Review: The Essential Lenormand, by Rana George

‘The Essential Lenormand’ by Rana George, due for release in March 2014 by Llewellyn Publications.

Reading this book is like experiencing a chocolate explosion in the mouth! Deliciously surprising and comfortingly familiar all at once. Rana George is our undisputed Lennie Guru, our Divination Diva. Just like Rana, her book is wholly unpretentious and patiently clear in its meaning. Finally! Lenormand demystified in a language and approach that speaks to even the most novice of readers. For those amongst us who have never read lenormand before, fear not. Armed with nothing but a deck of regular playing cards and this book you will have everything you need to begin immediately. Rana George is the fortune-telling ‘aunty’ we all wished we had, you know, the one that gives us the ‘inside scoop’ on outrageously successful fortune telling through years of authentic practice and divination. She has taken us under her wing!

With patience and in plain language, demonstrating real-life events with examples, Rana effortlessly steers us through these essential lenormand lessons. ‘This is Lenormand on steroids’ was what came to mind as I dove in, page after page. Where others have tried and perhaps not quite succeeded, Rana has waved her magic wand to create light at the end of the lenormand tunnel! Eureka!

In these pages she takes us through the benefits of reading lenormand and the process toward approaching our readings, to the correct way of structuring our questions. Along with her sagely advice on the importance of consistency in which she advocates the necessity of sticking to one system, allowing it to eventually evolve into our own personalised system, Rana guides us in an unambiguous manner that instils confidence in our abilities to replicate her expertise with ease, by steering us away from overwhelming confusion toward becoming confident and expert readers.

The detailed attention Rana George gives to each of the 36 cards in The Essential Lenormand is a treasure trove of wisdom and knowledge! As with words in any language (the meaning of which is dependent on the context in which they are spoken,) Rana goes through different meanings for each card in context to many different areas of use. These include: Predictions, mannerisms & personalities as described by the cards, work, love, health, finances, the ever elusive question of timing, advice or action oriented readings, negative & positive cards, finding lost objects, traditional meanings and she very preciously shares her personal anecdotes for each card too. This is truly a vast volume of in-depth and relevant meanings for each card which will greatly expand our lenormand vocabulary. Therefore this chapter alone makes The Essential Lenormand the most valuable English book available on this subject to date, in my opinion.

But, that’s not all! There is a whole section dedicated to spreads and techniques. I felt like a kid in a candy store! Anyone serious about lenormand will drool over this section of her book! Jam-packed with so much useful information that it serves to mentor each of us; taking us from beginners to masters of this art! Readers could not wish for a more practical, down-to-earth approach that keeps on surprising with jewels of knowledge and countless ah-hah moments! Rana’s chapter on the Grand Tableau, a spread that has intimidated many a reader before, is possibly the crown jewel in this priceless treasure. In the same charming style that gives absolute clarity and in-depth understanding throughout the book, Rana shares with us her personal approach to reading the Grand Tableau. This is huge! This is the mother-load of Grand Tableau tuition (minus the fear factor.) Finally there can no longer be an excuse to avoid becoming an expert lenormand reader, it would be almost impossible to miss the mark with this essential guide at our side.

Generously illustrated and expertly detailed without losing her readers, The Essential Lenormand is notably the most valuable book currently available to lenormand readers in the English speaking world today. This is more than just another book on lenormand, it is an absolute necessity for anyone who is considering lenormand as a divination tool, equally so for those readers who are already proficient in this system of fortune telling as even expert readers are guaranteed to learn something new!

Fair warning though, have a box of kleenex handy. Rana tells us about her lenormand beginnings in war-torn Beirut. Her tale reads like something from The Book Thief; richly embroidered with the romance of old-school family-taught divination during the angst of a bloody war that revealed both the best and worst of humanity in a very personal manner to this young impressionable girl. She tells us the tale of her humble beginnings as a child and hereditary fortune-teller who was at first almost surprised and apologetic about the accuracy of her predictions, and who then later was haunted by the same as the horrors of war brutalised her nearest and dearest. She lived through the horrifying effects of war not once, but twice as she first saw these events unfold in the cards before they manifested in a cruel savagery that deeply impacted her life in Beirut before immigrating to the USA with her remaining family. Rana shares her painful memories of these difficult years and tells how lenormand was a stabilising influence that comforted and empowered her. In later years she passed her astounding gift on to her 3 young sons who have each become gifted readers in their own right. Furthermore, in sharing her experience and expertise with lenormand though this beautiful book, our Lenormand Guru is passing the same on to us. We thank you Rana!

388 pages of pure genius. That is what you will get once you own a copy of what is sure to become the best-selling book in this genre for years to come. I give it 5 stars! Rana George wins the ‘Lenormand Oscars’ with this book. It will take nothing short of a miracle to surpass what she has shared in these precious pages.

Kinda like Rana’s darling red-lips trademark and her keep-it-simple-sweetheart approach, this book gets a BIG RED KISS of approval!

 Pre-order your copy here: Llewellyn Wordwide