I have
Hello Moonstone11:
Yes to all your questions. Yes, I have this. I recently bought this set and yes it is good and yes it can help your newbie cousin to learn better. IF she will apply herself to what it ask of her. This is the second of the Gilded Tarot deck I've bought. I bought my first one as soon as it became available to purchase and I love it dearly. I like having second decks of my loved ones and I thought what the heck when I saw the set the other day at the bookstore.
I had at one time read somewhere of someone saying they didn't like the book all that much. Mostly this was because the person had wished that Ciro Marchetti had wrote it and would have told the how and why of his creation as he made it. Please don't let this foreshadow and cause fault with a good book and I feel excellent one for a beginner. I am far from a beginner, but even the well-season ones can flex their muscle and enrich themselves with renewing by going step by Josie's step in her "Tarot Technique". She does ask that you follow along with using these steps. Once I opened the material, I jumped to read what she had wrote for a few of the cards. I do this just as I have to go goo goo over an artist rendering on certain cards or the deck just doesn't do it for me. She met my approve on her meanings and insights. Then I started from the beginning of the book (as you should), ....well I wasn't suppose to go rushing off seeing the rest. LOL.
Some of what is said to do I don't agree with. For instance, even though I have and did, I don't go for placing the deck under your pillow to sleep with when it's new. I often thrash around the bed when asleep. If you sleep laying your head down as if a stone and wake in the morning the same, then more power to ya. Most of the rest I am in total agreement with.
Sorry this is long. Lastly, I haven't finished the book yet. I know it is a keeper in my humble opinion, but if it wasn't, and particularly to those who feel you don't need a book, there is at least close to 30 pages or so that I view as priceless learning. This is in learning tarot and what so many fail in doing is to truly allow the opening of yourself to your own intuition and psyche. There just isn't any rush about business in doing this.
I will close this by giving a bit of the book. This paragraph is about the need to have a Tarot journal/diary. She shares many, many reasons why one should have a diary from the beginning of your learning tarot. This is one small paragraph, beautifully wrote. It is printed on page 31 from "Easy Tarot Handbook" by Josephine Ellershaw......
"The purpose of your diary is to record events in Tarot language, for within the Tarot lies every conceivable event that fills our lives and the lives of those around us. By doing this, the messages of the Tarot will become real for you."
Best of learning to your cousin with whichever choice you go with!
