RobRoy
Not A Mormon
Enemy of God by Bernard Cornwell, the second in the Warlord/Arthur series.
What book is everyone reading at the moment?
- Thread starter Jim Bowen
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I have a lot classic titles in my shelves that have just been there for ages, un-read and neglected, and I thought since I have them I should actually read them. So I just finished 'Jude the Obscure' by Thomas Hardy, and are in the middle of 'Barry Lyndon' by W. M. Thackeray now. Both in English.
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A History of Games Played with the Tarot Pack
by Michael Dummett and John McLeod
I've put off buying this two volume set for a while now, really because of the price (cheapest I could find was £137). I had wanted to get it from a library but have had no joy.
Anyway, if there are any card game enthusiasts here, then this is something you might want to consider - but these volumes are part of a larger body of work and best considered in that context. In 1980 Michael Dummett (yes, if there are any other philosophers here, it is the same one) published The Game of Tarot, a large work that for (almost) the first time in a hundred years brought the facts of tarot to the English speaking world - that these cards were created for games. He gave a detailed history of the cards themselves, the trumps and their order, the evolution of the games throughout Europe, and even their more recent history with occultists.
He later co-authored two books expanding his account of the occult history that should be of great interest to you here:
A Wicked Pack of Cards
by Ronald Decker, Thierry Depaulis, & Michael Dummett
- this begins with the first occult associations in the late 18th century and takes the cards through their first one hundred years of non-sense.
A History of the Occult Tarot
by Ronald Decker and Michael Dummett
- this continues from the previous book to cover 1870 through to 1970
The old maxim "know your enemy" is a good one and makes these books very valuable to us, showing exactly how we have all been the victims of a very successful propaganda campaign!
The two new volumes take an equally narrow focus, concentrating only on the games and their development. The first volume deals with the games played in Italy, Sicily, Switzerland, Denmark, and France. The Second Volume focuses on those games developed in Germany, Austria, Hungary, and the many other surrounding countries. The books do contain a lot of new material, in particular on the Sicilian, French, and Hungarian games. It was particularly good to see the Hungarian game of Royal Tarokk - developed for tournament play in 1984, just after the publication of Dummett's original work.
However, due to their limited scope, the four new volumes cannot competely replace The Game of Tarot and so this is still worth your while looking for. Sadly, it does still fetch high prices at auction, from about £100 at the moment. You can get the odd bargain though, just keep checking eBay.
The best reason to try to get hold of these is that tarot is easily one of the best family of card games in the world and can take on the likes of Bridge without any trouble. If you can't afford the high price tag, then keep an eye open on the internet, as myself and others are working to make many of the games available there - but our efforts are no substitute for these extensively researched volumes.
by Michael Dummett and John McLeod
I've put off buying this two volume set for a while now, really because of the price (cheapest I could find was £137). I had wanted to get it from a library but have had no joy.
Anyway, if there are any card game enthusiasts here, then this is something you might want to consider - but these volumes are part of a larger body of work and best considered in that context. In 1980 Michael Dummett (yes, if there are any other philosophers here, it is the same one) published The Game of Tarot, a large work that for (almost) the first time in a hundred years brought the facts of tarot to the English speaking world - that these cards were created for games. He gave a detailed history of the cards themselves, the trumps and their order, the evolution of the games throughout Europe, and even their more recent history with occultists.
He later co-authored two books expanding his account of the occult history that should be of great interest to you here:
A Wicked Pack of Cards
by Ronald Decker, Thierry Depaulis, & Michael Dummett
- this begins with the first occult associations in the late 18th century and takes the cards through their first one hundred years of non-sense.
A History of the Occult Tarot
by Ronald Decker and Michael Dummett
- this continues from the previous book to cover 1870 through to 1970
The old maxim "know your enemy" is a good one and makes these books very valuable to us, showing exactly how we have all been the victims of a very successful propaganda campaign!
The two new volumes take an equally narrow focus, concentrating only on the games and their development. The first volume deals with the games played in Italy, Sicily, Switzerland, Denmark, and France. The Second Volume focuses on those games developed in Germany, Austria, Hungary, and the many other surrounding countries. The books do contain a lot of new material, in particular on the Sicilian, French, and Hungarian games. It was particularly good to see the Hungarian game of Royal Tarokk - developed for tournament play in 1984, just after the publication of Dummett's original work.
However, due to their limited scope, the four new volumes cannot competely replace The Game of Tarot and so this is still worth your while looking for. Sadly, it does still fetch high prices at auction, from about £100 at the moment. You can get the odd bargain though, just keep checking eBay.
The best reason to try to get hold of these is that tarot is easily one of the best family of card games in the world and can take on the likes of Bridge without any trouble. If you can't afford the high price tag, then keep an eye open on the internet, as myself and others are working to make many of the games available there - but our efforts are no substitute for these extensively researched volumes.
tim
Lasiorhinus latifrons, Combat Division
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2003
- Messages
- 11,148
I liked "The Gun Seller". Pratchett's books are always fun. I'm reading "Nation" -the new book. It's a kids book really, but then so is Harry Potter..........
CptColumbo
Just One More Question
Serling: The Rise and Twilight of Television's Last Angry Man by Gordon F. Sander. A biography of Rod Serling that I saw on the Remainder Table at B&N. Very detailed and not sugar-coated. Serling made mistakes, but he was one of the greatest, prolific and influential writers television has ever seen.
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Piggy
Unlicensed street skeptic
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2006
- Messages
- 15,905
The Bible.
Specifically, the New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha, New Revised Standard Version, Augmented 3rd edition.
It's slow-going because of all the cross-references, annotations, and commentary... but well worth it!
Specifically, the New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha, New Revised Standard Version, Augmented 3rd edition.
It's slow-going because of all the cross-references, annotations, and commentary... but well worth it!
Francesca R
Girl
"Collapse" by Jared Diamond
I'm having trouble actually getting into that.
So right now I'm reading:
Finding Darwin's God by Kenneth R. Miller
I'm reading Raymond E Feist's Krondor: Tear of the gods, before that I read Krondor: The assassins
Before that I read God is not great by Christopher Hitchens. When I'm finished with The Krondor book I will read The Ancestors tale by Richard Dawkins.
Before that I read God is not great by Christopher Hitchens. When I'm finished with The Krondor book I will read The Ancestors tale by Richard Dawkins.
Don At Work
Scholar
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2008
- Messages
- 117
re-re-re-re(lost count actually)-reading the Foundation Trilogy.
Blackadder
Muse
- Joined
- Feb 10, 2008
- Messages
- 728
'De Wrede Zee' Nicholas Monsarrat (The Cruel Sea)
'High Society' Ben Elton
'High Society' Ben Elton
- Status