Choice Centered Tarot [Paperback]

Gail Fairfield (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1997

"If you believe that you could be psychic, little things will begin to open up for you. Through reading this book, you can learn how to use the tarot cards as an insightful psychic tool." Everyday Tarot, first published as Choice Centered Tarot, is an accessible, thorough introduction to the tarot. Gail Fairfield focuses on the psychological meanings that can be found in the symbolism of the cards. Rather than simply predicting a future in which we have no real choice, her clear, concise interpretations provide meaningful guidelines that will lead readers to powerful insights and greater self-understanding. Fairfield makes the tarot an easy-to-use tool for intuitive information gathering, personal empowerment, and self-discovery, all keys to making great choices about life's dilemmas. She explains everything needed to become a competent card reader - and offers invaluable tips on choosing a deck, designing layouts and giving readings for individuals and groups.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Born in China and raised in Japan by missionary parents, Gail Fairfield was encouraged to discover her own answers to life's questions. She was drawn to the tarot in 1973, and it has allowed her to combine her background in psychology and her practical experience as a teacher with her intuition to create the choice-centered view of life that she introduces here. She is also the author of Choice-Centered Relating and the Tarot and Choice-Centered Astrology. Fairfield currently lives in Bloomington, Indiana.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Red Wheel Weiser; Revised edition (March 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578630150
• ISBN-13: 978-1578630158
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,012,916 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Diferent, classic, inspiring, challenging., July 31, 2000

By 

Mar Calpena (Barcelona, Spain) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Choice Centered Tarot (Paperback)

If you read a couple of reviews on other tarot books here at amazon.com, you'll probably see a lot of people recomending "Choice centered tarot" at some point. The reason behind this is this books challenging approach, based mainly on inner and outer focus rather than on positive or negative meanings. But that is only a part of what goes on in Ms Fairfield's book. There are brilliant essays on how to choose a deck (don't only expect the usual "choose one that resonates with you" approach here, you may realise quite a few things about your political views depending on which deck you choose), how to design a spread, how to read for groups and numerology, apart from card definitions diferent to the usual ones. I am not saying that these explanations contradict what other books may give on the subject. Rather, thet are complementary (and from my experience, they work specially well for "here and now" questions). In spite of this all, this is an easy book to read, and it will specially suit intermediate tarot students (but can be read by everyone).

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A different way to look at things, August 24, 2001

By 

Kelly (Fantasy Literature) (Columbia, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Choice Centered Tarot (Paperback)

Fairfield's take on the Tarot is a little different than what most of us are used to. She bases her meanings for the Minor Arcana solely on numerology rather than visual cues; her meanings for the cards are based on what the numbers mean to her. The result is an unusually positive meaning for each card--a little bit politically correct, IMHO. 5 of Pentacles? You're not having financial trouble, you're just going through a period of re-adjustment! *chuckle* While I'm sure these meanings would give a different slant to a tarot reading, I don't use them much because some of them differ vastly from the traditional meanings and from the artwork in my decks. I'm more story- and picture- oriented than number-oriented; I want to look at a card and sense its meaning intuitively, rather than having to look up a number in a book. The card itself, rather than any book, is the biggest clue to its meaning--at least the way I work. But there is room for all opinions, and besides, this book would work well if you were reading a deck with pips, or an ordinary playing card deck. Fairfield's system wasn't my cup of tea, but that doesn't mean it won't be yours. The true treasure of this book is the last several chapters, which focus on doing readings. She provides suggestions about creating your own layouts, using the tarot for dream analysis, using the tarot to clarify yourself in a discussion, etc. She encourages the reader to do things her/his own way. And I can't argue with that.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I highly recommend it., November 20, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Choice Centered Tarot (Paperback)

I've been reading the tarot for over 15 years and this is one of the best books on the subject that I have found. It's one of the first that I recommend to others, and one of the first I go to for reference. It is not the typical book that just lists each card with a predetermined meaning, but it covers how to read, numerology, symbols, layouts and more. I'd recommend this book for both experienced and beginning readers.