Customer Reviews

Tarot Plain and Simple

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm serious. This book is incredible. I have bought a ton of books on tarot that claimed to be for beginers and plain and simple. They ALWAYS left me confused. But not this one. It is really plain, I mean really easy to understand. I love the section on the use of numerology and astrology in the book as well. Truely opened my eyes, and a lot of the time I could be heard stting in the corner reading it going,"Oh, okkkk now I understand." I must say a million praises to the author for the clarity and ease in which in this book reads. If you a beginer- GET THIS BOOK AND SAVE YOURSELF A WHOLE LOT OF MONEY AND TIME.

Anthony Louis' background is in psychiatry which augments his study of various systems of divination. He has authored the book Horary Astrology which he also lectures on as well as teaches.

This book explores the art of tarot. You would think a book that is entitled Plain and Simple would be much smaller. But this book of 322 pages covers much ground in the art of tarot. The opening of the book explains Mr. Louis' idea on writing the book as well as his approach to reading tarot:

The goal has been to remain close to the source and to let the Tarot speak for itself. The content of this book is based on existing literature about the Tarot and on many years of recording my own experiences with the cards.

This book is a good beginners book. Mr. Louis begins at the beginning with a brief history of the tarot, some background notes, and an overview of Jungian theory associated with the tarot. It follows that a psychiatrist would find Jung an interesting source for tarot. He also adds some thoughts on the probability of chance, space and time and finally faith. I found the authors lines of thought interesting, and his reasoning is sometimes amusing, sometimes makes sense.

The author also goes into tarot spreads, and presents his own version of the tarot spread. His approach is to allow the cards to "speak for themselves" and to try to not read into the cards but allow the cards to unfold their meanings to you. Mr. Louis includes some of his own experiences with readings, showing some readings he did on particular days and associations with events that occur. He goes into further discussion on getting to know the cards, caring for them, doing spreads for longer periods of time, significance of cards that "jump out" during shuffling, and much more. I found his notation of keeping a journal on your readings to be good advice for the novice.

He covers the basics of card spread and reading well. The most basic beginner will have no trouble following the directions and advices given here. It is all spelled out for you step by step. Discussion include reversed cards, selecting a significator, choosing a spread, associations of suits and signs, as well as a good overview of the Major Arcana.

The bulk of the book is comprised of a card by card description of the cards and their meanings. The artist or publisher decided to use black and white prints of Robin Woods deck, which is a good middle of the road choice. While not as archaic as the Rider Waite deck, it is a lovely deck that follows the original Rider Waite correspondences.

The author also follows the traditional "Journey of the Fool" through life format of the Major Arcana, giving the progression for each cards as you read through the Major Arcana. He provides key words for meanings, situations and advices for each card and gives a people association for each card. He then lists the reverse meaning for the card with the same information.

I found his interpretations to be sound, and while not totally traditional, very close to it and not out of line. His people association is insightful, and his situation and advice appears to be sound. I enjoyed going through his material, it was well written, very clear in his meanings and easy to read. He does not revert to obscure symbolism on the cards, but rather takes the route of looking at the overall picture and allowing it to give you the meaning, part knowing the intent of the card and part intuition I thought.

The Minor Arcana is grouped according to the numbers rather than the suits. We are given a different vantage point here, where we examine the numbers while giving the meaning of the suite an overview. There is good introduction to the suits at the start of the section, exploring the elements, the various names of the suite (swords/spades etc), a seasonal association and again key words and phrases.

We then dive into the numbers, going from aces to twos to threes, etc. Again, a black and white picture from the Robin Wood deck accompanies each card examination, along with key words and phrases, a Corresponding Major Arcana Card for the numbers, situations and advice and a Personal Year for the numbers and a people overview. We are also given a reverse meaning for each card.

Again, I found this too be an interesting variation, and found myself comparing the different suit numbers to each other to see the variations. We are so accustomed to comparing the cards within the suit, this is a very insightful process and one to explore.

There is also a section on Astrology and Numerology in the Tarot. Again, interesting reading for the beginner and seasoned reader. There are some original insights that are out of the ordinary.

The book has an interesting bibliography and is indexed.

Overall, the book is a good overview of the tarot reading process. The material is very basic which is good for the beginner but also offers some insights and variations that the seasoned reader may find interesting if not useful. If you are looking for a good handbook to guide you through your first steps into reading tarot cards, you may find this book a good starting place. If you like to compare your methods to other professional readers and see how others interpret the cards, this book offers yet another persons insight into the art of tarot reading. boudica

I own many, many tarot books, but this is the one I keep next to my deck when I need to check something or get confused on a meaning. It's well laid out and the card descriptions are sorted by number rather than suit. There's also a bit of information on astrology and numerology as it relates to tarot. I'm not a fan of the Robin Wood deck used for illustration (although this deck is extremely popular) but since it's a Rider clone, it will give you a good idea. Overall, a well written book good for both the beginner and the more experienced tarot reader.

I didn't buy this book because I needed yet another tarot book. I bought it because I had Anthony Louis' horary astrology book, and loved it. Unlike horary astrology, though, tarot--as presented here--really is plain and simple.

This book doesn't mire itself in the sort of occult esoterica or pseudo-psychobabble new age gibberish that many tarot books do (good ones, too). It is aimed at the beginner who wants to use the cards for divination. Louis doesn't spend time deconstructing the symbolic minutiae of tarot--and given the deck he chose to illustrate the book (Robin Wood), that's a good decision. Instead, he gives an abundance of interpretive descriptions for each card in both upright and reversed positions, something I wish I had when I started reading cards as a kid, and even later in life.

Dr. Louis must like the Robin Wood deck--after all, he chose it. I've never been crazy about it, although I admit the naked babes depicted in some of the cards are hotties! Hey, it's a reason. I've always been partial to the Thoth deck (you can't beat the striking, sometimes disturbing artwork) and the Rider-Waite deck, and to books that use them. But the Wood deck is pretty similar to the Rider-Waite deck in terms of interpretive symbolism, and to others based on the Rider pack, so unless you are using a deck that really bastardizes the traditional symbols (like the hilarious atrocity that is Motherpeace, or the trippy Voyager), Louis' interpretations should go well with your deck. (They don't go particularly well with the Thoth deck, which is a traditional deck, flavored here and there with Aleister Crowley's unique and unfortunate view of things.)

This is, arguably, the perfect book for the beginning tarot reader. I would tell a rank beginner to get this one first, then Rachel Pollack's 78 Degrees of Wisdom, before moving on to other books like Mary Greer's or some of the Thoth-oriented books.

Of the 20-odd Tarot references I own, this one is by far the most accurate and is the one I consult most often. If I had to reduce my Tarot collection to one book, this would be the one I would keep.

I have been on a continual journey over the past 10 years to find tarot guides that will help me understand readings I complete for myself and for other people. I find this book helpful and extremely "user-friendly". While many times I have been frustrated with vague interpretations, this book never disappoints me.

I gave up on the study of the Tarot in the early 1980s because I couldn't find a book which was not written in archaic, stilted English. I found "Tarot Plain and Simple" several months ago and will say that it has changed my life. I find it the perfect tool (now that I can understand, in depth, the meaning of the cards and their relationships) for focusing my intuitive abilities. Regardless of where you are personally in your Tarot study, this book cannot but help you in so many ways to develop your innate perception of the human condition. And if you are a Tarot beginner, as I was, you will be amazed at the ease with which you can progress in your pursuit of understanding. I wish I had had this book twenty years ago! Enjoy.

The title of this lovely volume says it all; Tarot, Plain and Simple. The book itself is, the use and knowledge gained are far more than the innoncence of the title would suggest. Mr. Louis is able to the put the cards in your hands, and to work immediately. There is much on the history of the images, the development of the cards, and other esoteric Tarot lore that Louis omits (wisely, in my opinion). This little book is an introduction, not a thesis. Robin Wood's illustrations and Louis' own charm and humor make this a "user friendly" volume, which is fun to read, re-read, and refer too again and again. Easy, yet challenging, Tarot: Plain and Simple will likely become a classic addition to the field.

I liked the format of this book. It is a good book for beginners to advance readers. The author gives key words for each card, which is the sytem that appeals to me the most. He also gives advice on how to interpret the card in a reading and the people who best exemplify the card. That alone made the book worth owning, but we get more, he includes reversals. For cards that I find it difficult to read the symbolism, this book comes in handy. I find myself returning to it time after time

I have many tarot books on my shelves and it has taken me 3 years to find all the connections that are illustrated in this single book ,i can only wish that i had purchased this book 3 years ago at the very beginnig of my studies,i love the cards that are used in the illstrations and my only draw back is that i wish they were printed in colour .If you are a begining looking for a good tarot book please dont waste time and purchase this book.