Queering the Tarot

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It seems a little unfair to judge a book based on what it isn't trying to do, so the two-stars aren't based on that. In the 16th or 17th century, the Marseille deck uses VIII as the Justice card and XI as the Strength card.

The big problem with it, however, is that it assumes a pretty specific queer experience - a lot of it reads like some mixed assumption that we’re wonderful activists or some sort of artistic bohemians, when a lot of us work normal, boring industry jobs and have hobbies like computer programming or reading occult books.They also create and host The Word Witch Podcast, which guides the listener through tarot from a queer and inclusive perspective and features interviews with tarot readers, deck creators, witches, magicians, and healers who are creating magic from the margins. Yes, I very definitely understood the arcs that were being presented, it was a little jumbled within them. These queer experiences may not first come to mind when considering the Fool, but upon reflection make perfect sense.

There are CONSTANT references to how badly queer people are treated, how much we suffer, how little progress there is, how everyone hates us, how isolated we are, etc etc. This is the book I first used to learn the tarot, and it’s a solid, well-rounded guide and workbook.Finally, some of the links to queerness were honestly such huge reaches like the author had only really considered a few cards in the deck but desperately needed to come up with reflections for others and just acme up with any old nonsense. Cassandra’s tarot writing has been seen at Little Red Tarot, The Column, Take Your Pills and Northern Lights Witch among others.

Though the book is a relatively quick read, it’s deeply thought-provoking and has added many new, intriguing dimensions to my interpretations as I read for myself and other queer querents. In a 2015 review for Autostraddle, Beth Maiden wrote, “I feel like this is a must-have book for anyone who wants to queer up their readings, and especially for anyone who struggles with the normativity in traditional decks and books.Queering the Tarot provides not just interpretations but a whole new way to interact with the cards. There were experiences I related to that I'd never expected to read in a tarot book, and it affirming to have them mentioned. I think I'd be much less bothered if the author had said the book was more about their own experiences with tarot/being queer, rather than a book of "how to queer the tarot" for everyone in general. When I hear the words victory and triumph though, I don't just thin of the success or win that comes with them. Crispin explores how artists can use the tarot to boost their creativity, but her card interpretations are useful for any reader.