The Astrologer's Handbook

by Frances Sakoian, Louis S. Acker

The Complete Guide to the Interpretation of Horoscopes Precise, comprehensive, and richly detailed, The Astrologer's Handbook moves far beyond the common 11 sun signs to the important planetary aspects—trines, squares, oppositions, conjunctions, and sextiles—discussing their impact on the human personality and exploring their subtle but firm influence on all our lives. Although undertaken originally to meet the demands of professional astrologers, The Astrologer's Handbook is, happily, a book that serves every reader. The authors, two respected innovators in the field, explain carefully all of the central concepts and provide easy-to-follow instructions for doing a complete interpretation—both general and specific—of any natal chart. For those who wish to actually cast their own charts, step-by-step directions are provided. Or, for those who prefer, special coupons are provided for purchasing personalized computer-gene rated horoscopes with complete tabulation of planetary aspects cross-referenced to the proper pages of this book.

Genres: Astrology, Reference, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Occult, Divination, Metaphysics

480 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

Reviews

[P.J. MacNamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't play well with other astrologers, but we all seem to concur on the indispensable nature of this book. Some people seem to think it's a bit old-fashioned but it's never struck me that way. If you've got this in one hand and Liz Greene's "Astrology For Lovers" in the other you really can't go wrong. I spend a lot of time on astro.com these days, especially on the forums, because it's so much fun and I can be very lazy on occasion, but I got into astrology back in 1987 when the world was a very different place, and I miss the days when you had to use a pen and paper and consult weighty tomes to do a chart justice.

Every astrologer that's ever seen my chart leads with "You must be a writer...." or something like that. If only life were that simple.

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book I've let friends borrow and not gotten back, a book I've lost and bought again and again. If you're serious about astrology, it's a must have, in my opinion. I've seen a lot of astrology books, and this one is a very nuts and bolts approach, not fluffy and new agey like some of them tend to be.

Even though I barely pay attention to astrology anymore (I used to read charts as a side job), I won't let my bookshelf be without this book.

[Karen Christino · Rating 4 out of 5]

A standard birth chart interpretation handbook -- I still consult it regularly. Only flaw is that it came out in the 70s and has a flavor of Scorpio ruling Uranus at times.

[John Culbertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so thankful this book was recommended to me when I first started studying astrology. It's what is more commonly known as an astrology "cookbook", or rather a book that tells you what each sign in planet, each planet in house, and each aspect means. The authors are very good about expanding and the write ups for each sign, house, planet, aspect combinations are well thought out, written, and for the most part extremely accurate. A must have on the shelf of any serious astrology student.

[Miss Adrienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A key reference book that any serious astrology student needs in their library.

Sakoian and Acker offer a succinct yet comprehensive guide to astrology's foundation concepts.

Some of the aspect interpretations are a bit finite/severe in their perspective but that's more so a sign of the times in which this book was written.

[Christina knox · Rating 5 out of 5]

best astrology book i've ever read.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a classic basic astrology "cookbook." For serious beginners, it's an excellent place to start learning about astrology. It also provides a useful reference for more experienced astrologers.

[Aujha Aye · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s a lot of good information on the basic interpretation of the natal chart in this book. It gives a very detailed description of the different aspects of the natal chart. There are no mention of certain aspects that have become more popular to look into in modern times like the Lilith, Part of Fortune, Vertex, etc. The book was written in the 70s so it is quite dated. I do however, consult this book when doing personalized natal chart reports for my clients.

[Amy and Trisha Lee-Jefferson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little outdated, but a good reference to start from.

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

An older astrology book that's still an excellent classic (though with some outdated gendered interpretations). I still recommend this to any serious astrology beginner.

[Mitchell Stern · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a very solid breakdown if a bit dated in terms of gender views and not directly explaining some astrology terms from the start.

[Erin Wai]

Just read my bits. Lots of fun to learn past my big three! Really intrigued to learn more about my Venus rn and super align with my Jupiter in the third house in Gemini.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for the astrology basics.

[Stargazer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for beginners, good reference book

[Sonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a clearly written explaination of astrology and how to read a chart.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The BEST all the way around book!Everyone should have it

[Squeegee Beckenheim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great reference book.