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Everyday Tarot: Using the Cards to Make Better Life Decisions
Everyday Tarot , first published as Choice Centered Tarot , is an accessible, thorough introduction to the tarot. Gail Fairfield focuses on the psychological meanings that can be found in the symbolism of the cards. Rather than simply predicting a future in which we have no real choice, her clear, concise interpretations provide meaningful guidelines that will lead readers to powerful insights and greater self-understanding. She makes the tarot an easytouse tool for intuitive information gathering, personal empowerment, and self-discovery, all keys to making great choices about life's dilemmas. Fairfield explains everything needed to become a competent card reader and offers invaluable tips on choosing a deck, designing layouts, and giving readings for individuals and groups.
160 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 9, 2020
3.5 stars. Not a book to flip through for a quick definitions, but something worth reading through chapter by chapter, as they build on one another. Has separate chapters on numerology and another for suits. Really good meditations on numbers and how they progress. If you plan to read pip decks, having a good background in the properties of numbers and suits will help.
One chapter for the Majors, and another for the Minors. What I found interesting is that for Majors the author includes four energies: Neutral, Positive, Negative, and Reversed. Which meaning to go with sometimes depends on the position in a spread. Example: Blocks, Obstacles, Worries would have "Negative" meaning. By default the basic energy is Neutral. For Minors though, there are only Upright and Reversed sections.
Book provides several spreads to try, and a chapter for designing your own. Some guidance on the reading process (like a walkthrough) and advice on further studying (keep a tarot journal).
The meanings given do not always resonate with me, but I think there's something I could still pick up. For now I consider this supplementary reading rather than one of my main references.
One chapter for the Majors, and another for the Minors. What I found interesting is that for Majors the author includes four energies: Neutral, Positive, Negative, and Reversed. Which meaning to go with sometimes depends on the position in a spread. Example: Blocks, Obstacles, Worries would have "Negative" meaning. By default the basic energy is Neutral. For Minors though, there are only Upright and Reversed sections.
Book provides several spreads to try, and a chapter for designing your own. Some guidance on the reading process (like a walkthrough) and advice on further studying (keep a tarot journal).
The meanings given do not always resonate with me, but I think there's something I could still pick up. For now I consider this supplementary reading rather than one of my main references.
January 6, 2015
Fantastic for beginning or intermediate readers
This is a fast read but a rich and rewarding one. I love the psychological, subtle way Gail interprets the cards. I will continue to work with this book for a long time.
This is a fast read but a rich and rewarding one. I love the psychological, subtle way Gail interprets the cards. I will continue to work with this book for a long time.
June 8, 2022
Awful. There are plenty of other tarot books (Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Book of Tarot, Tarot for One: The Art of Reading for Yourself, Understanding the Tarot Court) that I'd recommend anyone to invest their time into rather than this one. Skip this. From how she writes (every reader/querent is "she", apparently other genders have no interest in tarot?), to her interpretations of the cards, to throwing out other random bits of "information" that have no source or founding, it all makes for a frustrating experience and i only slogged through the whole thing to write an accurate review while hoping there would be some redeeming qualities at some point. (regarding the last point: she writes "the symbols of astrology, for example, have become more and more popular until many people are at least aware that 55 is an astrological symbol even though they may not be able to name it or interpret its meaning." all my astrologer friends who have studied for 10+ years: "i have absolutely no idea what she's talking about." and searching on this yielded zero results.)
i really wanted to like this book, because the hook of looking at uprights as outward energy and reversals as inward energy really intrigued me, but it fell very short of its goal. the author lays out clear guidelines for each suit (swords = communication, wands = identity, etc.) and number (2 = moving in a direction; 5 = change) which, on its own, isn't a terrible idea. again, i was intrigued by the idea that each suit has "cycles of three" that go from conceptualizing, to action, to manifestation. but my issue (well, one of many) comes from the fact that she sticks way too rigidly to this formula. tarot needs room for flow and interpretation. and, combined with the actual interpretations for individual cards, i can't say "stay away" any clearer.
the interpretations... i've been reading and studying tarot for a few years now, and i devote a considerable amount of my time to listening to other readers' interpretations and insight. i rarely consider an interpretation "wrong", since reading is such an individual thing, but... so many of these are just plain, flat-out wrong. how does one look at three swords literally piercing a bleeding heart and think, "ah, yeah, good communication is happening here!"? four of swords, a person at rest, is apparently "now is time to take action on your goals." (no, that card says this is a time for rest, rejuvenation, and recovery.) the swords suit in particular was very awful, as she stuck so rigidly to "swords are communication" that there was no leeway for anything else. but there were plenty of issues in the other suits. ten of cups is apparently dissatisfaction that a relationship is stable? king of cups is an indication that it's time to break off a relationship? i think you're projecting a big much there, gail.
from the card interpretation section, i got one nugget of insight to take with me. she pointed out that while the knights are protected by armor, the helmets also cover their heads to the point of being blinders and narrow-focused. they can't see the big picture. so, out of 78 card interpretations, i found one interesting thing that actually made sense.
once i got past the interpretations, i hoped that the rest of the book, dedicated to designing spreads and readings, would be better. keep in mind: there was no redeeming this book completely anymore, but i hoped for something. and... it wasn't awful. i agreed with a lot of this process. but it's also basic stuff that most tarot books cover, nothing unique, so i'd recommend skipping this book entirely and picking up one of the others i mentioned at the beginning of this review.
i really wanted to like this book, because the hook of looking at uprights as outward energy and reversals as inward energy really intrigued me, but it fell very short of its goal. the author lays out clear guidelines for each suit (swords = communication, wands = identity, etc.) and number (2 = moving in a direction; 5 = change) which, on its own, isn't a terrible idea. again, i was intrigued by the idea that each suit has "cycles of three" that go from conceptualizing, to action, to manifestation. but my issue (well, one of many) comes from the fact that she sticks way too rigidly to this formula. tarot needs room for flow and interpretation. and, combined with the actual interpretations for individual cards, i can't say "stay away" any clearer.
the interpretations... i've been reading and studying tarot for a few years now, and i devote a considerable amount of my time to listening to other readers' interpretations and insight. i rarely consider an interpretation "wrong", since reading is such an individual thing, but... so many of these are just plain, flat-out wrong. how does one look at three swords literally piercing a bleeding heart and think, "ah, yeah, good communication is happening here!"? four of swords, a person at rest, is apparently "now is time to take action on your goals." (no, that card says this is a time for rest, rejuvenation, and recovery.) the swords suit in particular was very awful, as she stuck so rigidly to "swords are communication" that there was no leeway for anything else. but there were plenty of issues in the other suits. ten of cups is apparently dissatisfaction that a relationship is stable? king of cups is an indication that it's time to break off a relationship? i think you're projecting a big much there, gail.
from the card interpretation section, i got one nugget of insight to take with me. she pointed out that while the knights are protected by armor, the helmets also cover their heads to the point of being blinders and narrow-focused. they can't see the big picture. so, out of 78 card interpretations, i found one interesting thing that actually made sense.
once i got past the interpretations, i hoped that the rest of the book, dedicated to designing spreads and readings, would be better. keep in mind: there was no redeeming this book completely anymore, but i hoped for something. and... it wasn't awful. i agreed with a lot of this process. but it's also basic stuff that most tarot books cover, nothing unique, so i'd recommend skipping this book entirely and picking up one of the others i mentioned at the beginning of this review.
December 24, 2023
I liked the way this book presented the tarot. The descriptions of the meaning of the cards was unique and interesting. I particularly liked how it said to interpret right side up versus reversed cards when they show up in a reading. I think both experienced and novice tarot readers will find useful things in this book. Recommended for tarot enthusiasts of any experience level.
July 23, 2018
Without question, for me, the best book I have ever read concerning tarot. I took a long break from reading the tarot cards and this book is going to drag me right back in! It’s useful for a beginner or more experienced reader, honestly, think it’s even better for experienced readers to have other books to contrast it to. This book has a very developmental and philosophical approach towards it, it steers away from the more esoteric musings than confuse me. It has given me a solid framework to interpret both decks, the cards, individual layouts and even picking out the proper deck. I’ve used this book to help me interpret two readings and it’s helped me understand a few core themes in my own life. Couldn’t be more pleased with this book!
August 18, 2012
I very much like Fairfield's approach to Tarot readings. It's less about predicting the future and more about helping you pick the best path for you.
Her Major Arcana definitions are very good. I think she kind of pushes it with her Minor Arcana system of 3s, but by and large I find that it works pretty well.
My only other quibble is that when doing a reading for myself, I sometimes find it difficult to decide whether to read a particular card as a positive or a negative. Unless I have misgivings about the situation going into the reading, I'm always tempted to go for the positive spin! I'm not sure that's always wise, lol.
Her Major Arcana definitions are very good. I think she kind of pushes it with her Minor Arcana system of 3s, but by and large I find that it works pretty well.
My only other quibble is that when doing a reading for myself, I sometimes find it difficult to decide whether to read a particular card as a positive or a negative. Unless I have misgivings about the situation going into the reading, I'm always tempted to go for the positive spin! I'm not sure that's always wise, lol.
July 30, 2020
This is the most useful tarot book I've read. It isn't tied into any specific deck, and so is not reliant on set images. Instead, it takes a psychological approach at card interpretation. This book took tarot out of "woo-woo land" for me and gave me a real tool for reflecting on my life without making outlandish predictions.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews