Six decks, sinner. Two of them are starters — the kind I'd put in the hands of a
twenty-one-year-old who said *Aunt Sinderella, where do I begin?* Two are graduates,
for when the starter starts to feel small. Two are personality picks, for the niece
who is a *very specific kind of niece* and you already know which one she is.
Every link below is an Amazon affiliate. You buy, Sinderella gets a few cents, the
candle stays lit. *Madonn',* it's that simple.
DECK
Rider-Waite Tarot Deck
U.S. Games Systems · ~$22
01.
For the niece who needs a starter
Rider-Waite Tarot Deck
U.S. Games Systems · ~$22
The deck I learned on, sinner. The art's a little stiff and the colors are loud and that's exactly why it works — every line means something, every color is doing a job. Every book about tarot is written assuming you have this one in front of you. If you only ever own one deck, own this one. Saint Anthony for the things you've forgotten you knew.
For the niece who hates the medieval guys with swords
The Wild Unknown Tarot
Kim Krans · ~$32
The Wild Unknown is what I'd hand a niece who turned twenty-one and asked me how to start. Animals, weather, old gods watching, no smug medieval guys with swords. *Madonn',* my child, it's gorgeous. Light a candle when you open it. Sleep with it under your pillow one night. It'll know you. Saint Anthony rides with this one.
For the niece who took a women's studies class and never came back
Modern Witch Tarot
Lisa Sterle · ~$25
The Modern Witch is the Rider-Waite if Rider-Waite finally let women be the protagonists. Every figure on every card is a woman with phone, attitude, and good shoes. Same structure as the standard deck so the books still work, but now The Magician's wearing slip dresses and The Hierophant is *clearly* somebody's terrifying aunt. Pilgrim, this deck is *fun.*
The Light Seer's is the deck for the year you have to put yourself back together. The art is soft, the readings are gentle without being saccharine, the colors look like a sunset over the Atlantic in October. Sweet thing — when somebody at this table has been knocked sideways by something, this is the deck I reach for. It doesn't pull punches, but it doesn't twist the knife either.
Yoshi Yoshitani pulled the Tarot of the Divine from forty-two world mythologies, my child — Anansi for the Ten of Swords, Izanami for Death, Dionysus for The World. *Madonn',* the ambition. The art is gorgeous, the card stock substantial, and if you read mythology for sport this deck will take you a solid month to work through. For the niece who already knows who Anansi is. Saint Brigid for the mythology she keeps. Light a candle when you open it.
The Everyday Witch is the Rider-Waite, my child, if somebody replaced the medieval airs with women who have jobs, cats, and a sense of humor. The Hierophant is a witch teacher. The Empress is thriving. The Two of Swords has a problem she's solving herself, over coffee. *Madonn',* it's charming, and every Rider-Waite book still works with it. For the niece who thinks 'witch' is a compliment. Saint Brigid for the ones who wear the word proudly.
