Review by Choice Review
In the introduction to this book, Farley (religion and esotericism, Univ. of Queensland) claims that it "will form part of the lively discourse surrounding the academic study of the history of esotericism." This is no doubt true, since, thanks to the author's exhaustive research (evident in the scholarly apparatus, which runs to some 100 pages), the book provides as thorough an explication of the tarot as one could ever hope to find. The question then becomes whether or not a history of tarot ("from entertainment to esotericism") has value in an academic library. Perhaps yes, perhaps no--depending on the institution's curriculum and the depth of its collection. Certainly the book has value, and its subject is indeed fascinating. But the price of the volume is formidable and may prove the deciding factor. Summing Up: Optional. Comprehensive collections serving upper-division undergraduates through faculty and general readers. S. Raeschild Northern New Mexico College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.