Jessa Crispin's inspired guide The Creative Tarot is an amazing amalgam of the arcane, the artistic and the delightful. It is as it suggests, a guide to getting familiar with and reading tarot cards for fun and other kinds of profit.
Every card gets its own detailed description along with works from different disciplines to flesh out its definition. Crispin writes from a foundation of respect for work and understanding that the more you put in, the more likely you are to get out - so put in everything you can fit. This book is informative and fun to read. It is also filled with compassion and history and the recognition that there is only so far any one person can go on the coattails (or mystical meanings) of someone else.
Women, generally, tend to be brand loyal. At least, that is how marketing people put it. We find an author, a soap, a makeup line, a department store, and we want to stick with it - we want to find a routine that feeds our lives. You know. Like humans. *cough*
Crispin's book The Dead Ladies Project basically fell off the shelf into my hands, and so, brand loyalty was born. I discovered that she'd written a guide to tarot, and was frankly surprised and also a little dismayed on account of I'd moved out of that phase of my life. I mean, I have the requisite desk in a box that is gorgeous and all, but I'd never done a reading with it. This book was such fun to read, and it offers so much in the way of understanding that work is important and that work is hard that it was not possible to leave the deck on the shelf. So, now there's that fun party moment.
Which lead to probably the best party moment ever. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child released at the end of July (in time for Harry's birthday, natch) and the bookstore threw a party. Because listen, those midnight release parties were a big deal for bookstores back in the day. What fun would it be to live in a world where launch parties were less polite and more magical? Hm.
My roommate saw me reading the book, had me read her cards once and said, "So, you're okay with reading tarot for the Harry Potter party, right?" I love my roommate and so thoughlessly said yes.
And immediately started making notes in the margins of the book about which characters were more like what cards. For an English major, this is like the best honeymoon idea ever - seriously. Not every card got a character because I didn't spend enough time to do it, and will finish it, I think.
I made a very simple 3 card spread that was based on fan fiction themes. And I totally got to tell this little girl about how her summer camp experiences at winning a sport would help her be a good friend in the world. It was like watching someone read a whole book about friendship and volleyball all at once. It was the best. The absolute best.
Jessa Crispin has a newsletter where she writes about tarot, life and other tragedies, and also she is on twitter and has another book coming out in 2017. (but for real, if you like travel, please to read The Dead Ladies Project it is extraordinary)
#40days40books list
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