Laura Tempest Zakroff’s Tarot by Tempest is an excellent book for anyone who is curious about learning and using tarot for the first time, or a seasoned practitioner.
With her usual friendly and accessible writing, Zakroff opens with an introduction to tarot, a brief history and explanation of it what it is, and some of the most famous decks. There is also a guide to choosing the tarot deck that is right for you, and what you might want to consider when looking over the many (so many!) beautiful decks available.
I was also really pleased to see a section covering the importance of buying from actual humans and artists, rather than choosing AI generated decks – the artwork can be pleasing to look at, but is often taken from actual human artists without permission or remuneration, and AI doesn’t make symbolic or meaningful choices – it just cobbles things together – and tarot is all about the meaningful and symbolic!
Chapter two of the book was very interesting as Zakroff covers art, numbers, movement, and the magic of how and why the art on the cards is important, as well as how we embody these things in our lives – even at the cellular level! There are some very simple movements or postures that Zakroff invites readers to try and notice, with the understanding that every body should do what is within their ability and comfort range.
The book then moves onto the Major Arcana, and beginning with zero (0), The Fool, offers an in-depth look at the card from the following points of view: the number, shape, a brief snapshot description of the card, musing (a few words to describe the basic meaning of the card), core principles, “Add It Up” (a more in-depth look at the card’s number), exploring the magic of the card, and putting things in motion, which includes a way to physically resonate with the card using your body.
Each card of the Major Arcana is offered up, one-by-one, for the reader to fully explore and embody.
The Minor Arcana are shown grouped, e.g., all the Aces, then all the Twos, and so forth, with a brief explanation about each card’s individual meaning along with the “group” meaning, e.g., the overarching theme of Aces is “New start, focus”. The court cards are similarly grouped and explained.
The rest of the book focuses on the practical use of the cards, cleansing, shuffling, layouts, and looking at the finer details of what cards come up during a reading: lots of court cards? Several of the same number? A type of symbol or figure that repeats through the cards in a reading?
While I don’t consider myself a seasoned reader of tarot cards, I have read a fair few books on the subject, and Zakroff’s gave me new things to consider and pay more attention to when doing my own readings – including to remember to move and be aware of my body with each card (which in turn might help me to recall meanings and symbols and help me to find new depth in my readings).
As always with Zakroff’s work, I recommend adding this to your collection – her writing is clear and accessible, and the guidance she provides is invaluable.
—review by Mara McTavish
Author: Laura Tempest Zakroff
Publisher: Llewellyn Publishing
Pp.: 221, Price: $18.99 USD
