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24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Sharman Caselli Tarot-- RWS with European flavor, May 4, 2002
This review is from: Beginner's Guide to Tarot (Paperback)
The art style of Caselli has been a favored one for me. I checked out his art in the illustrated guide to Bullfinch Mythology, Legends of Charlemagne*. This deck emulates Rider-Waite workalikes---I might say the coloring is softer than a U.S. Games Rider Waite Smith (RWS) deck and is similar to Mary Hanson's Universal Waite (UW). To me the illustrations have finer lines, a richer contrast of colors and wonderful details than the RWS and UW. The Two of Swords pictured on the cover is a nice example. The back cover had a glimpse of a Hermit card that looked intriguing to me. After looking at the deck one evening, I was quite pleased. Not a 'treacle tarot'--- the so-called negative associations are calmly presented, the energy of knights are quite appropriate to their suit. I could use this deck to read for others.
The book suggests a new way of studying the majors---I tend to prefer Justice is eight and Strength is 11, based on Marseilles ordering. The book with this deck suggests that the historical Visconti and other decks were taken into account when these cards were designed. The designs of the majors are inspired and closer to 15th century Milanese Visconti and 18th century Marseilles styles. (Juliet Sharman Burke notes this on page 6 of her 2004 text called Tarot Workbook: Featuring the classic Sharman-Caselli deck.)
Juliet Sharman-Burke's Mastering the Tarot uses a comparative style when she describes decks: she includes the Visconti, Brian William's Renaissance Tarot and the Arthurian Tarot with Miranda Gray illustrations. When I look in the courts of the Sharman Caselli deck, I seem to find the softness of Miranda Gray's paintings, although Caselli's work seems more dynamic to me.
The cards are 4.75 x 2.75 inches. They are packaged in two small cardboard pockets in a fold-out flap attached to the back of the book. I had to snip the boxed flap off to make the softcover book easy to carry around.
I would recommend the book as a nice addition to the set and quite easy to read. Sometimes I like to travel with two decks and do a comparative reading for fun. I found a softly colored, nonstandard deck such as Trevisan's Tarot of the Renaissance as a pretty comparison to use with the Sharman-Caselli Tarot.
*Bullfinch is a popular children's summary of mythology. I don't recommend the illustrated Bullfinch as the best summary of Western mythology--but I do enjoy Caselli's illustrations.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
review from an honest beginner, May 21, 2005
This review is from: Beginner's Guide to Tarot (Paperback)
I bought this book/deck on a whim, and I have thoroughly enjoyed them.
I read the book and studied the cards during a vacation week, and I was thrilled that at the week's end I was able to give a pretty good reading to my wife without having to open the book (much) to interpret the cards she'd drawn. The cards themselves are beautiful and colorful, and the pictures are very evocative... you are led to the interpretation quite easily by the action of the card.
The explanations of the four suits are very well written, and I feel strongest in the numbers (ace to nine) in the four suits. That said, I wish there had been a little numerology, so I would have a better sense of the number on its own right, rather than depending so heavily on the picture. The court of the suits (page, knight, queen, king) are a bit more difficult, and I still am struggling to understand the essential difference between a queen and king.
The cards of the major arcana (fool, emperor, moon, etc) are subtle, and I think the author has done as well as one could hope, given that each card only gets two pages of text.
All in all, you get 78 handsome cards, less than 200 pages of text to learn what the cards mean and how to do a reading. It's a great start, and it's not too witchy or womany or fringy for a mainstream fella to enjoy. If you're still interested in learning more tarot after you've read this book, there are many more detailed resources. This book is just the beginning.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Dream Come True, July 28, 2004
This review is from: Beginner's Guide to Tarot (Paperback)
For anyone who has ever wanted to learn about the Tarot but felt overwhelmed by all the different cards and books, here is a dream come true. Treat yourself to this very affordable selection, and then begin a surprisingly pleasant journey, guided by the charming and intelligent author, and through the enchanting inspiration of the wonderful illustrations on these very beautiful and energetic cards. Tarot is a friendly experience, and here is a true friend for life.
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