Everyday Tarot Archives: LIVING the Minor Arcana

Disclaimer: Dixie Vogel gave me a free ePub of her book in 2012 in exchange for an honest review. Despite the fact that it took me forever to read and review this book, here's my review. (Added after contacting the author: Dixie and I have been chatting via email and she told me that since this version came out, she's gone back and revised the book a bit. She even added all the minor arcana cards. Her goal for this volume was to see if she could publish a book and obviously, she succeeded in that goal. I applaud her for having gotten something out and for continuing to write and share it with the world.)

I have a hard time with books that have been converted from blog posts. While I love reading short articles focused around my favorite interests (tarot, decluttering, games, productivity, etc.) they're usually a hit or miss deal. The same thing holds true for this volume. Dixie Vogel collected some of her articles from her blog “A Fool's Journey” and converted them to this book. She goes through each card and then gives her personal opinion and story to go along with each of the major arcana cards.

What I liked: I love reading personal stories that connect the cards to the reality of one's life. This book covers that in spades. Vogel writes poignant articles connecting each card, Astrology, and her family and life. I like that she also includes reversed cards and how they relate to her world as well. In some cases Vogel selected two articles to reflect a single card. At the end of each essay, she poses a wonderful question that helps the reader delve into their own connection to the card. Seeing these questions alone excited me because it actually gave the book a push away from being “yet another blog to book” conversion.

Where I had problems: Like I stated in my introduction, blog to book articles aren't the same thing. There are many inside things in Vogel's articles that I had issues following. I'm a huge tarot buff but when it comes to connecting the Astrology in general and to tarot, I need a lot of hand-holding and explanation. When I read an article that talks about the planet or sign's effect on a person, I expect them to tell me more about that planet, how this relates to the card and to the story they're telling. This book fell flat in that department. Due to this nature, and some of the awkwardness of the prose, it was very hard for me to read and want to keep reading, despite the amazing insights into the cards Vogel has. (This is also why the book received the GoodReads two-star review for “it's okay”). The inconsistency of the formatting and the loose editing was apparent throughout the eBook.

Bottom Line: If you are bored and want to read a quick personal read on how people relate to each tarot card, then this is your book. The questions at the end of each section are great to use for exploring your own connections to the cards as well.