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Astrology Plain & Simple: The Only Book You'll Ever Need
Everyone reads their horoscope in the newspaper and online; however few really understand very much about astrology. To the uninitiated, astrology can seem rather daunting. All those measurements, degrees, and logarithms--what's simple about it? This wonderful introduction demystifies a topic that everyone knows a little bit about and provides a basic framework for understanding it. The Jacksons' easy and straightforward approach explains how you can learn more about yourself and those around you through the zodiac. They also explore some more esoteric topics in astrology, including trines, aspects, and conjunctions. Look up the characteristics of each sun sign, create a birth chart, find out your rising and moon signs, and more. Illustrated with line drawings and charts, this plain and simple guide will be received enthusiastically by the novice and the experienced alike. This book was previously published by Sterling in 2005 as Simply Astrology .
- GenresAstrologyNonfiction
168 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 10, 2021
There are some issues with the general sign definitions, here and there, though mostly, it's pretty goo, and - in.a few places - like the Cap & Aquarius descriptions and houses, it is excellent.
Leos are described as flamboyant. That is certainly the reputation, though I haven't seen it play out that obviously in reality, aside from in the form of status objects like brand names, big houses and horrific displays of gauche boasting. Leo is one of the most common sun signs in America. Thus, this definition should be treated with great care. While saying they are extraverted - that is, driven by their social life, requiring an entourage of sorts - is accurate, even for the shy grade school ones who may not have come into their own yet, and the Virgo rising sorts who will always be more discreet, it would be useful to provide examples of how this flamboyance can manifest lest people assume that means always being a class clown or wearing wacky outfits or buying drinks for everyone at the bar. (None of which are out of the question, but are generally less likely if you're a male Leo with Pisces moon, for instance. Then it's maybe all about the whirlwind starry eyed romance of the week).
For Scorpio:
"Your worst fault is that you are so self-absorbed that you use up other people and wear them out. You may drain them financially, demand that they keep on traveling when they are exhausted, or go on and on about yourself and demand that they focus their minds day and night on your most minute decision or problem until the other person wants to scream." <- this is really tangential and doesn't relate to Scorpio, as a whole at all. It's applicable to cusp-dwelling Vishaka nakshatra Scorpio/Libras, when you bring in the Vedic interpretation. But the other 3 nakshatras of Scorpio are nothing like this and it's very much a red herring. In fact, not only is it insulting, but for the private, deep, dignified Swathi-style Scorpios, this would be quite upsetting to think about themselves, as they try to consider these ideas with an open mind. They are already so neurotic, why pour fuel on the fire?
They also went a little hard on Taureans being lazy. They can be. But when they get going, they can go harder than anyone. They're basically inertial. They live for sensual and material pleasure, but they're also notably rugged and resilient.
The remark about Sag, "[Boredom] mainly manifests as...a very sharp and hurtful tongue," applies specifically to Jyestha Sags, not so much to the other 2 types.
I also would have preferred if they addressed traditional rulership of each sign as well as the modern assignments, such as Jupiter/Neptune for Pisces and Mars/Pluto for Scorpio. The more you learn, the more relevant these connections become.
Leos are described as flamboyant. That is certainly the reputation, though I haven't seen it play out that obviously in reality, aside from in the form of status objects like brand names, big houses and horrific displays of gauche boasting. Leo is one of the most common sun signs in America. Thus, this definition should be treated with great care. While saying they are extraverted - that is, driven by their social life, requiring an entourage of sorts - is accurate, even for the shy grade school ones who may not have come into their own yet, and the Virgo rising sorts who will always be more discreet, it would be useful to provide examples of how this flamboyance can manifest lest people assume that means always being a class clown or wearing wacky outfits or buying drinks for everyone at the bar. (None of which are out of the question, but are generally less likely if you're a male Leo with Pisces moon, for instance. Then it's maybe all about the whirlwind starry eyed romance of the week).
For Scorpio:
"Your worst fault is that you are so self-absorbed that you use up other people and wear them out. You may drain them financially, demand that they keep on traveling when they are exhausted, or go on and on about yourself and demand that they focus their minds day and night on your most minute decision or problem until the other person wants to scream." <- this is really tangential and doesn't relate to Scorpio, as a whole at all. It's applicable to cusp-dwelling Vishaka nakshatra Scorpio/Libras, when you bring in the Vedic interpretation. But the other 3 nakshatras of Scorpio are nothing like this and it's very much a red herring. In fact, not only is it insulting, but for the private, deep, dignified Swathi-style Scorpios, this would be quite upsetting to think about themselves, as they try to consider these ideas with an open mind. They are already so neurotic, why pour fuel on the fire?
They also went a little hard on Taureans being lazy. They can be. But when they get going, they can go harder than anyone. They're basically inertial. They live for sensual and material pleasure, but they're also notably rugged and resilient.
The remark about Sag, "[Boredom] mainly manifests as...a very sharp and hurtful tongue," applies specifically to Jyestha Sags, not so much to the other 2 types.
I also would have preferred if they addressed traditional rulership of each sign as well as the modern assignments, such as Jupiter/Neptune for Pisces and Mars/Pluto for Scorpio. The more you learn, the more relevant these connections become.
March 13, 2018
A quick read. I paid $5 for a copy and it was a good quick introductory book. It mostly has lengthy explanations of different terms, zodiac signs, planets, and all the relations to each other. In future it may serve as a reference guide for me but that's all it really is; it will never be read cover to cover again. Unfortunately it had a few spelling and grammatical errors which drives me crazy in a book. If you're interested in reading it I would just suggest the library for this one.
February 20, 2020
The beginning was really well explained and helped me grasp a lot of astrological concepts but the end got muddled and felt like there were a lot of things I was missing. I kept flipping back to check for missed information but I hadnt skipped anything. I learned a lot about denzel Washington although it didnt really help me grasp the concepts any better.
March 7, 2019
The stuffs written in the book are actually easy to be accessed through the internet, but since I prefer reading with actual paper, it's easier to understand. It was a good book, and liven up to the name: plain and simple.
January 13, 2020
Always had an interest in astrology and wanted to read into it more. Great to learn about moon and ascendant better but could get rather complicated for a beginner. Highly recommend looking online for your chart to understand further.
July 19, 2021
The copy I have has major mistakes in Denzel Washington’s birth chart - Virgo is where Scorpio is, and Gemini and Pisces are swapped! For a beginner this could really mess up your understanding. The rest of the book is okay.
February 28, 2018
It’s a good astrology book ,but still not what I expected.
July 10, 2018
i read this in one sitting, it was amazing !
December 20, 2018
Easy to understand to a certain extent I just think astrology, the full of it is still a bit out of my reach, but well laid out and comprehensive to my understanding.
April 9, 2019
الكتاب شامل ولكن مختصر بشدة، يناسب المبتدئون في تعلم خريطة الولادة للأبراج.
May 10, 2021
Good for basic introduction into astrological concepts. I wouldn't read too much into the definitions though, it has the tone of a newspaper horoscope.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews