What do you think?
Rate this book
Rust Belt Arcana: Tarot and Natural History in the Exurban Wilds
A work of nature writing and art that takes an unconventional approach to the flora and fauna of the Rust Belt. The essays, which are set in the industrial Midwest, are organized by the major arcana of Tarot cards. The chapter on The Fool tells of a bear harassed by car traffic; the Magician chapter follows a trout swimming through industrial rivers; the High Priestess section shows how climate change is threatening the habitat of the snowy owl. Exploring natural history through the Tarot provides readers with a new perspective on a regional landscape often dismissed as unremarkable, as well as our remarkable place in it.
160 pages, Paperback
Published November 1, 2018
9 people are currently reading
719 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
October 26, 2018
Stansberry has a distinct voice and a lot to say about humans and the natural world. He speaks from an unusual place: a skilled hunter and fisherman, a very knowledgeable amateur naturalist, born in rural Ohio but eminently urban. I was curious about why he chose to use Tarot cards as an organizing principle for this collection of essays, but the choice was actually brilliant. Using the archetypes that each card represents, he's able to use the inherent ambiguity of the Tarot to capture the nuances of animals and plants, as well as the complexity and lack of simple answers to what we need to do to restore balance in our relationship with the rest of nature. For example, he's not afraid to point out that in some places, the abundance of deer is killing off forests, or that conservationists are occasionally forced to use pesticides to save swamplands from invasive species. If that sounds like a compromised position, it's not: his fierce love of nature shines through at every turn. He's just being honest, and so is his writing. You will not fail to be moved, amused, angered and inspired by this gem of a linked essay collection.
January 25, 2020
Ok, so organizing a collection of eco-essays around the tarot is kinda weird, but it mostly works. (My gut feeling is the tarot as organizing principle should have been developed even further or cut.)
The best parts of these essays are the straight-up observations about the flora and fauna of the Lake Erie regions of Ohio and Pennsylvania. Every Midwesterner should read this book. Every person who is interested in the intersection of human living and wildlife should read this book. I learned things like "human imprinted birds can be abnormally aggressive." Makes sense if you ever saw My Life as a Turkey, a delightful documentary about living among wild turkeys. And while we're talking about other works, I read Annie Proulx's Barkskins at the same time as Rust Belt Arcana and thought the two made really nice companion books.
On a different note, I love the tarot cards that are sold as complements to this book. The illustrations are beautiful. And if it's the tarot you are interested in, this book isn't a bad primer on the tarot's major arcana.
The best parts of these essays are the straight-up observations about the flora and fauna of the Lake Erie regions of Ohio and Pennsylvania. Every Midwesterner should read this book. Every person who is interested in the intersection of human living and wildlife should read this book. I learned things like "human imprinted birds can be abnormally aggressive." Makes sense if you ever saw My Life as a Turkey, a delightful documentary about living among wild turkeys. And while we're talking about other works, I read Annie Proulx's Barkskins at the same time as Rust Belt Arcana and thought the two made really nice companion books.
On a different note, I love the tarot cards that are sold as complements to this book. The illustrations are beautiful. And if it's the tarot you are interested in, this book isn't a bad primer on the tarot's major arcana.
March 16, 2019
I received this book as part of a Goodreads Giveaway. I entered the giveaway, because it seemed like an interesting concept. However, I was not prepared for how truly enthralling and informational this book would be. If there are any out there who are turned off by the Tarot part of this tome, don't be. He uses the Tarot not really in any superstitious manner, but much more anthropologically. The Tarot is used as archetype to help us understand the history of our thoughts on our place in this world. For people living in the Great Lakes region, it provides a guidebook to the wonder right outside your front door. For those of us outside of that region, it informs us of the existing biodiversity in that area as well as inspiration to find out what we have in our backyard. I believe that this may be one of the most straight-forward explanations of why we need to be better stewards of our world.
June 19, 2019
A magical and unusual little book. Stansberry combines the major arcana of the tarot with the beleaguered yet resilient wildlife and flora of the rust belt midwest. Voila, meditations on the environmental warning signs we've ignored, the beauty that's left to love, and even, sometimes, a path towards hope. Cleanly written, with a beautiful blend of nature writing, research and personal experience. No, you don't need to know a thing about the Tarot (or dragonflies, or prehistoric fish, or cicadas) to be enchanted by this book.
December 6, 2018
One of the best books I have read in a long time. The essays that shine brightest are those that mix tarot interpretations with the natural world and personal ruminations. I particularly love the ones where he takes his kids outside and remarks on their interactions with nature. Vivid descriptions of scenes such as his son staring into the red eyes of a box turtle or taking another son outside in his pajamas to catch fireflies (or their imposters) will stay with me for a while.
January 15, 2019
this is a very unique book. it's more natural history (well, natural contemporary is a more apt term, really) than tarot, but the tarot provides an organizing structure and extra interest for me.
basically the author writes about one plant, animal, or bird for each of the 22 major arcana cards. the animals, plants and birds are drawn from the area where he lives in ohio - hardly a wildenerness paradise, but the best place for certain fossils and certain migratory bird stops (lake erie is a big help in this). even cleveland can be important in a geologic fashion.
I've read a fair amount of natural history and seen my share of david attenborough's nature programs but there were a lot of fascinating facts in this book I didn't know. a lot of thought and research went into it. I definitely learned a lot, and each essay was pretty short, so it wasn't a slog like nonfiction can be. I learned more about natural history than tarot but I just love the odd combination - it works for me.
it does get depressing. the environment is in bad shape, extinction is happening at a frightening rate. he tries to end it on a hopeful note but I don't know that all that came before really supports that. it makes you realize that there are people out there doing research, saving migratory birds one by one, etc. the author revealed himself to be a little bit of the "nature red of tooth and claw" variety. a hunter, but not one who relishes the kill - yet at the same time, if he sees a wounded bird, he just goes about his business, chalking its suffering and presumed near death up to nature, nothing to do with him. I liked the little revelations about what kind of father and husband he is.
basically the author writes about one plant, animal, or bird for each of the 22 major arcana cards. the animals, plants and birds are drawn from the area where he lives in ohio - hardly a wildenerness paradise, but the best place for certain fossils and certain migratory bird stops (lake erie is a big help in this). even cleveland can be important in a geologic fashion.
I've read a fair amount of natural history and seen my share of david attenborough's nature programs but there were a lot of fascinating facts in this book I didn't know. a lot of thought and research went into it. I definitely learned a lot, and each essay was pretty short, so it wasn't a slog like nonfiction can be. I learned more about natural history than tarot but I just love the odd combination - it works for me.
it does get depressing. the environment is in bad shape, extinction is happening at a frightening rate. he tries to end it on a hopeful note but I don't know that all that came before really supports that. it makes you realize that there are people out there doing research, saving migratory birds one by one, etc. the author revealed himself to be a little bit of the "nature red of tooth and claw" variety. a hunter, but not one who relishes the kill - yet at the same time, if he sees a wounded bird, he just goes about his business, chalking its suffering and presumed near death up to nature, nothing to do with him. I liked the little revelations about what kind of father and husband he is.
January 10, 2021
Less tarot, more natural history, but such a lovely book. I had intended to read just a bit of it and instead read the whole thing and enjoyed every bit of it.
The associated tarot deck is lush and lovely, too. I wish Stansberry had written essays for the whole deck.
The associated tarot deck is lush and lovely, too. I wish Stansberry had written essays for the whole deck.
February 29, 2020
A lovely reflection on the natural world in Pennsylvania and Ohio and how the creatures, rivers, behaviors of nature are reflected by the Major Arcana.
May 13, 2020
Less about the tarot, more about the way we are rapidly destroying the natural resources around us, and set in eastern Ohio, with some spillage into western PA.
October 16, 2021
This is a beautiful book. If you are a student of divination, it provides a unique approach to viewing the major arcana of tarot. If you are fascinated by the natural world, it is a delightful set of snack-sized essays that introduce you to a wide range of creatures and environments. If you live in the rust belt, it is a love letter to the land that nurtures you. Never shying from the harsh realities and challenges of surviving as a wild being, it ultimately leaves you feeling enamored with and hopeful for the future of our undeveloped spaces.
July 18, 2019
Rust Belt Arcana by Matthew Stansberry and illustrated by David Wilson is a well-needed and refreshing take on the environmental issues and resurgence in the Great Lakes Region. Stansberry uses interpretations of the Tarot, linked with wildlife in Ohio's exurban wilds to create a picture of what was, is and will be in the future of conservation in our region, touching on his own childhood and that of his sons to paint a picture of not only how necessary wildlife is within our local ecosystems, but to our growth and development of human beings.
The writing is concise but thorough, unlike much of the blathering environmental crooning we see in other works. This sets up chapters at a comfortable 4-7 pages, making this a quick read and not a slog like other conservation writings. Despite the briefness, there's still a ton of scientific information within the individual chapters, and the one on fireflies might be the best example of this.
As a student of Great Lakes wildlife, physical processes and ecosystems, I didn't think there was much for me to learn here aside from the Tarot - but I was wrong. I learned plenty about wildlife and many places along Lake Erie in Ohio that I never would have known about. Yet there always seemed to be a connection to either my childhood (vernal pools, fishing for bluegills, bowfin) or my working life currently on Lake Ontario.
I would highly recommend Rust Belt Arcana to any student of the environment, but know that you don't need a B.S. in wildlife biology to follow along and enjoy.
The writing is concise but thorough, unlike much of the blathering environmental crooning we see in other works. This sets up chapters at a comfortable 4-7 pages, making this a quick read and not a slog like other conservation writings. Despite the briefness, there's still a ton of scientific information within the individual chapters, and the one on fireflies might be the best example of this.
As a student of Great Lakes wildlife, physical processes and ecosystems, I didn't think there was much for me to learn here aside from the Tarot - but I was wrong. I learned plenty about wildlife and many places along Lake Erie in Ohio that I never would have known about. Yet there always seemed to be a connection to either my childhood (vernal pools, fishing for bluegills, bowfin) or my working life currently on Lake Ontario.
I would highly recommend Rust Belt Arcana to any student of the environment, but know that you don't need a B.S. in wildlife biology to follow along and enjoy.
October 6, 2019
This could really benefit from some thorough copyediting/proofreading.
June 30, 2023
“There’s something about this seventeen-year rhythm of a cicada emergence that inspires us to reflect. It reminds us that we haven’t always been attentive.”
This line made me pause. I underlined that second sentence twice.
I think Matt Stansberry and I have a similar approach to the Tarot - not so much a mystical connection with any sort of pervasive universal truth, but rather a lens through which to focus our own analysis so often pointed outside our body. To direct it inward, a vehicle for understanding, an extended metaphor bridges that awkward, sometimes painful gap between what we want to tell ourselves and what we should tell ourselves.
I am also a Hoosier by birth and by choice. I’m Midwest til I die. Rust Belt Arcana is a love letter to the wilderness we have yet to ruin with our meddling, that we strive to protect in its most fragile states. I took my time reading this, drip-feeding it chapter by chapter when I wanted a moment to meditate. I savored it like the good chocolate you keep at the back of the drawer away from grubby toddler fingers. Stansberry’s words were often a sense of time travel to me, teleporting me back nearly two decades to my early teen years goofing with friends along the St Joseph River or gallivanting through county and state parks. I could feel the mud between my toes, smell the river water.
Even if you have no interest in the Tarot, it is an effective tool through which to experience our world around us. I’ve found myself growing more mindful about those tiny interactions I have every day with the wilderness just outside my door.
This line made me pause. I underlined that second sentence twice.
I think Matt Stansberry and I have a similar approach to the Tarot - not so much a mystical connection with any sort of pervasive universal truth, but rather a lens through which to focus our own analysis so often pointed outside our body. To direct it inward, a vehicle for understanding, an extended metaphor bridges that awkward, sometimes painful gap between what we want to tell ourselves and what we should tell ourselves.
I am also a Hoosier by birth and by choice. I’m Midwest til I die. Rust Belt Arcana is a love letter to the wilderness we have yet to ruin with our meddling, that we strive to protect in its most fragile states. I took my time reading this, drip-feeding it chapter by chapter when I wanted a moment to meditate. I savored it like the good chocolate you keep at the back of the drawer away from grubby toddler fingers. Stansberry’s words were often a sense of time travel to me, teleporting me back nearly two decades to my early teen years goofing with friends along the St Joseph River or gallivanting through county and state parks. I could feel the mud between my toes, smell the river water.
Even if you have no interest in the Tarot, it is an effective tool through which to experience our world around us. I’ve found myself growing more mindful about those tiny interactions I have every day with the wilderness just outside my door.
December 13, 2018
Really great! The natural world has always been a way for people to interpret their lives and Stansberry has some very interesting things to say about the species he chronicles and how they can be interpreted through the lens of the tarot major arcana. He doesn't shy away from the grim and political impacts of capitalism and modern western society on the environment, so many of the essays have a darker spin but I didn't feel like the book was pessimistic. Instead it functions more as a call to action and in fact ends with Stansberry urging us not to despair and to not live separately from the world, but to embrace and become a part of it.
I found the strongest essays to be the Magician (steelhead trout, flyfishing), The Hierophant (hunting/paternal tradition), The Chariot (dragonhunters), and Death (crows). I also loved all the illustrations by David Wilson that accompany each of the essays.
As others have mentioned there are unfortunately a number of typos and other errors that will hopefully be addressed in reprints (I hope there are future editions! I loved this book!) I also wish Stansberry had put in a bibliography--I'd like to read some more of the writings he references and quotes and wished they were listed in one place. And in case it wasn't clear, this only covers the majors and not the minor arcana.
I found the strongest essays to be the Magician (steelhead trout, flyfishing), The Hierophant (hunting/paternal tradition), The Chariot (dragonhunters), and Death (crows). I also loved all the illustrations by David Wilson that accompany each of the essays.
As others have mentioned there are unfortunately a number of typos and other errors that will hopefully be addressed in reprints (I hope there are future editions! I loved this book!) I also wish Stansberry had put in a bibliography--I'd like to read some more of the writings he references and quotes and wished they were listed in one place. And in case it wasn't clear, this only covers the majors and not the minor arcana.
January 25, 2019
This is an incredibly helpful guide to both tarot and the Northeast Ohio biotic community! Wilson is a great illustrator, Stansberry always has something to say and many, many sources to draw on (though his tarot investigations tend to head back to the same 3 tarot books), I was intrigued and learned a lot about how my region works through this small book. There was some repetition and its definitely best read spread out, like an entry a day for a month or something, but I just wanted to finish it and powered through last night.
Connection: I applied to work at Belt Publishing early in this book's production cycle as a freshmen at Oberlin College, I believe, and I still might look into Belt opportunities. I received this copy from Belt's publicity guy, as I was originally going to write a review of Rust Belt Arcana prior to the release date, but my plans fell through as another Great Lakes project took over my life (Great Lakes Limnology)
Connection: I applied to work at Belt Publishing early in this book's production cycle as a freshmen at Oberlin College, I believe, and I still might look into Belt opportunities. I received this copy from Belt's publicity guy, as I was originally going to write a review of Rust Belt Arcana prior to the release date, but my plans fell through as another Great Lakes project took over my life (Great Lakes Limnology)
March 31, 2020
You wouldn't think that tarot and wildlife of the midwest could meld together in such a beautiful way. Stansberry's love of nature in the Rust Belt, whether in a metropark, a suburban backyard, or in the middle of a crowded city is evident throughout each piece. Stansberry's ability to weave nostalgia and current climate issues together in a way that makes me feel like we need to do something urgently, but that the world is not hopeless makes me want to keep this book close. The tarot structure is an interesting way to build a narrative. I would love to see more genres and topics through this lens. I would also be so happy to buy a tarot deck designed by David Wilson.
November 4, 2018
Overall I liked this book. I was drawn to it because of the illustrations and because I’m from Northwestern PA. I’ve lived by both Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. It was an interesting concept to combine Tarot with nature. I was a little put off by at least six typos in the book. It’s too bad because it was a little distracting from the otherwise powerful messages of the book. I did love the illustrations and the essays, which had interesting facts dispersed throughout.
December 25, 2019
This book is absolutely amazing. Short, literary essays about plants, animals, insects and fungi in the Industrial Midwest paired with Tarot cards that fit the description of the resiliency of the biological organism in our human-dominated landscape. Will lend this book to many of my friends in Ohio and Michigan! A great book club option to consider! A romantic yet inherently familiar combination of nature, mysticism and childhood wonder.
January 25, 2020
This short book of essays about the exurban wildlife and natural lands around the south shore of Lake Erie is a gem. The trope of using the Tarot to unify the group of essays is a bit hokey, but the writing is top notch and engaging, and the information is important. Having been a naturalist on the East Coast (and growing up on the south shore of Lake Erie), I still learned a great deal about some very common animals.
December 9, 2018
One of the most interesting tarot books I've read, interpreting tarot through the lens of Midwest nature and flora and fauna. Definitely a must read for Midwestern tarot readers. That said, as other reviewers have mentioned, there are a noticeable number of typos and proofreading errors.
September 12, 2024
Absolutely beautiful! One to return to again and again
Read
October 24, 2018Good book, however, it could have benefited from closer proofreading. There are typos.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews