Tarot Books For Beginners

I'm very new to reading Tarot cards but I'd like to know more. As of right now I own five Tarot Decks and I find myself getting completely lost whenever I'm doing a reading. Love to learn more about Tarot and get more in depth about knowing more about Tarot and how to interpret the cards better. Sometimes I do different readings and cards show up and I find myself getting confused as to what they could mean.

The only book I have as of right now is Tarot Plain and Simple by Anthony Louis. Is there any other books I should purchase other than this one? Again I'm new to all this, so you're suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks again!

Welcome to Aeclectic and the world of tarot EFF!

You may find this thread of help to you as it lists the most recommended books in TB&M.

That said, I think you have everything you need in Tarot Plain & Simple. I bought my first deck in 1991, and TP&S is the first book I'll go to when I want to know other interpretations of a card.

As for interpreting the cards (which is more a Using Tarot Cards topic), don't fall into the trap of thinking that Pentacles only mean money or the body, that Cups only mean feelings, etc. There are Pentacles feelings, Cups thoughts, Swords desires and Wands money issues among other things.

Rodney

EnchantedFairyForest said:

The only book I have as of right now is Tarot Plain and Simple by Anthony Louis

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That's one of the best, in my opinion. It shoots straight. It's direct and to the point.

EnchantedFairyForest said:

Is there any other books I should purchase other than this one? Again I'm new to all this, so you're suggestions would be most helpful. Thanks again!

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There's a lot of information out there. Some books will take you all around the world without ever saying much of substance or practical use.

I don't know the book, but it should be enough to get you started. This forum, and its search function are far better than any book, and hold the accumulated knowledge and experience of hundreds, if not thousands of readers, with many reading for many, many years. That's thousands of years of experience, more than any book could ever possibly offer.

I could not agree more, closrapexa. This is particularly true if one spends time in the Marseille and Historical forums here. An entirely new world cracks open, especially in the case of the trumps. One can learn there was once no such thing as an Heirophant. One can learn Father Time, I mean the Hermit, holds an hourglass, not a lamp. One can learn the Hanged Man could well represent being a victim of prejudice, a traitor, or maybe he's drowning in debt. These forums contain so many clues, which go back through several centuries, long before tarot as we know it today was a blip on the screen.

So I must agree 100% with you. These forums, by far, surpass so many books that one could purchase.

I use "The Tarot Bible" by Sarah Bartlett and it's been working wonders for me.

I bought various books over the years to try and learn the Tarot, but they were all too in-depth for me. In the end I got Power Tarot by Trish Macgregor and Phyllis Vega, and this is the book that I ended up learning from. As I started to do more readings my knowledge of the cards grew, of course, and I've learnt more in-depth as I've gone on. But this was the most helpful beginner/intermediate book for me.

I'm a type of person who's going to read anything about tarot 'cause I believe in every book, even the worst one, you can find something to expand your knowledge. It can be only one sentence but I'm in the moment when I'm happy with the smallest. And when book is too advanced for the beginner, it can always wait for the right moment.

I have the 'Tarot Plain and Simple' book, it was the first one I bought.

At the moment I'm using 'Tarot Card Meanings' by Carole Somerville, it's an e-book which I downloaded from Smashwords. I'm enjoying this book very much, it states its case pretty clearly.

I find it's very easy to get lost in learning Tarot. There are so many variations, interpretations etc etc that it can overload you and cause you to just shut down because you're looking at it from too many angles. Keep it simple. Decide on what the cards mean to you and stick to it, atleast until those meanings become second nature when you look at the cards. Then you can branch out.

In terms f books I personally like
* The Tarot Workbook by Nevill Drury. it explains the meaning of the numbers, has a Tree of Life diagram, where the cards go, explains the RWS deck images realy well and has lots of little exercises for each card, that personalize the images to your life experiences.
* Tarot for Your Self by Mary Greer is for when you want to go deeper from there with your favorite deck
* The complete Illustrated Guide to Tarot by Rachel Pollak also is a good introduction and shows cards from different decks to illustrate the mayors and their intended meanings but also has a section on spreads and reading examples.
* The Tarot, History, Symbolism and Divination by Robert M. Place is a good book to find out more about the historical origins of the Tarot.