Top Ten essential tarot titles

moderndayruth

Le Fanu said:
Im gonna come clean; I don't really like "touchy-feely, visualise your spirit guide and swim with the dolphin-fairy whilst massaging your ancestors' chakras" approach to tarot. Im not knocking it, I just can't do it.

:D :D :D

Morgane_49 said:
and Sarah Bartlett's "Tarot Bible".
I just got that one - imo spreads section is great and it seems that all in all it is a decent book. (More for beginners though, i think.)
My favorites are Pollac's 78 Degrees of Wisdom and, as AJ says, JMD's materials.
 

Greg Stanton

gregory said:
No; that was the one published by Watkins. The Authentic Tarot. It's the PICTURES !!! Disaster !
However, my copy is fine. I think you just got a copy from a bad run. And if memory serves, you got it remaindered...?
 

gregory

Greg Stanton said:
However, my copy is fine. I think you just got a copy from a bad run. And if memory serves, you got it remaindered...?
True ! :)
 

zan_chan

Wendywu said:
I've been known to look thoughtfully at the Haindl books, and then turn away to something a little less obscure, like a nice complicated balance sheet .......

sapienza said:
As for the Haindl companions.....did you actually get through them both? I've started a few times but seem to hit a wall and just give up.

Oh no! I've just put up an ISO for the Haindl books in the trading forum. I've been working with my Haindl deck the last few days and have been really enjoying it, and thought the books would help me see the whole picture. Do we not recommend the books? Will they just make it worse? I usually like deep and complicated (I collect physics books, for goodness sakes), but to be honest I thought 78 Degrees was a whiny bore. Am I going to hate the Haindl books? Argh! I had been giving Haindl some IDS consideration...
 

Wendywu

I love the Haindl! I love it so much I bought the large version as well as the standard. (My first venture into Amazon.de IRRC). I got the books used and cheap, which delighted my inner used-booklover - and although I still love the cards, I don't love the books.

I keep thinking that in some ways it would make a great deck for an IDS - provided you looked up all the mythological references (to so many different cultures) yourself rather than got them served up on a plate, so to speak.

Ah one thing - the Haindl looks amazing if you trim it. Honestly.


(ETA and I actually like balance sheets .... they can be very interesting!)
 

zan_chan

Wendywu said:
I love the Haindl! I love it so much I bought the large version as well as the standard. (My first venture into Amazon.de IRRC).

<cough> Did you say large version?? I think I have shopping to do...
 

Wendywu

Yep - LARGE - go shopping, it's worth it :) I had to get mine from Amazon.de but they were quick and efficient at sending it out. Was an adventure for a non-German speaker but it worked ...
 

rif

gregory said:
No; that was the one published by Watkins. The Authentic Tarot. It's the PICTURES !!! Disaster !

Though someone (a solid tarot historian who I will not name here, being as he doesn't post here any more) did tell me there are errors in Huson, but I am not clever enough to know what they are :confused:. I think I did say that here once.... as a caveat to point out that NO-ONE agrees 100% with anything when it comes to Tarot.

I'm a little confused... you're referring to the book by Thomas Saunders focused on Marseilles? (He used the Ancien Tarot de Marseilles.) I borrowed it from the library once, but I don't recall any problems with mine. What's wrong with it? Are you (and anyone else) saying it has faulty tarot history, or faulty pictures?
 

gregory

rif said:
I'm a little confused... you're referring to the book by Thomas Saunders focused on Marseilles? (He used the Ancien Tarot de Marseilles.) I borrowed it from the library once, but I don't recall any problems with mine. What's wrong with it? Are you (and anyone else) saying it has faulty tarot history, or faulty pictures?
No - it's just me. I wish I hadn't MENTIONED it now ! It is ONLY some of the pictures; it is a misprinted copy, is all - and it was remaindered ! As far as I know the content is fine.
 

Greg Stanton

I really do love The Authentic Tarot. Since there are so few books in English on the Marseilles, it was a delightful surprise to find it. I don't agree with everything the author says (actually, I don't agree with most of what he says), but it's definitely more interesting than yet another RWS/Golden Dawn rehash tarot book (Kabalah-schmalah, astrological blathering, and all the other nonsense).

I was on the Amazon France website a few days ago, and it's astonishing how many books there are in French on the Marseilles tarot. I lost count actually. I wish my French was better.