Shadowscapes help please.

Sasmi

Opinions please. Is it worth paying the extra for the companion book, or are the cards self explanatory/easyily intuitive? Reading the reviews of the deck, people seem to be split between loving the book and finding it 'airy fairy' and unhelpful. What do you guys think?
 

coredil

Not reading with the Shadowscapes I can't advice you about the usability of the meanings.
But as they have been written by the artist I would say they are worth getting them.
I find the meanings very well written.

But having the companion book as well as the amazing and beautifull two books edition called The Art of the Shadowscape Tarot, I can give you the strong advice, if you can afford them, to get these two books.

1. It has been often criticized that the cards are too small for the very detailled pictures.
In the two books I mention all the cards are reproduced at 26,5 x 16 cm!
This is a really a huge format that allows to easily lok at every detail.

2. The books contains exactly the same text as the companion book.
Only the introduction by Barbara Moore is missing.

3. The two books contains a lot of additional text and pictures under the title "From the sketchbook" for almost each card. These are great insights on the thoughts of the artist and on the "making of" process.

4. The books are really very well printed and are a joy to look at

At the end you would have the meanings as well as the possibility to really see all the details of the pictures and as an add on all the personal comments of the artist about the making of the deck.

Of course they are much pricey than the companion book!

Best regards

And no, I am not affiliated with the artist, I just love thes two books :)

Edit:
I just notice on Stephanie Pui-Mun Law website that the first volume (Major Arcana) is out of print!
But the second volume (Minor Arcana) seems to be still available at $55.
http://www.shadowscapes.com/listing_products.php?listing=7

The first vol. seems to be avalaible at abebooks.com
 

Le Fanu

Or if you have an iPhone/iPad/Android device, the Fool's Dog app for the Shadowscapes comes with the full text of the book (including Barbara Moore's intro) plus - if you have tablet/iPad - the cards are much bigger for checking details. And all for just a few dollars

I got rid of my decks and book ages ago because as a real deck I don't find it useful. However, the app makes you realise how lovely the deck is, even if just to look at.
 

Sasmi

Thank you so much for that. I will invest in the app and then look into the books. Thanks again. Sam.
 

BodhiSeed

The main reason I would get the companion book (and why I use it) is for the large images of each of the cards. It makes seeing the details so much easier. But if you have an app, you could probably see those details with no problem! :)
 

feynrir

The main reason I would get the companion book (and why I use it) is for the large images of each of the cards. It makes seeing the details so much easier. But if you have an app, you could probably see those details with no problem! :)

The book's pictures are subpar in my opinion. The lack of opacity in the originals makes the monochrome versions of the art look muddy as hell. In addition, I actually found the text to be too fluffy, and it certainly skipped over certain details in the pictures that I found captivating. These omissions ended up irritating me.

Example of too fluffy: Two of Swords entry, where the swan beckons to the figure "Open your heart." Stuff like this...I don't know. It doesn't fit with the mood of the scene 50% of the time for me.

Example of detail exclusion: On the Chariot card, there is clearly a crab that is a central focal point in the water upon which the Chariot races. That crab, to me, obviously denotes the card's association with the astrological sign of Cancer. The book just tells some story and fails to mention this.

With all the details and choices made (monkeys in the Fool and other cards? Fairies in the barks of the trees??), I would have liked to see much more about them in the book. The book was also a little too pulp-romantic-fantasy for my liking. Cool if you like that kinda thing, but not worth the extra money for me.
 

tigerlilybug

Personally I love the art work in this deck so I appreciate how the book has larger images than the cards plus I just adore books it's basically an addiction. Now as
a must have for meaning wise I'd say it's not that detailed and more of an intuitive explanation I have yet to read it while using the cards I just like it on it's own though and think it's good to have but not a necessity.
 

ueI

Yes

The book is very much worth it. It covers things I never would have noticed otherwise, such as the lady on the death card.