3.7 Stars
One Liner: That’s a lot to process!

Red Tarot is an advanced-level thesis that attempts to decolonize tarot symbolism and meanings. It caters to the BIPOC and the queer community to guide them to find themselves and their roots in their culture and divination. Being an #OwnVoices work, it has many personal insights and experiences shared by the author.

My Thoughts:
Firstly, this book is not a casual read. It is not for beginners. I put myself somewhere around the intermediary level, and this was still a bit hard to understand.
There’s an abundance of information, too much at times, which feels overwhelming to read at a stretch. I’ve been reading a few pages per day for more than two months, and still, I can’t say I got it all. Serious readers should buy a physical copy for easy reference.
Moreover, this is rooted in American history, which means I cannot always relate to it (though I’m a pagan by birth). If you belong to the same land, you are likely to find a deeper connection.
That said, some of the interpretations are beautiful. Though it draws from the RWS (Raider Waite Smith), I found myself visualizing the cards from the Light Seers Tarot Deck. There is certainly a connection between the two, which could help me as I learn more.
There isn’t a single illustration in the book. Having at least a rough sketch for each card would have helped a lot more.
The book doesn’t interpret the cards in the ‘standard’ order. It is grouped into Aces, twos, and on, with the major and minor arcana bundled under the subheads. This is an interesting approach as it also creates a link between different cards (the Magician and Wheel; Empress and Queens; Justice, Hanged One, and Judgment, etc.)
Many quotes are included in the book, with a clear bibliography at the end divided into neat sections. That’s helpful and efficient.
Sharing some of the many quotes I marked:

The Magician is the astrologer and the Wheel of Fortune is the astrology, both images of each other.
The High Priestess shows us how we shape ourselves.
If Justice reflects our blindness, then the Hanged One offers the sacrifice of self that restores sight.
While the Empress births us into body, Death brings us back to Spirit. Birth and death are but two sides of the same veil.
If you could look at the rings of a tree without cutting it down you would be looking at the World card.
They (The Fool) are a dangerously free character, just as they are honest about the danger they face, on the verge of tragedy and comedy at the same time.

To summarize, Red Tarot is what would best be termed as an in-depth academic read with a liberal dose of personal experience and history. It is not a book for a quick reference.
Thank you, NetGalley and North Atlantic Books, for eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
#NetGalley #RedTarot

<i>Red Tarot: A Decolonial Guide to Divinatory Literacy</i> by Christopher Marmolejo is a text that I am grateful for, and one that I am so happy to see out in the world. This is the kind of tarot book that I am <i>so</i> excited to find and that I’ll absolutely keep on my bookshelf. I was thrilled to receive an e-book ARC but bought the paperback copy on the strength of the introduction and first chapter alone and continued my reading from there.

The text is structured numerologically, with chapter zero as an introduction. From there, ‘One’ includes the Magician, the Wheel, and the pages and aces, ‘Two’ includes the High Priestess, Justice, The Hanged One, Judgment, and all the twos, and so on. The Fool appears in the ‘Ten’ chapter with the World.

Far from a standard card-by-card beginner tarot book laying out how to interpret each card in a spread, <i>Red Tarot</i> positions each card as a leaping off point and tarot itself as a text. The author’s reflections on each card are simultaneously personal and theoretical – the text’s analysis is rooted in lived experiential knowledge, intersectional and decolonial theoretical frameworks, and tarot imagery and symbolism. Here, tarot is a tool that readers can engage to “nourish emancipatory knowledge that undergirds all revolutionary praxis” [407-8] and daily draws have the capacity to “[transform] awareness” [411]. This book is unlike any other I’ve read, and I see myself revisiting it often; it has left me with much to ponder on everything from tarot’s epistemological implications to the tarot reading as a site of dialogue and new angles to consider on each and every card.

Of their wide-ranging bibliography, Marmolejo writes that their citation practice is “multifarious and polyvocal,” bringing Indigenous intellectualism and critical pedagogy into conversation with reference to each card [408]. Authors that appear cited in the text include bell hooks, Paolo Friere, José Esteban Muñoz, Toni Morrison, Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Gloria Anzaldúa, and many more. I suspect some will critique this book as challenging to read or as ‘overly academic,’ but such criticisms miss the ways that language itself is central to the book’s very purpose and thesis on tarot as critical literacy. Marmolejo describes their book as offering “a visual framework for interpreting the tarot in a manner that perceives, disrupts, and rejects conditioned colonial consciousness” [2] – recognizing language as a site of contestation, the text invites thinking/reading/writing critically and necessitates thoughtful, deliberate, self-reflexive engagement.

Citation in the book is via endnotes; I would suggest putting a bookmark or post-it in the back of the book while reading so that turning back to learn the sources of quotations while reading is easier, particularly for readers unfamiliar with much of the source material.

<i>Many thanks to Christopher Marmolejo, North Atlantic Books, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC for review.</i>

A richly researched and deeply rooted guide to interpreting tarot with decolonization in mind. Red Tarot brings BIPOC and queer folks to the center, adjusting language and providing revised guidance for how to support others. This is a must read for anyone passionate or curious about tarot. Thank you to NetGalley and North Atlantic for the free advance copy.

Red Tarot Explained

The author discusses what the color "Red" means to him, and provides some background information on why he wrote this book. Additionally, he explains each tarot card in detail.

The book is easy to read and the explanation of card interpretation is very understandable. This is a good book for beginners.

This book is a very interesting decolonial approach to reading and understanding tarot. Many of those interested in alternative interpretations of spirituality would benefit from the thinking and writing in this book.

Unfortunately this wasn’t for me. I became interested in Tarot only last year and had requested the book because of that. I thought this would be a nice reference guide to help me learn more about Tarot but learn it in the decolonized way right from the start of my Tarot journey.

The book is both academic and poetic at times. Many of the lessons felt lost in the prose while also making me feel a bit stupid with the big vocabulary being used 😅 I often got confused and felt the information go in one ear and out the other. I think this will be great for those with a lot of experience and knowledge in Tarot but not meant for beginners. Hopefully I can come back to this when I have more knowledge but for now it’s a DNF

This is honestly so important and an educational read. It gives us (me) a very real perspective into tarot and takes the important step towards decolonizing it. Into the spiritual belief and the proper background surrounding it. I absolutely loved it.

I'm so excited to include this alongside my other tarot books. Marmolejo's approach to tarot is so important and I learned so much from their connections to world mythology. I can't wait to incorporate these priorities into my own work with tarot and divination.

This was such a refreshing take on tarot. The insights about post-colonialism as it applies to tarot readings and imagery was amazing!

Christopher Marmolejo’s Red Tarot sets out to examine the standard 78 card tarot deck through a decolonial and indigenous lens. Prior knowledge of tarot isn’t explicitly required for this book, but I think a basic knowledge of tarot before reading would help readers get the most out of these more complex interpretations of cards. The chapters are long but filled with the author’s insights. This book is certainly not intended to be read in a single sitting. I recommend reading a few sections of a chapter per sitting, and giving yourself time to take in and process the information. Red Tarot does a great job analyzing the cards that I’ve personally struggled to connect with based on the colonial capitalist lens typically attached to them. Some sections throughout the book could be edited down by a third or half as they repeat the same point reworded for a few pages. Some of the writing may be difficult to comprehend for someone unfamiliar with concepts like decolonization and intersectionality. If you don’t have much background knowledge on those topics, I would recommend a little research on the side as you read. Much of the book connects the cards to a relationship with God or experiencing God. It is noted about halfway through the book that God can refer to any Divine being the reader believes in or chooses, but I think it would benefit readers for this caveat to be moved to the introduction. If you are uncomfortable with reading a lot about God (and there is a lot) for whatever reason, I still recommend this book but maybe wait until you’re in a more comfortable mental space to handle it. Overall, I enjoyed Red Tarot, and I would recommend it to readers interested in advancing (or challenging) their established understanding of tarot.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced e-reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book is good for someone new to the ideas of post-colonialism or tarot. I think the author has a wide breadth of knowledge and it was interestingly applied to the topic of tarot. I think those who want to study further how tarot can awaken transformative feelings of acceptance and global togetherness might find use in this book.

This is Tarot taken out of the box. It is incredibly inclusive, witty, wise, welcoming to all. It had me either earmarking or googling references right and left. The best nonfictions books can be read almost like novels. Not to say that books like that have a plot, but more that they give the immersive pleasure of storytelling. This is a huge book, easily over 300, 400 pages. It has given me so many perspectives and insights, and I didn't even read it with my tarot cards yet. It's both a reference and a journey, all in one. I will heed to the policy of not quoting directly from the book (understandably), but believe me there are so many sentences I want to spotlight. (Hello, Goodreads). This is the book to hand people who may smirk at your tarot card collection. Thank you, Netgalley, for a chance to preview this book.

I really really enjoy the aims of this intriguing book! Something that I have not considered, I was really intrigued by everything Marmolejo approached. It is clear that this book was a work of blood sweat and tears. I really enjoyed the fact the book allows a great depth to be addressed per card, and provides a really invoking look and encourages any and all tarot users and observers to consider their interpretations in a new light. It was heavy, less a guidebook towards tarot, instead a proper deepdive academic research piece I am greatful to have come across, however I think most with basic intrigue in tarot would be severely overwhelmed. I however, adored it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for review.

This book is a brilliant and much needed addition to the world of tarot books. Deep, visceral and beautifully, brutally insightful writing.

Red Tarot was a well needed addition to the existing tarot literature. It is rare to find a tarot book that does not perpetuate colonialism and I thoroughly appreciated the author taking on this tremendous task. I had to pause frequently throughout the book to self reflect on my own biases and prior programming. This book requires frequent returning to internalize the messages held within. After reading it, I look forward to further expanding my knowledge of the tarot past the traditional meanings I was given.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced e-reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

One of the most detailed books on tarot I have seen. Not for someone with a light interest in tarot, but a great reference book/reading material for a tarot enthusiast.

I found the concept of this book wonderful. It offers a much needed interpretation of the tarot through a decolonized lens. With BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and queer people to the forefront, it’s a gem. Something I have yet to see in the various tarot books I have read and own.

There was deep work, soul, heart and endless hours put in to this book - it is clear by the passion it was written with.

As a person of color who has been reading tarot for most of her life, I was excited to get my hands on this it.

I found the interwoven references to a multitude of BIPOC greats authentic and connective to the interpretations of the cards.

There were many refreshing and revealing views on tarot as a language for all oppressed peoples but specifically BIPOC and queer folks. The authors interpretations card by card solidified concepts which were inspiring and enlightening to me.

I used this book as a way to reassess my current views on tarot and add to my own interpretations.

It was an invigorating practice to do a one card reading for myself and then dive in to the authors interpretation of the card to access revealing ideas and enlightening notions.

While I was expecting a simpler guided reference book, it was much more of an academic deep dive.
It was written as what I can best describe as a marriage between academic and soulful prose.
The only negative for this book (which may not be universal) was that this style of writing did end up making it feel a bit inaccessible. As in, the important concepts at times felt very lost in the sauce.

Overall, I believe the concepts and interpretations of the tarot in this book are invaluable. They are vivid, striking and enlightening. A book that has been sorely needed by the tarot community.

It would make a great gift and addition to an advanced tarot readers library.

Thank you to NetGalley, North Atlantic Books and Christopher Marmolejo for providing an advanced reader copy of this book.

Red Tarot is a robust education in decolonizing the tarot and learning to see each card as being in conversation with the rest of the deck, decentering traditional interpretations and opening the querent up to a whole new world of divination. This is a beautiful, heartfelt volume that deserves a place of honor in every tarot reader's library, and it's certainly going to have a place in mine.

Red Tarot by Christopher Marmolejo takes the classic tarot and centers BIPOC and Queer experiences. It is probably the most unique book about divination I’ve come across and I really enjoyed reading about the different cards through this decolonial lens

The aim of this book is to empower the marginalized by way of divinatory literacy and i think it will definitely do that for anyone who reads it.

The writing style feels like a cross between academic prose and channeled poetry which is great, but for this reason, I would not recommend it to somebody who’s just starting out learning tarot and wants to get the basics down first.

I received this book as an E ARC but would definitely pick up a physical copy as well when it comes out. 🫶🏾

Easy to follow, easy to read, and very informative. This book is a must have for anyone who is interested in tarot or anything mystical or mysterious. I highly highly recommend this one!!