The Book of Tarot: Illustrated with the Morgan-Greer Tarot

by Susan Gerulskis-Estes, Susan Gerulskis-Estes, Bill Greer (Illustrator)

94 pages, b&w illustrations, paperback

Genres: Tarot, Spirituality

94 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1981

Reviews

[Susan Hansson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wrote this when I was 19 and there were hardly any books out on the Tarot. I found a store in Harvard Sq, Cambridge called The Sphinx and it was walking into a whole new world to me. I found books on all sorts of religious mysticism, Dione Fotune's excellent book on the Kaballah and books about goddesses and historical transcripts of how the Tarot came into being. Even the psychiatrist Carl Jung in "Man and his Symbols" made multiple references to the Tarot and archetypes. Dion Fortune (pen name for Violet Firth) belonged to the Golden Dawn who included one of my favorite writers, Yeats. It was fascinating. I was working a medieval woodblock set and sent in a copy of two I had finished, The Ace of Cups and The Hermit along with my manuscript. The company had just published the Morgan Greer Deck so asked me to write the book for this particular deck. My love of these beautiful cards, each telling a story that can be understood by any one - no language - universal archetypes fascinates me. At that age a lot of people thought I modeled for the cover drawing since it did resemble me at the time but it had been drawn long before and I never met the artist. It was just a coincidence...My maiden name was on the cover.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Morgan-Greer is my favorite deck of all time! It doesn’t really “need” a companion book in that the imagery is either self-explanatory or tied enough to RWS/Thoth that it is understandable without one.

But I was so excited to find this; it describes the art specific to each card like the books for the Waite-Smith do. It’s concise and clear; it uses short word lists to associate the cards as well- which is helpful as I’m still and always forgetting meanings.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short introduction to the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot system, using the Morgan-Greer tarot deck.

I bought this book specifically to use with my Morgan-Greer deck. I wanted to delve in the symbolism in this particular deck, and this book does exactly what I wanted it to do in that regard. A description -- often with an explanation -- of the main symbols is given for each card, accompanying a black and white picture of the card itself. I can then consider these key symbols within the context of the standard RWS meaning and consult a dictionary of symbolism for additional information or alternate meanings.

I would not recommend this book to anyone completely new to tarot. It lacks the straight forward simplicity of modern introductory guidebooks, and the card meanings weren't as good as they are in other sources. This book has the same vibe as Eden Gray's The Tarot Revealed: A Modern Guide to Reading the Tarot Cards, which lends itself more for those interested in the esoteric.

[Irene · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my Tarot Bible. I use it regularly. Clear, concise easy to understand.

[Daniel Molina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Morgan-Greer tarot has intrigued me since I got it because its imagery has always struck me as intimate. This short book serves as a good introduction to the deck, which is not regularly referenced in Tarotic literature.

Gerulskis-Estes provides a brief overview of the Major and Minor Arcana as well as the history and structure of the cards. She notes Kabbalistic connections, and she provides examples of some lesser referenced spreads that can be used while highlighting that the cards can work in conjunction with your meditative practices.

Though the book specifically explores the Morgan-Greer tarot, I think this is a quick and informative read that would benefit any Tarot reader whether or not s/he plans on using the Morgan-Greer tarot.

[Gwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice overview of tarot with colorful illustrations of the cards. Some symbolism from the original RWS tarot can be lost in these images as these are more zoomed in versions of the original art.