Most helpful books for beginners in your opinion?

I really like the Joan Bunning book for beginners, and I think Tarot Tips is also helpful (though it does have a lot of "mumbo jumbo" stuff in it too, which I just ignore).

I think something beginners don't quite like is all of the contradictory card meanings between books. It is because of this that I think beginners should read as many books as possible, then siphon off what doesn't ring true -- and keep the rest.

Paul Huson's Mystical Origins of the Tarot is especially helpful in this process because it lists the various meanings of the cards from the earliest documented sources, and then suggests his own interpretations of the cards based on his research.

Unless you are actually using a Golden Dawn/Crowley deck, I wouldn't use either the Book of Thoth or the GD as a reference. The cards for these systems were extensively altered to fit Kaballistic symbolism and philosophy. I would concentrate on learning basic tarot first, and then move on to the esoteric type of tarot if it appeals to you.

Hum...

Sarah Bartlett's 'The Tarot Bible'. You won't need another book for a while - this one is good, pretty, and has a size that fits your purse of bag. I recommend it!

Another book is think is nice, even if you don't own the deck, the The Mythic Tarot companion - this book taught me to read the Minors and the Court card. While others only gave me keywords and ordered me around ('see this...do that...look out for this...'), this one made me...understand these cards. Get to know them. Not to mention, i think the court cards are very well explained - they gain a history, a personality. Of course, i recommend this one for those who like Greek Mythology or who'd like to learn more about it.

If you end up liking the Mythic tarot & it's book, get the workbook too. It's really great for learning

'Tarot Journaling' by Corrine Kenner. Because in order to learn you have to journal a bit. This book give nice ideas for both beginners and advanced users.


The other beginners book i like are Brazilian ones, so i can't recommend them here, i believe few people read Portuguese here. For those who read: check Nei Naiff's Tarot Trilogy. It's *really* great! And almost OOP . It's so nice, my mother stole the second volume from me, lol , when i gave her the Enchanted Tarot deck. She didn't get along very well with the Enchanted book, apparently.

All great suggestions here! Some I love and agree with, others I didn't like, but that's what's great about reccommendations, you can find what you like among the suggestions!

I have a couple:

*The Heart of the Tarot: The Two-card Layout: Easy, Fast, and Insightful by Sandra A. Thomson, Robert E. Mueller, and Signe E. Echols*

Excellent beginners and intermediate book IMO! Great 2 layout and it's very easy to start with and learn card combining and storytelling (what I had the hardest part with learning, still do). Besides that, you can get great readings, advice and guidance from those 2 cards. It basically takes the 1st and 2nd card from the Celtic layout. Then she has interpertations for each card, and those are wonderful too, with an added spiritual/inner work dimension.

*Pictures from the Heart: A Tarot Dictionary by Sandra A. Thomson and Sandra Thomson*

A GREAT book! An all around awesome resource for beginners to expert. I always have it at hand, you learn so much and it's well-layed out! You really can't go wrong with this one.

I have many more, but 2 is enough for now

I recommend,
Tarot, Plain and Simple by Anthony Lewis
Tarot Bible by Sarah Barlett
How to read tarot by Sylvia Abraham.

I just bought Tarot Spreads by Teresa Melchen

Also, when I buy my cards, I try to buy the book sets. I find that the books that come with the decks usually are quite informative to the deck its with.


What I have done, was read through the books, then Hi-lighted the words that resonated with me as I viewed each card... that has been a big help to me, as I then record the words in a journal.

Umbrae said:

There’s this great one…I forget the title (it’s been in print for years)…

It’s a short book, only containing 78 pages.

Its not bound, so you can put the pages in any order you want and it changes the whole book! Its really cool!

And when you read it, it will create questions in your mind – and you research those questions and learn all kinds of new stuff!

I hope you can find a copy…it really is the only one you'll ever need.

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hehe

Gareth Knight says in his Magical World of the Tarot that the best tutor is the Tarot itself (or words to that effect).

My favorites for beginners are "Tarot, Plain and Simple" by Anthony Louis, "Tarot Bible" by Sarah Bartlett, and "Tarot: Your Everyday Guide" by Janina Renee.

The first two have solid interpretations for all 78 cards, along with excellent introductory material. Janina Renee's book has card interpretations that emphasize giving advice rather than making predictions. I personally have never cared for a predictive approach to card reading, so I've found Janina's interpretations particularly useful. Both Anthony Louis's and Janina Renee's books include upright and reversed significances, while Sarah Bartlett's book has only upright significances. She does include advice on how to read reversals, for those who use them, in a general way.

In conjunction with one of the above, or a good deck-specific book, I would also recommend "The Complete Tarot Reader: Everything You Need to Know from Start to Finish" by Teresa Michelsen. It emphasizes developing a more intuitive approach to reading, with many useful exercises.

Greg Stanton said:

I really like the Joan Bunning book for beginners,

Paul Huson's Mystical Origins of the Tarot is especially helpful in this process because it lists the various meanings of the cards from the earliest documented sources, and then suggests his own interpretations of the cards based on his research.

Unless you are actually using a Golden Dawn/Crowley deck, I wouldn't use either the Book of Thoth or the GD as a reference.

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I wish Huson's book was available when I started and Bunning is a good one to start with too. Also O'Neil's Tarot Symbolism.

Maybe not immediately and not for everyone, but I'd also get the Book of Thoth, the Secrets of Tarot by Barbara Walker, Opsopaus' Pythagorean Tarot set and the Game of Life by Leary.

Best book IMO...

...is learning the Tarot by Joan Bunning. My opinion isn't solely based on the things being taught here but the way its done. I belief that there is nothing wrong with trying to make money from something as Tarot but then I can't help be the skeptic me and start wondering where the true loyalties lie. Is it the love for money or Tarot ? Not that I want to ignore the option of "both" but for the sake of the story I'm ignoring that anyway ;-)

A second important manner (to me anyway) is the knowledge which is being made available. Sure; you can google and most likely find a lots of information about Tarot. But most of it will be mere bits and pieces, which can make it a lot harder to comprehend. Personally I think it to be a very good thing to make good and solid information about the Tarot easily available. And in this case it doesn't even have to cost you any money, how can it become any better?

And once you've worked your way through that (either as a whole or merely parts of it) you'll have a much better basis to rely on when you still think that this is (or can be) a good and nice hobby which is definately worth spending some money on. I think your money will be better spend when having at least some basic ideas about Tarot when you need to rely on experiences from others.

Lion-O said:

...is learning the Tarot by Joan Bunning. My opinion isn't solely based on the things being taught here but the way its done. I belief that there is nothing wrong with trying to make money from something as Tarot but then I can't help be the skeptic me and start wondering where the true loyalties lie. Is it the love for money or Tarot ? Not that I want to ignore the option of "both" but for the sake of the story I'm ignoring that anyway ;-)

A second important manner (to me anyway) is the knowledge which is being made available. Sure; you can google and most likely find a lots of information about Tarot. But most of it will be mere bits and pieces, which can make it a lot harder to comprehend. Personally I think it to be a very good thing to make good and solid information about the Tarot easily available. And in this case it doesn't even have to cost you any money, how can it become any better?

And once you've worked your way through that (either as a whole or merely parts of it) you'll have a much better basis to rely on when you still think that this is (or can be) a good and nice hobby which is definately worth spending some money on. I think your money will be better spend when having at least some basic ideas about Tarot when you need to rely on experiences from others.

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I am with you here! I found her site near when I first started and it was so helpful. I think I went there 25 times a day lol. I finally bought her book but without the site who knows? All the infromation is right there and easy to access, she's a great person!

I think Tarot For a New Generation by Janina Renee is quite good. She offers a variety of card applications that are easy to understand--especially good for the organized challenged.

My current favorite is Mary Greer's 21 Ways. I loved reading it and have highlights and sticky notes all over the place. It's one of those reads that I think would resonate with beginner and advanced students alike. She offers some neat, innovative ideas that I think would be particularly helpful for those just setting out on their tarot journeys. I love the fact that her suggested techniques allow the student to become fully engaged on multiple levels without it seeming overwhelming.