The Deck and Book Nook: Tarot Spreads And Layouts

If I had to sum up “Tarot Spreads and Layouts” by Jeanne Fiorini (Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. ISBN-10: 0764336290) in one sentence it would be this: do not be fooled by the slimness of this book.

When it arrived, I expected it to be a typical book on tarot spreads and I guess I didn’t anticipate anything out of the ordinary. I was dead wrong. This little book is so jammed full of information, tips, spreads and insights that it actually took me a long time to get through it. It’s obvious that the author put her heart and soul (and years of teaching experience) into this. I was pleasantly surprised by all that this book offered.

Fiorini starts the book out with a chapter called “The Art of The Question” where she gives advice on what formulates a good question. She is quick to point out that “tarot is not about wish-fulfillment but the pursuit of information, knowledge, and awareness”. This statement helped me to understand that the spreads I would be working with were more about self development and not predictive in nature. Being as I am a straightforward person, I appreciated having this spelled out right from the get go. The author continues on with examples of well worded questions and how they may help the querent get a better, more accurate reading.

She then moves forward to a chapter on “Reading Skills and Practical Matters” – this chapter is worth the price of the book alone. All tarot readers, no matter what skill level, will find the author’s thoughts on tarot reading to be essential information. I really liked this chapter and found myself gleaning a few insights that I hadn’t considered.

The next part is the “meat” of the book – with 17 different spreads, the author gives a lot but manages to keep things in check by not over delivering. This was very appealing to me as it gave me plenty to work with but didn’t overwhelm or bore. And here’s the interesting part – while 17 spreads may not sound like a lot, Fiorini provides suggestions for expanding the reading should you decide that you need to. This makes the spreads versatile and gives the reader an opportunity to choose how deep they want to go.

Additionally, she gives questions to ponder for each spread that provokes critical thinking. This is way more than most “spread” books ever offer. My brain was reeling from the information and I realized that this is a book to savor, to play with, to explore…and to pick up when you need a new way of looking at your tarot cards.

Although all the spreads featured are useful, my favorites were: Helper/Hindrance, Body/Mind/Spirit, The Resolution Factor and Relationship Spread. These layouts were fun to play with and practical.

The Reader’s Checklist in the final chapter closes the book beautifully. Although I found Fiorini to be a very detailed writer and a bit dry, she makes up for that by providing good, solid, useable information. Overall, this little gem was a lovely surprise. I’m giving it a gushing Two Swords Up!

Blessings!