The Key to the Tarot

by Jane Lyle

Sumptuously bound and adorned with beautiful reproductions of classic art, The Key to the Tarot features the enchanting Major Arcana cards of the Marseille Tarot deck. The book explains the most basic readings of the cards and reveals the rich traditional history of their symbols.

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently began studying Tarot. I've been using library resources to get started. I check out all of my library materials these days online via holds, so I don't know exactly what I'm getting until I pick it up. This book is a tiny little book. So tiny, it needs not page numbers. :-P It is what I would call a 'coffee table book', in that it is an attractive cover and artwork within, with high-level at-a-glance information about Tarot. This book references the Marseilles Tarot deck. It gives an extremely brief introduction to Tarot and how to do a reading, definitely not nearly enough information for serious study. Then it only covers the Major Arcana cards in detail, those details also being very brief. I am studying the Waite Tarot deck (starting with the Smith-Waite centennial deck), so this book did not match up precisely with my other learning materials. Even so, I found it useful to flip to whatever Major Arcana card I was reading about in the Waite deck to compare it to its Marseilles equivalent. I am glad I checked this little book out of the library for a fast review of the Marseilles deck, but it is not one I would purchase for continued reference, unless I came across it at a used book sale for a buck.

[Jamespc · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting guide through the uses and history of tarot cards, though not completely compatable with some decks.