Review for the SideWays Tarot by Roxi Sim
Very rarely does a new tarot deck come out that furthers the practice of tarot. The Sideways Tarot does just that. When, I was first learning to read tarot, my teacher taught me that the major arcana was a journey through the mysteries that the seeker takes. This deck portrays the reader taking that journey in the first person. I found her narrative, first person perspective to be enjoyably innovative.
Lets dive into the card images. Each painting is is brightly colored and well crafted. The bright colors darken ominously in the more negative cards. She darkens the paintings by changing how the light source hits the hands, which adds to the sophistication of the pictures. The figures themselves are stylized in a way that works. They are not realistic but not quite cartoony either. They hit this wonderful mid-ground that
makes the images really enticing. She is very selective in the supporting details she puts in. She favors composition over overly busy images, however there is just enough details to advance that narrative of each card.
Throughout the deck she marries runes with each cards. She uses the Blum s
chool of runes so norse school rune readers will argue a bit with some of the assignments. However, I found it interesting to see which cards she assigned to each rune, especially when I disagreed. Between the runes and the selective use of details makes the deck readable for any reader (whether or not they are a rune reader as well)
The companion book is a short, quick synopsis of card meanings. She succinctly breaks down the meaning of the cards, the meaning of the runes and the meaning behind the symbols she used. My favorite part is the spreads she presents. As the cards are only the majors, the celtic cross is not an ideal spread. Instead she presents simple but expansive spreads that works very nicely with the cards, turning the deck into a really useful deck. In the deck she includes rune meaning cards so one can keep those on hand for reference while one memorizes the rune meanings. Its a nice addition for those readers who are new to runes. While the deck definitely holds its own as a usable
reading deck, My favorite use for this deck is as a meditation deck. Since all the images are in the first person and the hands and feet are of ambiguous ethnicity, its really easy to use them in meditation as your own hands to explore the card. My only complaint about the book is the type facing and just for aesthetics not readability.
Card quality is excellent. The deck I received was the mini deck. It was printed on really solid linen card stock. I loved the feel and texture. It stood up well to multiple shuffling. Honestly, my favorite part was that it came in a tin and was small enough to put in my purse. It has lived in my purse for a month with no damage.
Pros
Bright, well crafted images
Travel through the main arcana in first person
Adds runes to deepen meaning
Great meditation deck
A fairly readable deck
Amazing cardstock
Tin packaging and small size makes it truly portable
Book is a solid, quick read
Cons
Only majors, limits it from being a fully readable deck
Supporting details are limited
The graphic design in the book makes it a little hard to read
In conclusion, The Sideways Tarot by Roxi Sim is a solid readable deck. Although the major only nature of the deck makes it more applicable to be a meditation or oracle deck, the small but mighty companion book gives enough spreads to make it a readable deck. The art work is very colorful and the point of view is innovative. The use of runes increases the depth of the meaning of each card. If you are interested in learning more or purchasing this deck go to www.roxiartwork.CA .
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