:01
"I found this book to be pretty useless.
The meanings described in the book are plain confusing because they are wrong. Someone who'd been studying tarot before would not find one single match between their card meanings and the card meanings there. I was wondering which deck did the author use to get inspiration for the card meanings. I have been reading Tarot for a while and I found zero useful information in this book, I believe it could confuse someone who just started studying tarot. As for more experienced tarot readers, it is completely useless, as they will not be able to add anything to their knowledge and experience.
I also didn't find any other Tarot related information that could be of interest"
this was quoted from a review on the book, can anyone relate to this? it's 1 of the 2 bad reviews out of 55 on this book, the other bad review was similar, can anyone relate to this? is this person wrong or right?
thanks
The above review is useless. Lol. To call the meanings given "wrong" is just plain arrogant and this renders the whole "review" invalid, if you ask me.
If he/she actually read the book, they would know that the cards described are from the Rider Waite (aka Rider Waite Smith) deck. If you read any book with descriptions of the RWS and compare them to a Thoth or a Marseilles or a Baseball or a whatever, then they are OBVIOUSLY not going to match up. *rolls eyes*
So, don't worry about it. I'm sure you will find at least something useful in the book. :D
Good book for majors, really makes you look at them a different way. not very good with the minors.
its good for a reference book to keep, i would recomend reading it. I liked the fact it doesnt delve too much into the symbology too much and get bogged down, bu enough to pique your interestt if you want to learn more
AprilFool
30-06-2009, 19:35
You'll find goofy reviews like that on every book, LOL! Everyone has the right to their opinion, certainly; but that review was oddly scathing - I usually try to take the reviews as a whole, and not take any one particular review too seriously! :)
I like that book, myself. I keep referring back to it from time to time, but have not really read it through and through. I think you'll get your money's worth out of it as a fantastic reference book at the very least! :D
metal_romantic
30-06-2009, 23:14
You'll find goofy reviews like that on every book, LOL! Everyone has the right to their opinion, certainly; but that review was oddly scathing - I usually try to take the reviews as a whole, and not take any one particular review too seriously! :)
I like that book, myself. I keep referring back to it from time to time, but have not really read it through and through. I think you'll get your money's worth out of it as a fantastic reference book at the very least! :D
Agreed ;)
Astraea Aurora
30-06-2009, 23:55
I like this book a lot as it was my first English book about tarot and opened me up to the whole world of "look for yourself" and "what do you see in it?", something I've missed (and still miss) in German writings about tarot. It goes deeply into the pictures and questions their details.
I think it makes a great reference book after the initial reading, a book I keep coming back to.
Astraea Aurora :grin:
thanks everyone
i think i will like it too :)
This book was an invaluable resource for me! I highly recommend it. :)
Grizabella
01-07-2009, 06:15
I very much prefer Tarot Wisdom: Spiritual Teachings and Deeper Meanings which is a newer book by the same author. I found 78 Degrees kind of dry, as others have said. Tarot Wisdom, though, is very much more interesting.
Seventy-Eight Degree's of Wisdom is a great reference book.
It's not gospel. It's a snapshot of RWS meanings and how they were, for the author at that moment in time.
Mystical Origins of the Tarot: From Ancient Roots to Modern Usage by Paul Huson is IMO a better reference book, as it outlines meanings through time.
i'm sure i'll read more tarot books in the future, possibly those ones you mentioned we'll see, but this is my first book on tarot
i am a beginner :)
Marcia959
01-07-2009, 06:57
There is a subtlety in the assessment that this is a "great RWS reference book" and I agree enthusiastically. It's utterly one of my favs. I've recommended it to my friends as a must-have. I did read it all the way through, but I'm that kid that read the dictionary, too. It truly is that book that I go back to. The subtlety is (2x4 between the eyes) that it is a great REFERENCE book, not a narrative.
I also agree with Umbrae that this shouldn't be considered as THE only definition, but should be considered a great brain jogger for your inspiration and intuition.
I also like the Robert Place book mentioned below, plus Connolly's Tarot A New Handbook for the Apprentice, Tarot Card Combinations and Tarot Reversals.
IMHO, if you do rote memorization and limit your interpretations of cards on a card-by-card basis without considering context or your own intuition, you're reading without understanding and doing no one a favor, including yourself. That said, even the keenest intuition can use a kick in the pants refresher occasionally, so buy-and-keep definitely, not buy-and-toss.