Deck Review: The Spirit Animal Oracle

Colette Baron-Reid, The Spirit Animal Oracle. Carlsbad, CA; Hay House Publishing, 2018. ISBN: 978-1-4019-5279-2. (link to publisher)

 

Genre: oracle and divination decks

Subgenre: oracle, animal spirits

Format: 68-card deck with small companion book

Source: I own this one

 

I first used this deck for my weekly oracle draws during the months of January and February 2022. The kit includes a small and thick companion book and 68 cards in the deck. The book and deck come in a small box with magnetic clasp. The publisher did a good job with the packaging here, and I wish more decks were packaged like this one.

 

The book has 204 pages, and it is arranged as follows: 

 

• Welcome, Seeker. This is a short message from the author to the readers. 
• Introduction. An overview of what is an oracle deck, this deck's concept, and a bit on spirit animals and meanings. 
• How to Work with The Spirit Animal Oracle. This section covers how to use the deck. It includes some three basic spreads and a couple of sample readings. 
• The Cards, Their Messages, and Their Meanings. Each card entry includes a small black and white photo of the card, card number, card name, and card message (the one printed on the card). You then get the oracle message and the protection message (what Baron-Reid's term for reversals). Each entry is about 3 pages long. 

The book is informative. It is written in an easy to read text. The messages are mostly on the positive and uplifting side. The messages can also be encouraging and nurturing, especially useful in these Hard Times. The deck does not mean to be comprehensive, but there is an effort to present a diverse selection of animals. The author does discuss in the book how the animals were selected for the deck. Overall, this is a good and well written companion book. 

 

The cards are just beautiful, and the art catches the spirit essence of the animals depicted. The card image and message provide enough to do a reading and/or get a message. I still want to have the book handy to learn more, but if you are one of those readers who toss the book out you still get a bit to work with the images. The deck is colorful but not too bright. We get some nice earthy and natural tones. I really enjoy looking at these cards and using them for reflection. 

 

The one big issue with the deck is the matte finish. Usually a light matte finish is good for me. The matte finish here is a bit thick and excessive. The result is that the cards are hard to handle; they often stick together, and you can't fan them out. You often grab a card, then realize you grabbed two or even three cards because they stick together. The card stock is on the thicker side. On the one hand, it makes for a thicker and a bit heavier deck. On the other hand, it makes for a durable deck. The cards, despite that awful matte surfacing, feels well made overall. It is not an easy deck to handle overall due to that finish, but the art and concept are so good you will use it anyhow. I know I really like it and enjoy using it even as I grumble when the cards stick together. 

 

The cards measure about 5 inches by 3 1/2 inches. The art is borderless. 

 

If you are looking for an animal themed oracle deck, this is a good choice. The concept is one of Baron-Reid's better decks as it is a nice deck to look at, and it invites reflection and meditation. Overall, really liked this one. 

 

4 out of 5 stars. 

 

This kit qualifies for the following 2022 Reading Challenge: 

 

 

Note: photos are mine from my copy of the deck.