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The House of Rumour


"Whenever he's got a new book out I drop everything." - David Bowie
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How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

Created: 04/19/13

Replies: 9

Posted Apr. 19, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert

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How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?


Posted Apr. 23, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
eileenp

Join Date: 10/20/10

Posts: 33

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

I don't know enough about the Tarot deck to fully appreciate how Arnott wove it into the book. I got the obvious things--how each chapter is named after one of the cards in the deck, and I think I recognized when one of the cards turned up in the story--but I wish that I knew more about the various traditional interpretations of the cards to see how Arnott played off of them.


Posted Apr. 24, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
jeffs

Join Date: 06/18/12

Posts: 49

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

I also did not know anything really about a Tarot deck before reading this book. I did think it was nice the way he structured the book based on the deck. Each chapter was titled after a card and the story within that chapter was also tied to the title of the card. One of the chapters is about a meeting with Aleister Crowley, so maybe the deck the chapters are based on, is the deck he designed. Is that the case?


Posted Apr. 24, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Susan S.

Join Date: 04/22/13

Posts: 4

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

Did you notice that in the section The Tower, which is about Larry Zagorski, we find out that he wrote a book called The Quantum Arcana of Arnold Jacubowski, which is clearly the book we are reading, House of Rumour. His book is "a cycle of twenty-two interlocking stories structured around the trump cards in the Tarot deck" which of course is also this book. I loved that. And there was something very evocative about the chapters being named after the Tarot cards, and frequently there was an obvious connection between the title of the chapter and the character or events in the chapter, but I kept thinking there was more to it than that that I just wasn't seeing (other than the obvious continual ways an actual Tarot deck kept showing up).


Posted Apr. 27, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
sandrah

Join Date: 07/18/11

Posts: 68

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

I went to the good old Internet and found "The Fool's Journey," an explanation of how each "major arcana card (in the tarot deck) stands for a stage on that journey." Too much to explain here, but I really found it helpful.


Posted Apr. 28, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
lisag

Join Date: 01/12/12

Posts: 298

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

Using the Tarot as a means of weaving the story together was really a great framework. It's original and ingenious, I thought. It did add to the difficulty for me, personally, as I'm totally unfamiliar with the meaning behind the symbols found on the cards. The book requires a lot of effort from the reader.


Posted Apr. 28, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
lesleyf

Join Date: 05/14/11

Posts: 119

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

Not only effort but a grand and broad knowledge of EVERYthing. So, I learned many new things, I saw connections I hadn't seen before, and I had to look up many things as well. Now, I want to re-read it with the added information - someone else in this discussion also wants to re-read - I saw that and am thriled to know it's not just me! First find the old Tarot deck that's been laying about for years........


Posted Apr. 29, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
texanne

Join Date: 04/25/11

Posts: 14

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

I have virtually no knowledge of Tarot and wouldn't have even known the chapter headings were based on the cards but for reading a review that talked about it. I'm also not one to do a lot of research while reading so the metaphors went right past me. Makes me sound like a bit of a lame reader but I read for enjoyment and when a book isn't gripping me I'm unlikely to invest more time in trying to figure it out.


Posted May. 01, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
carmen s

Join Date: 04/27/11

Posts: 33

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

He did a great job of linking characters and what was happening to them to the meaning or feel of the cards. Loved his Death and Devil portrayal. The Tower and the Moon were a little hard for me.


Posted May. 05, 2013 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
lisag

Join Date: 01/12/12

Posts: 298

RE: How does the Tarot deck figure into the book?

I enjoy books that require so much from the reader. The trouble is, once I've taken time to look up the background I don't always have time to re-read the book itself! By that time I'm generally wrapped up in something else and never get back to the primary book.


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