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The Big Book of Tarot Meanings: The Beginner's Guide to Reading the Cards
Find precise answers to your urgent questions—The Big Book of Tarot Meanings takes you beyond typical, generic card meanings by breaking each card down into eight interpretation categories.
Interpreting card meanings is the most exciting aspect of reading tarot. However, it is also the most challenging, especially if you are new to the art. For example, basic tarot interpretation would have you understand that The Lovers card has to do with relationships—but what if your question had to do with career or health? How are you left to interpret the meaning?
The Big Book of Tarot Meanings solves these dilemmas by breaking down each card into the eight most-queried categories, starting with Beginnings and ending with Outcome, with a meaning for each category, upright and reversed. No longer will you have to vaguely extrapolate meaning and insight for diverse questions from the same generic description often given in other beginner tarot books.
In addition to providing fine-tuned interpretations, The Big Book of Tarot Meaningssolves a second common question that comes with a tarot reading—How do I apply this knowledge to my everyday life?—by giving you an action item for each meaning, upright and reversed.
A summary of what this comprehensive tarot meaning book
A welcoming introduction to the basics of tarot and instructions for using the book Meanings for all 78 cards of the Major and Minor Arcana, with the various interpretations for each card organized into eight categories—Beginnings, Career, Money, Love, Friends & Family, Health, Higher Guidance, and Outcome—both upright and reversed An action item for every meaning, upright and reversed, to give you clear tools to work with and steps to take to move forward in the most aligned way
With The Big Book of Tarot Meanings, you’ll never struggle again to know how the cards are answering you.
Interpreting card meanings is the most exciting aspect of reading tarot. However, it is also the most challenging, especially if you are new to the art. For example, basic tarot interpretation would have you understand that The Lovers card has to do with relationships—but what if your question had to do with career or health? How are you left to interpret the meaning?
The Big Book of Tarot Meanings solves these dilemmas by breaking down each card into the eight most-queried categories, starting with Beginnings and ending with Outcome, with a meaning for each category, upright and reversed. No longer will you have to vaguely extrapolate meaning and insight for diverse questions from the same generic description often given in other beginner tarot books.
In addition to providing fine-tuned interpretations, The Big Book of Tarot Meaningssolves a second common question that comes with a tarot reading—How do I apply this knowledge to my everyday life?—by giving you an action item for each meaning, upright and reversed.
A summary of what this comprehensive tarot meaning book
A welcoming introduction to the basics of tarot and instructions for using the book Meanings for all 78 cards of the Major and Minor Arcana, with the various interpretations for each card organized into eight categories—Beginnings, Career, Money, Love, Friends & Family, Health, Higher Guidance, and Outcome—both upright and reversed An action item for every meaning, upright and reversed, to give you clear tools to work with and steps to take to move forward in the most aligned way
With The Big Book of Tarot Meanings, you’ll never struggle again to know how the cards are answering you.
591 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 15, 2022
499 people are currently reading
210 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
June 4, 2025
This has to be one of the best guidebooks on the Tarot that I have ever read - and I've read quite a few over the years. (I just pulled it off my bookshelf today to find a bit more clarity for a self-reading. I am impressed at how much detail and good guidance this book provides. I'm thinking this will make a great gift for fellow enthusiasts!)
Apart from the gorgeous graphics and energizing background colours, this author has covered just about every aspect of the interpretation of the 78 cards in a Tarot deck. I was impressed! (I would love to own an autographed copy, this book is that good!)
I actually had fun reading this one, because the author's personality invariably shines through the text. Exclamations such as "Oooh la la!" often had me chuckling appreciatively. The Tarot can be an intimidating, complex study, but it is not all doom and gloom, as this very gifted author has just proven. This is definitely a reference shelf keeper, and the easiest reference manual to serve as a guide for the amateur (and not so amateur) reader.
(Digression Warning:)
When I was a youngster, like so many others before me, I wanted ANSWERS to all the mysteries in life. I knew they were out there, I just didn't know how to access them. Numerology was interesting but too absolute and dry, and palmistry wasn't cutting it for me: certain lines in the palm are fixed, but many lines will change over time - that revelation just annoyed my impatient teen self! When I learned, years later, that Carl Jung and several other famous/infamous people were guided by The Tarot, I dove right in. Carl Jung used the images in the Tarot deck to illuminate or interpret what was going on in the unconscious mind - for himself and his patients. I have also always been fascinated by psychology - by "what makes us tick."
It was only after many years of studying The Tarot, off and on, that I confirmed (horrendously disappointing light bulb moment!) that we have free will, which, in turn, means that the future, for the most part, is not fixed. Major Bummer!!! At that point, totally miffed, I put away my Tarot deck and my reference books, and carried on with my life - only returning over the years to my hidden cache whenever things got really rough and I was desperate for some internal guidance, or to calm or understand my jumbled thoughts and feelings. (Carl Jung, I owe you one!)
There are some people who can't step a foot out the door without consulting a Tarot deck. For me, this is just another type of dependent or addictive behaviour, a fear of exercising your own free will. Unless you claim to have rock solid magical or mystical powers, you will not always interpret the spread before you correctly. (And many times, a spread will totally not answer the question asked. Surprise, surprise - not!) In my own forays into dealing and reading/interpreting a spread, I've found that "hindsight" has often proven a spread to be spot on, but how was I to know that the Justice or Judgment card I drew was heralding a parking or a speeding ticket that day? It could just have easily been predicting a just conclusion to a dispute at work, etc. My take thus far: learn from the hard-earned lessons in your life, examine everything and be brutally honest in your evaluation, and then let your intuition coupled with common sense be your guide. But, above all, strive to live your best life NOW. (If COVID taught us anything, it certainly underscored that!) (End of Digression.)
If you are a hardcore Tarot practitioner or just a dabbler - or if you need a reference guide for a mystical theme party or carnival! - The Big Book of Tarot Meanings is an invaluable resource. I highly, highly recommend this excellent, well illustrated book. My great thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this remarkable guidebook in exchange for an honest review. Loved it and actually did buy my own copy!
N.B. The graphics used in this review were culled from the internet, and not from the book itself, due to copyright restrictions.
Apart from the gorgeous graphics and energizing background colours, this author has covered just about every aspect of the interpretation of the 78 cards in a Tarot deck. I was impressed! (I would love to own an autographed copy, this book is that good!)
I actually had fun reading this one, because the author's personality invariably shines through the text. Exclamations such as "Oooh la la!" often had me chuckling appreciatively. The Tarot can be an intimidating, complex study, but it is not all doom and gloom, as this very gifted author has just proven. This is definitely a reference shelf keeper, and the easiest reference manual to serve as a guide for the amateur (and not so amateur) reader.
(Digression Warning:)
When I was a youngster, like so many others before me, I wanted ANSWERS to all the mysteries in life. I knew they were out there, I just didn't know how to access them. Numerology was interesting but too absolute and dry, and palmistry wasn't cutting it for me: certain lines in the palm are fixed, but many lines will change over time - that revelation just annoyed my impatient teen self! When I learned, years later, that Carl Jung and several other famous/infamous people were guided by The Tarot, I dove right in. Carl Jung used the images in the Tarot deck to illuminate or interpret what was going on in the unconscious mind - for himself and his patients. I have also always been fascinated by psychology - by "what makes us tick."
It was only after many years of studying The Tarot, off and on, that I confirmed (horrendously disappointing light bulb moment!) that we have free will, which, in turn, means that the future, for the most part, is not fixed. Major Bummer!!! At that point, totally miffed, I put away my Tarot deck and my reference books, and carried on with my life - only returning over the years to my hidden cache whenever things got really rough and I was desperate for some internal guidance, or to calm or understand my jumbled thoughts and feelings. (Carl Jung, I owe you one!)
There are some people who can't step a foot out the door without consulting a Tarot deck. For me, this is just another type of dependent or addictive behaviour, a fear of exercising your own free will. Unless you claim to have rock solid magical or mystical powers, you will not always interpret the spread before you correctly. (And many times, a spread will totally not answer the question asked. Surprise, surprise - not!) In my own forays into dealing and reading/interpreting a spread, I've found that "hindsight" has often proven a spread to be spot on, but how was I to know that the Justice or Judgment card I drew was heralding a parking or a speeding ticket that day? It could just have easily been predicting a just conclusion to a dispute at work, etc. My take thus far: learn from the hard-earned lessons in your life, examine everything and be brutally honest in your evaluation, and then let your intuition coupled with common sense be your guide. But, above all, strive to live your best life NOW. (If COVID taught us anything, it certainly underscored that!) (End of Digression.)
If you are a hardcore Tarot practitioner or just a dabbler - or if you need a reference guide for a mystical theme party or carnival! - The Big Book of Tarot Meanings is an invaluable resource. I highly, highly recommend this excellent, well illustrated book. My great thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this remarkable guidebook in exchange for an honest review. Loved it and actually did buy my own copy!
N.B. The graphics used in this review were culled from the internet, and not from the book itself, due to copyright restrictions.
September 19, 2022
I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.
The Big Book of Tarot Meanings is a fantastic guide to reading tarot cards and understanding their meanings. The layout of this book is really easy to use and refer back to and each suit and arcana has fantastic descriptions and easy to understand information. The graphics within this book are stunning and this is a great starting guide for anyone wanting to learn how to read tarot cards, how to do readings and even for more experienced practitioners. I liked how uplifting this book was in places and how enjoyable it was to read as the authors personality and creativity shone through the pages. I definitely want this book in paper format for future reference.
The Big Book of Tarot Meanings is a fantastic guide to reading tarot cards and understanding their meanings. The layout of this book is really easy to use and refer back to and each suit and arcana has fantastic descriptions and easy to understand information. The graphics within this book are stunning and this is a great starting guide for anyone wanting to learn how to read tarot cards, how to do readings and even for more experienced practitioners. I liked how uplifting this book was in places and how enjoyable it was to read as the authors personality and creativity shone through the pages. I definitely want this book in paper format for future reference.
May 4, 2022
I wish I had a book like this when I started using tarot 15+ years ago as a tool to help me focus and tap into my own subconscious.
The layout is fantastic and I'll echo what another reviewer said about the awesomeness of the equal attention to the minor arcana. I also loved the description and information provided about each suit.
I would definitely recommend this book for anyone new to tarot that was something easy to help them understand the basics.
The layout is fantastic and I'll echo what another reviewer said about the awesomeness of the equal attention to the minor arcana. I also loved the description and information provided about each suit.
I would definitely recommend this book for anyone new to tarot that was something easy to help them understand the basics.
May 2, 2022
I have always been interested and intrigued with Tarot reading but all the books seem to be difficult to follow and understand, never mind interpret.
Sam Magdaleno has given us a clear view of reading Tarot cards, with great insight and comprehension of how it works.
I will definitely be purchasing this one!
Sam Magdaleno has given us a clear view of reading Tarot cards, with great insight and comprehension of how it works.
I will definitely be purchasing this one!
January 1, 2026
This book makes understanding tarot accessible and fun with a straightforward approach, an upbeat, conversional tone, and the occasional pop culture reference.
The book begins with the origin of tarot and some basic information around doing readings focused on eight themes: beginnings, career, money, love, friends/family, health, higher guidance, and outcomes. A brief overview is given of each card, including keywords related to the upright or reversed position. The reading for each of the themes is given for both positions as well as a suggested action.
The distinct interpretations for each of the eight themes go far beyond the information provided with most tarot decks and the suggested action provides momentum. I especially appreciate the positively and light-hearted approach. The overview and keywords, gives a reader a good feel for the vibe of each card, making the book perfect for beginners and intermediates.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thanks to Fair Winds Press, an imprint of The Quarto Group, for providing an Advance Reader Copy via NetGalley.
The book begins with the origin of tarot and some basic information around doing readings focused on eight themes: beginnings, career, money, love, friends/family, health, higher guidance, and outcomes. A brief overview is given of each card, including keywords related to the upright or reversed position. The reading for each of the themes is given for both positions as well as a suggested action.
The distinct interpretations for each of the eight themes go far beyond the information provided with most tarot decks and the suggested action provides momentum. I especially appreciate the positively and light-hearted approach. The overview and keywords, gives a reader a good feel for the vibe of each card, making the book perfect for beginners and intermediates.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thanks to Fair Winds Press, an imprint of The Quarto Group, for providing an Advance Reader Copy via NetGalley.
January 19, 2023
Borrowed from the library. I’ve been wanting to improve my tarot skills. I love it. Just bought it from Amazon.
March 10, 2023
An interesting guidance, and fun one! The first book on tarot I read, and i found it inspiring! Can’t wait to start practicing…
May 23, 2022
I received a copy from Fair Winds Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I’ve been reading Tarot on and off for several years now, and I enjoy picking up new books on it because sometimes there’s something new to learn. I also like to find books I think will be great for people who are new or newer to reading Tarot. In this book, one will find a good amount of information about what each card means. For people new to Tarot the information covers what the card could mean when it comes up reversed or right side up for general, romance, life, money, professional and other types of readings. I think that information will be very helpful to new folks because it can be confusing when one we are new to it, especially as we’re learning to trust our instincts on the messages we’re receiving that don’t fall under what we learned.
While the information is great, each card gets a page featuring the artwork on the card alone. Each of these pages are stunning to look at with all the vibrant colors featured. The artwork pages won’t cover every deck, as each deck has its own artwork, it’s still great to see them featured so largely on their designated pages.
I think this is a great book to have or gift because it’s a great guide to have on hand. It’ll be great in aiding those new to Tarot, but also to have on hand for the moments we’re questioning ourselves while on our learning path.
I’ve been reading Tarot on and off for several years now, and I enjoy picking up new books on it because sometimes there’s something new to learn. I also like to find books I think will be great for people who are new or newer to reading Tarot. In this book, one will find a good amount of information about what each card means. For people new to Tarot the information covers what the card could mean when it comes up reversed or right side up for general, romance, life, money, professional and other types of readings. I think that information will be very helpful to new folks because it can be confusing when one we are new to it, especially as we’re learning to trust our instincts on the messages we’re receiving that don’t fall under what we learned.
While the information is great, each card gets a page featuring the artwork on the card alone. Each of these pages are stunning to look at with all the vibrant colors featured. The artwork pages won’t cover every deck, as each deck has its own artwork, it’s still great to see them featured so largely on their designated pages.
I think this is a great book to have or gift because it’s a great guide to have on hand. It’ll be great in aiding those new to Tarot, but also to have on hand for the moments we’re questioning ourselves while on our learning path.
May 9, 2022
Sam’s ‘Big Book of Tarot Meanings’ is everything you could want from a tarot book.
Firstly, the aesthetics and layout of the book are so ideal it is as if the author was reading my mind! The size of the book, font and the page colour changes are spot on. In all it is really a beautiful and also user friendly book.
Now onto the content!
There is so much detail given for each of the cards but it is all done in a way that you are the reader still and get to make your own interpretation. It really is a guide in the truest sense.
This book is one of my favourite purchases of this year, I have used it so much already and has helped my learning of tarot.
Firstly, the aesthetics and layout of the book are so ideal it is as if the author was reading my mind! The size of the book, font and the page colour changes are spot on. In all it is really a beautiful and also user friendly book.
Now onto the content!
There is so much detail given for each of the cards but it is all done in a way that you are the reader still and get to make your own interpretation. It really is a guide in the truest sense.
This book is one of my favourite purchases of this year, I have used it so much already and has helped my learning of tarot.
April 15, 2022
I have been reading tarot for almost 30 yrs and have read countless books over the years and know quickly if i'm going to find the book useful and enjoyable. This book is excellent! It is to the point, concise and doesn't waste your time with pages of back story and history of each card. This is the perfect book to have in your library as a quick reference to tarot meanings.
I really liked that the author gave the same importance to the minor as he did to the major arcana. This is such a rare treat as many books focus so much on major and skimp on the minor arcana. Each card has a basic introduction giving you a general idea what card is about. I love the quick meanings for different aspects of life. it covers beginnings, career, money, love, friends and family, health, high guidance and outcome. And for each category there is also a reverse meaning for those who read them.
This is a perfect book for anyone who just want gist of tarot without all the stories and histories and is looking for a good reference book that includes different aspects of life. There are no spreads in this book because it's a book of meanings, and I appreciate that the author didn't deviate from it's intent and kept it simple, condensed but also enriched with meaning.
I'd like to thank the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.
I really liked that the author gave the same importance to the minor as he did to the major arcana. This is such a rare treat as many books focus so much on major and skimp on the minor arcana. Each card has a basic introduction giving you a general idea what card is about. I love the quick meanings for different aspects of life. it covers beginnings, career, money, love, friends and family, health, high guidance and outcome. And for each category there is also a reverse meaning for those who read them.
This is a perfect book for anyone who just want gist of tarot without all the stories and histories and is looking for a good reference book that includes different aspects of life. There are no spreads in this book because it's a book of meanings, and I appreciate that the author didn't deviate from it's intent and kept it simple, condensed but also enriched with meaning.
I'd like to thank the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.
March 28, 2022
Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing a free e-book ARC of this title in exchange for my review.
What a wonderful book! I'm not completely new to tarot, and have been reading different books on the subject lately so was excited to see a new book available. This is a wonderful book, and when it is published, I will be looking for a print copy to add to my library because I think it would be a wonderful reference book! The Book is beautifully illustrated with illustrations of each of the cards from the traditional Raider Waite series for easy review as well as guidance for career, money, love, friends & family, health, higher guidance and outcomes, with both the upright and reversed meanings. This would make a wonderful reference book for those new to tarot as well as those who are familiar with the practice of reading.
I would recommend this book to anyone wanting more insight or guidance in learning the tarot or as a reference book to regular tarot readers.
What a wonderful book! I'm not completely new to tarot, and have been reading different books on the subject lately so was excited to see a new book available. This is a wonderful book, and when it is published, I will be looking for a print copy to add to my library because I think it would be a wonderful reference book! The Book is beautifully illustrated with illustrations of each of the cards from the traditional Raider Waite series for easy review as well as guidance for career, money, love, friends & family, health, higher guidance and outcomes, with both the upright and reversed meanings. This would make a wonderful reference book for those new to tarot as well as those who are familiar with the practice of reading.
I would recommend this book to anyone wanting more insight or guidance in learning the tarot or as a reference book to regular tarot readers.
May 20, 2023
This is an excellent guidebook for a beginner and a perfect addition to any Tarot library. Experienced readers would benefit when stumped in trying to interpret a specific card. I wish I had found a book as clear to understand as this one when I first began doing readings, and can't recommend this highly enough.
I'd also recommend it for readers who struggle to read for themselves and for those who enjoy keeping a Tarot journal, as the cards are clearly defined in a readily accessible way and applied to multiple scenarios for you.
I would recommend using page markers to make finding the sections easier. I've seen other books that actually come with tabs or the page is color coded in a way that helps you find definitions easier.
I'd also recommend it for readers who struggle to read for themselves and for those who enjoy keeping a Tarot journal, as the cards are clearly defined in a readily accessible way and applied to multiple scenarios for you.
I would recommend using page markers to make finding the sections easier. I've seen other books that actually come with tabs or the page is color coded in a way that helps you find definitions easier.
January 29, 2022
Tarot is a fascinating subject with a wide range of applications. Meditation, self study, even therapy - you can find tarot everywhere these days. But no one who studies it will tell you it's straight forward and easy. Depending on the system you're using, there are 78 basic, mostly agreed on meanings, and then there's reversals, and then some decks treat things differently...it's tough! It's great because there's always something new to learn, but it can be frustrating, especially as a novice.
This book is carefully planned to help avoid that. Each card has a list of meanings in different spheres of life - wealth, health, love and so on - both upright and reversed, so whatever kind of reader you are, this can be really helpful. Even the notoriously difficult Court Cards are here listed neatly and with all the different meanings. This is a fantastic resource.
As sometimes happens with proof copies, the conversion process has mixed up some blocks of text, so for instance the love reading for four of wands is in the middle of the lists for five of wands. It's not insurmountable, and it won't be a problem in the actual book, but I did have to stop and read more carefully a couple of times.
However I did love that it includes illustrations of all the cards, so that you can start linking the meanings to the details of the illustration straight away! Books like this don't always, so it was a lovely touch, and especially having them in colour was amazing.
I really enjoyed this, it's definitely going to become one of my go to references, and I can't wait to see a physical copy!
This book is carefully planned to help avoid that. Each card has a list of meanings in different spheres of life - wealth, health, love and so on - both upright and reversed, so whatever kind of reader you are, this can be really helpful. Even the notoriously difficult Court Cards are here listed neatly and with all the different meanings. This is a fantastic resource.
As sometimes happens with proof copies, the conversion process has mixed up some blocks of text, so for instance the love reading for four of wands is in the middle of the lists for five of wands. It's not insurmountable, and it won't be a problem in the actual book, but I did have to stop and read more carefully a couple of times.
However I did love that it includes illustrations of all the cards, so that you can start linking the meanings to the details of the illustration straight away! Books like this don't always, so it was a lovely touch, and especially having them in colour was amazing.
I really enjoyed this, it's definitely going to become one of my go to references, and I can't wait to see a physical copy!
July 16, 2022
I have always loved the idea of magic but never found it was something I could practice without guidance. The explanation provided that tarot wasn’t so much about special powers, but intuition was the spark I needed to get started.
This book did an amazing job describing the details of the cards and what each element stood for. It also broke down the reading into categories such as love, health, career and money. An added bonus was the actionable steps to take after the reading.
I will admit, because I wasn’t actually doing a reading, I only read the descriptions in their entirety rather than the subsections, but it gave me a newfound perspective on how to use my observations and intuition.
The only critique I have is that there wasn’t much explanation on drawing the cards themselves and what kind of layouts can be used. But I suppose that’s just for next steps and another book!
Highly recommend if you want to do regular readings or just want to know more about interpreting the cards.
This book did an amazing job describing the details of the cards and what each element stood for. It also broke down the reading into categories such as love, health, career and money. An added bonus was the actionable steps to take after the reading.
I will admit, because I wasn’t actually doing a reading, I only read the descriptions in their entirety rather than the subsections, but it gave me a newfound perspective on how to use my observations and intuition.
The only critique I have is that there wasn’t much explanation on drawing the cards themselves and what kind of layouts can be used. But I suppose that’s just for next steps and another book!
Highly recommend if you want to do regular readings or just want to know more about interpreting the cards.
April 15, 2022
This is a wonderful beginners book to understanding tarot cards. This book breaks down each card into eight categories: beginnings, career, finances, romance, friends & family, health, higher guidance, and outcome. Both upright and reversed meanings are given for each of these as well.
This book uses the Raider-Waite Tarot deck but if you have any deck that is based off of RW deck, which is most decks, this book should work for you. I don’t own the Raider-Waite deck because I don’t really connect to the art, but I do own The Happy Tarot which is almost identical to the RW deck, just cuter and with more candy. I was able to easily use this book with this deck so I believe you should be able to do it with most decks.
This definitely will be a great reference book for anyone who is a beginner with tarot cards, or even an experienced card user who just wants a good reference book. My only real complaint was that there weren't any basic tarot spreads provided, so if you are a beginner, you will have to look elsewhere for spreads.
I will definitely be picking up a copy of this book when it comes out for my collection because this was very helpful for me over the past few spreads that I have done. And yes, I consider myself a beginner, so this book has been very helpful for me.
*ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.*
You can also find my reviews at Red-Haired Ash Reads.
This book uses the Raider-Waite Tarot deck but if you have any deck that is based off of RW deck, which is most decks, this book should work for you. I don’t own the Raider-Waite deck because I don’t really connect to the art, but I do own The Happy Tarot which is almost identical to the RW deck, just cuter and with more candy. I was able to easily use this book with this deck so I believe you should be able to do it with most decks.
This definitely will be a great reference book for anyone who is a beginner with tarot cards, or even an experienced card user who just wants a good reference book. My only real complaint was that there weren't any basic tarot spreads provided, so if you are a beginner, you will have to look elsewhere for spreads.
I will definitely be picking up a copy of this book when it comes out for my collection because this was very helpful for me over the past few spreads that I have done. And yes, I consider myself a beginner, so this book has been very helpful for me.
*ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.*
You can also find my reviews at Red-Haired Ash Reads.
May 3, 2023
I am not new to Tarot, but I had few years during which I did not really use my deck. Also my original was bit used and I wanted to preserve it and the one I replaced it did not work so well for me. Recently I got the original deck replaced and I am back, but during readings I sometimes struggle how to interpret some cards in certain situations, like Disks in situation which talks about relationships or health. And this book has good suggestions how to interpret the cards in various readings related to relationship, work, heath, money, when it is in the beginning, or the closing card. So if you are like me, it is a good book to grab. Do not expect many reading suggestions like various options of Celtic Cross etc, since this book is really focused on the cards interpretations. And out of the two I own, this one does much better job of it.
Overall, I can recommend this book.
Overall, I can recommend this book.
April 3, 2022
Thank you to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for my honest review.
This book is a generally good starting guide for people who are interested in learning more about Tarot. As someone who has always been fascinated by the subject and has recently wanted to learn more, I was very interested in reading this book.
The book has an explanation of each card as well as their meaning when reading them during a tarot session.
I wish there was a bit more info on actual tarot readings and how to do them/methods for doing them but as the title of the book suggests it is all about the meaning of the tarot cards.
Again, a good starter guide and book to have when going back to look at explanations of what certain cards mean.
This book is a generally good starting guide for people who are interested in learning more about Tarot. As someone who has always been fascinated by the subject and has recently wanted to learn more, I was very interested in reading this book.
The book has an explanation of each card as well as their meaning when reading them during a tarot session.
I wish there was a bit more info on actual tarot readings and how to do them/methods for doing them but as the title of the book suggests it is all about the meaning of the tarot cards.
Again, a good starter guide and book to have when going back to look at explanations of what certain cards mean.
April 22, 2022
This is a very good and helpful tarot book.
First, I really like the visual design of the book. This is definitely a book I will buy in physical form.
It is very simple. You get a short introduction to the subject of tarot and then has a directory of the meanings of the individual cards.
Here, for each card the meaning in many different areas of life is shown. One also gets a kind of recommended action.
If you do not have a reference book for Tarot then I can highly recommend this book. If you already have one, you should check if the features and content are not more or less the same, otherwise it would not be worth it in my opinion.
First, I really like the visual design of the book. This is definitely a book I will buy in physical form.
It is very simple. You get a short introduction to the subject of tarot and then has a directory of the meanings of the individual cards.
Here, for each card the meaning in many different areas of life is shown. One also gets a kind of recommended action.
If you do not have a reference book for Tarot then I can highly recommend this book. If you already have one, you should check if the features and content are not more or less the same, otherwise it would not be worth it in my opinion.
April 28, 2022
Without much fanfare, the author cuts to the meat of the book, with the cards and their meanings, and nothing else. I found this very refreshing and appealing, as I personally prefer this style of reference books in practical use.
The layout is a nice one, pastel colors and black font with images from the traditional Rider-Waite deck. It’s minimalistic simplicity is charming and the book is easy to read. It gets in depth but is written with a breeziness. It’s a great resource for younger beginners; my teens really liked this one too.
eARC kindly provided by Fair Winds Press - Quarto Publishing Group and NetGalley. Opinions shared are my own.
The layout is a nice one, pastel colors and black font with images from the traditional Rider-Waite deck. It’s minimalistic simplicity is charming and the book is easy to read. It gets in depth but is written with a breeziness. It’s a great resource for younger beginners; my teens really liked this one too.
eARC kindly provided by Fair Winds Press - Quarto Publishing Group and NetGalley. Opinions shared are my own.
April 1, 2024
Important note: I knocked an entire star off for HP references. As a non-binary person, I'm tired of authors who should know better still using JKR's work for cultural clout/relevance.
For the most part, this is a good guide. I do like how the reversals are broken down by category as well, unlike most. While there are a lot of pop cultural references that sort of take me out of the reading, I do feel like most of the interpretations align with my personal ones and those from other books. I think this would be a good one to sort of read and memorize and perhaps not use every reading. It's got an influencer vibe, if that makes sense, and doesn't always take itself seriously.
For the most part, this is a good guide. I do like how the reversals are broken down by category as well, unlike most. While there are a lot of pop cultural references that sort of take me out of the reading, I do feel like most of the interpretations align with my personal ones and those from other books. I think this would be a good one to sort of read and memorize and perhaps not use every reading. It's got an influencer vibe, if that makes sense, and doesn't always take itself seriously.
April 11, 2022
5/5 stars!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book is definitely helpful for beginners. It discusses all 78 tarot cards and its meanings when used for different readings. The information given were also very concise and easy to remember. The illustrations were also colorful and clear that we really can see everything in the picture and gather all the symbolism we can see. I highly recommend this for tarot beginners.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This book is definitely helpful for beginners. It discusses all 78 tarot cards and its meanings when used for different readings. The information given were also very concise and easy to remember. The illustrations were also colorful and clear that we really can see everything in the picture and gather all the symbolism we can see. I highly recommend this for tarot beginners.
May 30, 2023
Quick impressions: Overall, this is a good book for beginners and intermediate Tarot learners. It is more a reference book rather than a learning guide. It is keyed to RWS, but the meanings can be applicable to most decks with an RWS base. I would recommend it for libraries that collect Tarot and esoterica books. This may also be a good book for young adult Tarot readers. It is a simple and practical book anyone can use. I'd buy it for my personal shelf.
(Full review with reading notes available on my blog.)
(Full review with reading notes available on my blog.)
February 20, 2025
Note to self: the title says it’s a Beginner’s Guide to Reading the Cards, so the information is very simplistic. I really wanted more historical, anthropological, and cultural information on the tarot. There are no references or citations to other works. Books like this just feel like one big game of telephone, where the meaning of symbols just get regurgitated again and again. When Symbols get taken out of their context or there is no deeper exploration of their meanings our understanding just remains on the surface.
March 24, 2022
I really love this guide. I was given a digital copy to review and will definitely be purchasing the book now. The way the author has broken down the meaning of each card in the Tarot, makes it easy to see how it applies to specific readings, such as career, love, family, etc. I did a few readings last night using this book to guide me; the book meanings ended up being pretty aligned with what I picked up on in each spread using previous knowledge.
April 3, 2022
i have always been fascinated with divination tools/tarot cards even when i was younger. reading the book in net galley app was difficult , the layout was odd as it showed multiple pages the same time and you had to scroll up and down. i wish there was a mobi kindle version. in the book each card is described on the meaning and if it was upside/reverse. i like how descriptive each card description was and the colors. i would recommend this book to those learning & to keep as reference.
April 15, 2022
Right first few pages, I could tell this author did not do research, and has based her concept of tarot by picking what she wants to be the history. Tarot is older than she claims, and is only giving credit for tarot to the Rider-Waite collection.
Again, western colonized tarot, new age Americanized. Her definition may be right but it’s all based off only one tarot system, which is not Tarot as a whole which this book claims to be the “ultimate guide’
Again, western colonized tarot, new age Americanized. Her definition may be right but it’s all based off only one tarot system, which is not Tarot as a whole which this book claims to be the “ultimate guide’
March 24, 2022
The Big Book of Tarot Meanings is a fantastic resource for anyone trying to understand more about tarot. The tarot cards and their potential meanings are organized within this book in a way that makes your own readings quicker and clearer while helping you better understand the cards along the way.
As someone new to tarot, this is definitely an excellent resource to have on hand!
As someone new to tarot, this is definitely an excellent resource to have on hand!
April 2, 2022
Interesting book and very natural and beautiful to use insights from it. It's big in a sense that every card is covering main happenings in one's life. Pictures are awesome, of course. Just few sentences need more clarification, but this is due to size of teachings so careful reading would be welcomed. Outstanding book!
April 23, 2022
I liked this book and thought it was beautiful, but that's about it. The categories begin to fill a little to impromptu and not quite fitting for each card. Though, it was set up and worded wonderfully I still wasn't a huge fan of the changes or lack or tarot spreads included. This is more of a book for an immediate level than a beginner for that reason.
May 1, 2022
This is a great book to help you learn the meaning of tarot cards, both the Major and MInor Arcana. Something this book has that most don't is the meaning of reversed cards.
I'm a bit familiar with tarot cards and readings, but this book definitely helped me improve my knowledge. I think this book in a physical form would be a great help to have when you are reading your tarot spread.
I'm a bit familiar with tarot cards and readings, but this book definitely helped me improve my knowledge. I think this book in a physical form would be a great help to have when you are reading your tarot spread.
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