Gendron, Enchanted (ZF) & Tarot Nova reviews by me

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 29 Dec 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Ursula	29 Dec 2002
hi all, i'm new and just wanted to post my impressions of all THREE of my decks. (i could look for separate threads on each, but that seemed a bit tedious--hope you all don't mind!) Gendron i know some people say that the minors in the Gendron are unattractive, especially compared to the majors, but i think that the artist (Melanie Gendron) made them significantly different on purpose to highlight the difference in energy from the major to the minor. some say they look like a collage of different decks or images haphazardly slapped together, but i think she considered the symbolism very carefully on all of her cards. i don't like the minors as well as the majors (which are AWESOME, imo), but i like the deck as a whole so much that i can overlook a few less than aesthetically pleasing images. Enchanted (Zerber-Farber) the Enchanted has lovely imagery on all the cards, though the colors are not nearly as vivid as they appeared online or as they appear in the accompanying book. because of that and the difficulty of shuffling such a huge deck, i was really ambivalent about my purchase at first. the deck grew on me, though. i enjoyed the readings in the book, which is different from any other tarot book i've seen. while certainly not all tarot readers would agree completely with the interpretations and insights given, they do seem to follow the essence of the traditional meanings. there is a very positive, new agey spin put on all the interpretations that both laid to rest some of the lingering fears i had about reading tarot cards (what if i draw the DEATH card????? etc.... ;)) and made it easy for me to use the book in my first readings for others (on a cruise ship only about a month into my study!!!). even the 10 of swords gives some nice, gentle advice with its message of "Ruin", so i guess "user-friendly" is the best way to describe it! the only thing about the book that i have to kind of ignore most of the time is the "Enchantment" section given with each card. this is a recommendation for a ritual to perform related to each card and i find most of them to be hokey, like they're written for a juvenile audience. some are ok, even kind of inspiring, but most i deliberately avoid reading! so overall, i love the Enchanted Tarot, but do wish i'd known about the version without the borders so i could have the same imagery in a smaller deck! Tarot Nova i picked this one up on impulse at Barnes & Noble for $8 (only $5 if you buy it online!). i'd been working with Gendron and Enchanted for a couple of months, & i think after all of their complex imagery, i found the simplicity of the Tarot Nova refreshing. the cards have a whimsical quality to them that was another departure from the overall serious tone of my other decks, & my overall impression of the deck was that it was "cute as hell" ;) i also loved the fact that i could take it with me wherever i go in my purse! someone asked me recently if i'd brought my tarot cards with me. i said, "i always have my tarot cards!" i just love being able to say that! the book gives interpretations for both upright and reversed cards, which i liked, and synthesizes the meanings into advice, which is a good thing for a beginner, imo. now that i'm more educated on the various interpretations of the cards, i see that there is a good bit of oversimplification, but again, for a beginner, i think too much is overwhelming. in fact, i just gave a new deck to a friend who was fascinated by the reading i did for her. the other thing included is a little mat to put cards on in a 4 card spread: past, present, "points to ponder" and future. i used it and it's a cool twist on the typical 3 card spread, i think. so there you go! my first tarot deck reviews *takes a bow* blessings, ~Urs :OL

purplelady	29 Dec 2002
Welcome , Ursula! Of the 3 you reviewed, I only have the Enchanted. I have heard before that the colors are "pale" or not as vivid. I don't see that on my deck at all though, the colors are perfectly vivid. Perhaps it's because my deck was bought many years ago? I wonder if the latest printings are paler? Also, There IS a smaller printing of Enchanted, It's called Zerner Farber, same deck without the borders and cards are "regular" size. It comes with a different book than enchanted. Still not sure if I want the Gendron , but it's on my list :) .

Trogon	30 Dec 2002
Howdy Ursula! Welcome to Aeclectic Tarot. Good reviews. I hadn't really been considering any of these decks for myself yet... (unless of course someone wanted to give me one of them... ;) ) but after looking over the scans of the Gendron and the Enchanted Tarots, I might have to reconsider. You have, at least, piqued my interest in these decks. Thanks. Oh... by they... your signature line had me laughing! Thanks for that too... loved it!

The Gendron, Enchanted (ZF) & Tarot Nova reviews by me thread was originally posted on 29 Dec 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.