Deck Review: Easy Lenormand

Marcus Katz and Tali Goodwin, Easy Lenormand.Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn, 2015. ISBN:  9780738747125. (link to publisher). 

Genre: Lenormand divination

Subgenre: oracle cards, cartomancy

Format: kit with paperback book and card deck

Source: I own this one.  

Cover of kit box

I have wanted to learn the Lenormand divination system for a while now, and I bought this deck for that purpose. This year I finally decided to bring the kit out and start working with it, This kit includes a paperback companion book and a 36-card deck. The book is arranged as follows: 

•  Introduction. A brief introduction to what is Lenormand and a small bit of its history.
• One: The Cards. Before the authors present the card entries, this chapter opens with an exercise to get you reading Lenormand right away. I appreciated the exercise to help you just jump in. After the exercise you get the card entries. For each card entry, you get a black and white card image and text with meaning and interpretation. The text length in the entries may go from a paragraph to a couple of pages. Some entries may include notes on how a card works combined with another. Note that the card images in the book differ a bit from the actual cards; the images in the book have a bit more of an antique look. Still, the images in the book and cards are traditional, i.e. you can clearly and easily recognize the cards. At the end of this chapter we get a note on negative, neutral, and positive cards. 
• Two: Reading the Cards in Context. This explains how to read the cards, especially cards next to each other. This chapter includes an exercise and some examples of card reading, in a way using parts of a Grand Tableau to build up to the large spread later. This is a chapter I wish had more examples to better understand how to read the cards. 
•  Three: The Grand Tableau. This chapter introduces the big 36-card spread. It uses smaller spreads to build up to the large spread. It also introduces concepts like the charged card (sort of like a significator). The chapter provides also 3-card and 9-card spreads to practice reading the cards and working your way up. 
• Four: Zones and Shadows. This chapter helps you learn how to read the Grand Tableau by dividing it into zones. They also add a concept of shadowing, a "slightly quirky element" added by Tali Goodwin. She writes "this might be compared very loosely to tarot reversals" (123). This is an optional element for reading Lenormand, so I leave it up to readers if they want to use it or not. I may consider it after I've developed some mastery in Lenormand. 
• Conclusion. Closing statement and reminder once more that Lenormand card meanings are literal, way more than Tarot. 

The book provides basic and mostly clear instructions for learning the system. Some instructions are better developed than others, so there is some inconsistency in the content. I do appreciate the exercises because they get you practicing right away. The instructions are not complicated, and they leave room to practice developing your interpretations. 

 

The Ship-3 card 

A small glitch if you will is that a couple of books are mentioned throughout the text, but there is no list of sources or consulted works listing them in one place. That could've been helpful. Overall though we get a good basic instruction book. 

 The cards feature a traditional art style evocative of classic paintings. The card art includes playing card associations. By now, I've collected a few Lenormand decks, mainly for the art but also for future use. I find that I tend to prefer Lenormand cards with the playing card associations. By the way, the book does not discuss the significance of the playing card associations. If this is of interest, you'll need to look for that information elsewhere. 

The cards measure about 4 inches by 2 1/2 inches. They are small but doing a full Grand Tableau spread will still take up some space. Given the basic classic art style the card imagery is clear. The cards are not labeled, but with clear art a reader should be able to identify the individual cards. Cards have a soft glossy coating, and they shuffle easily. The card back art is reversible if you are so inclined. 

In the end, if you are looking to start learning and studying Lenormand, as I am now, this kit is a good option. A topic here or there could use more depth, but overall the kit works to get you started in an easy way. The cards feature straightforward images that work well for Lenormand readers at any level. I'd still suggest this kit for anyone starting to learn Lenormand, more so if you can get it at a sale price as I did. 

4 out of 5 stars. 

 

This kit qualifies for the following 2025 Reading Challenge: