Tarot: Get the Whole Story: Use, Create & Interpret Tarot Spreads

by James Ricklef

Creating original spreads is a rite of passage for many ambitious Tarot students. James Ricklef gives valuable lessons in doing just that-with advice for finding inspiration, defining positional meanings, and structuring a layout.

Get the Whole Story is also for those who want to peer over the shoulder of a Tarot master as he demonstrates a variety of new spreads. Readers will learn which spreads are best for relationship concerns, personal transformation, New Year's resolutions, life decisions, and more. Each chapter discusses a new spread with detailed explanations of positional meanings and dynamics between the cards. Also included are illustrations and entertaining sample readings featuring Clark Gable, Marie Antoinette, Hera, Don Juan, and other historical, literary, or mythological figures.

Genres: Tarot, Divination, Nonfiction, Paganism

240 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2004

Reviews

[Rozonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

We really need more Tarot books like this-simple, readable, useful and intelligent.

This book offers simple yet insightful spreads,very well explained- and the highlight of this book are the examples: readings done for historical or fictional characters. Penelope, Pocahontas, Abraham Lincoln, the Queen of Sheba, Marie Antoinette and many more are the subjects used to show Ricklef's spreads at work, and thanks to this simple yet bright idea the spreads come alive and show their full potential. Ricklef also stimulates our creativity giving us alternative uses for each spread and inviting us to create our own versions of them.

For tarot professionals, like me, and also for amateurs and people who are still learning, this book is full of ideas and tips. I heartily recommend it.

UPDATE: This book is currently out of print. To buy it and benefit the author, get this new self-published edition:
https://jamesricklef.wordpress.com/pr...

[Less_cunning · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the third Tarot book I have read. I was a little apprehensive about reading it at first becuz I am a beginner and it is devoted solely to spreads and I erroneously assumend that it would be technical. But Tarot: Get the Whole Story: Use, Create & Interpret Tarot Spreads is very clear, readable, extremely straightforward and very didactic. What I found extremely liberating about Tarot: Get the Whole Story is that as a beginner you really do not have to worry about memorizing spreads and positional meanings at first and you can create your own spreads without having to worry about doing it wrong. It also demonstrates that you can alter existing spreads or add subspreads. Learning and creating spreads is a dynamic, learning process and there is no right or wrong way to do them, all things considered...

IMO the Knighthawk fictional readings were kind of hokey but they function as a way to show how these spreads operate in practice. Other than that I thought this book was great and I have already begun to come up with ideas for spreads based on this book. I probably will consult Tarot: Get the Whole Story in the future as a reference book.

[Marcello Tarot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secondo libro di James Ricklef, ovviamente scritto nello stile garbato che lo contraddistingue. Un ideale seguito del suo "Tarot Tells The Tale", è incentrato sulla creazione delle stese: è sì vero che quella delle tre carte è pressoché universale, ma è altrettanto vero che talvolta serve qualcosa di più.
Ancora una volta troviamo consulti a personaggi storici o di fantasia, fatti sempre con quello stile delizioso (anche se talvolta rasenta il lezioso) e nel rispetto della sua etica, e ancora una volta, tramite la fantasia, apprendiamo e lo facciamo bene e molto.
Nonostante ciò, i libri dedicati alle creazioni di stese scritti dalla Fiorini e dalla Moore restano i migliori sia dal punto di vista teorico sia per le stese presentate.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on different tarot spreads to use, inspires you to create your own tarot spreads too. Well written too, he uses literary and biblical characters to give sample readings showing how the different spreads work.