Suggested Readings For a Beginner?

I've been looking at a couple books to start off with. So far the three I like are: Tarot: Plain and Simple, The Easiest Way to Learn the Tarot - Ever!!, and Tarot for Yourself.

I want to begin with the traditional meanings of the cards (I really like that Tarot Plain and Simple also has what the person a card stands for is like,) and then expand into an intuitive approach.

Any experience with these books? Any I should consider?

(BTW I have checked the sites book reviews, I'm just asking you guys. )

Me, from my limited personal experience, would recommend Robert Place's book "The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination" to anybody who gets into Tarot. It starts from the beginning with a part on the history of Tarot, and goes from there to the RWS deck and a detailled description of every single card. It's nicely written and gave me a lot of food for thought and ideas for further reading.

ETA: Sorry if you actually were only looking for opinions on the books you mentioned - I haven't read any of them... but Place's book is a great place to start, and not only get a list of meanings, but also a background in the history and symbolism of the cards as a base for more intuitive readings.

Welcome to Aeclectic, IAmRiotEyes!

Of the three you've listed, I think Tarot Plain and Simple is the best book to start with to learn a broad range of meanings for each card. Then Tarot for Your Self would be a good next step for learning how to come up with your own meanings for cards. I don't have any experience with The Easiest Way... but there is a thread on it here (click).

HTH,
Rodney

I also will give a vote for Tarot: Plain and Simple; it give you keywords which will help you to start learning the different meanings all the cards can have.

Tarot plain and simple and tarot for yourself are both good books to have on hand. I read many books at first, but I really didn't get it until I found a deck that clicked with me. That was the key for me. After that, the books became rather obsolete.

I started with Tarot for Beginners by Barbara Moore. It really only brushes the surface, and my collection of books on tarot has grown quite a bit since then, BUT what I liked about it was that it was a simple approach to getting my feet wet without becoming overwhelmed by the plethora of information that is available. I felt that it was a really good jumping off point.

I second the Tarot: Plain and Simple. It's a very good book to learn from and will give you a good overview of the card meanings. I also learned from it and I have progressed pretty well. I have bought a couple of others, but this book is the one I keep coming back to. It really makes it very easy to learn.

I have a few Tarot books and the one sitting out right now is Tarot Plain and Simple.

But don't limit yourself to just books.....spend some time here reading through the different Tarot Forums. The information may seem overwhelming at first......but it will start to sink in. And there are lots of really good (no lie) readers in this forum that are more than happy to answer your questions and share their knowledge with you : ) Also next to forum where it says "learn" Thirteen has given the meanings to all the cards : )

So before you invest a small fortune in books (or while your waiting for them to arrive) check out the resources right here/right now : )

Thanks for the input guys

Chiming in a bit late here, but just wanted to recommend "The New Complete Book of Tarot" by Juliet Sharman-Burke and its accompanying deck, the Sharman-Caselli tarot. I have started with these and they have been extraordinarily helpful. The imagery of the deck is very clear, colorful and captures the imagination. Each card has been packed with symbolism to really give the beginner something to associate and work with. I enjoyed Juliet's interpretation of the tarot which, while departing from tradition, is very cogent and again, very accessible to the beginner. If you're looking for a good intro to the Rider-Waite school of tarot, this is an accessible option.