The Spirit Animal Oracle: A 68-Card Deck - Animal Spirit Cards with Guidebook Cards – Illustrated, October 2, 2018

Beautiful artwork!

I received Colette Baron Reid’s latest deck from Amazon as soon as they were released. Just a day later, I saw more than 40 reviews for the deck on Amazon...wow! I thought I should take a bit more time and work with the cards before I reviewed them for everyone. Though this deck may not satisfy all, I already enjoy working with it. It’s a bit different from a number of other animal and bird decks that I own (such as Jamie Sams’ Medicine Cards, Ted Andrews’ Animal Tarot and others)…but that is not necessarily a bad thing. If you are an animal-lover like myself and are open to receiving messages and omens from the natural world, you will most likely enjoy this deck.The deck contains 68 cards that depict a nice variety of creatures, great and small. Reid did not cover everything. She states that she only included the animals that communicated to her that they wanted to be included in this project. Some animals took themselves out of the deck to make room for others that wanted to come through.Unlike other decks that provide you with a lot of background on the animals, their behavior and significance, Reid’s interpretations are just messages channeled to her directly from these animal spirits. Like some of her other decks, there is a message to read when the card appears to you upright (“oracle message”) and a “protection” message for you to read when the card falls in reverse. Besides the one-card draw, she provides a couple of layout ideas for the cards. I look forward to trying Reid’s New Moon reading, the next chance I get.As an added bonus, there is a phrase on each card that can certainly add to the message you are receiving. For example, if I draw three cards, I like to put those three phrases into a cohesive whole to provide me with further insight; summing up the cards I just read. Here’s an example from drawing three cards at random (right now). I drew Spider Spirit (reversed), Flamingo Spirit, and Skunk Spirit. The phrases in order were: Make your dreams real; embrace the in-between; know your worth. If I put it together in order, I get: “Make your dreams real by embracing the in-between and knowing your worth”.The cards are a bit on the larger side; the box is well constructed and sturdy enough to hold them and the 204-page guidebook. The animal artwork by artist Jenna DellaGrottaglia is visually appealing, captivating, and a joy to explore. But, the artwork did leave me with a question. Why do some cards depict animals with crowns (associated with royalty) on their heads while others do not have one? At first I thought it was just the birds that had crown, but some of the animals do as well. I am not sure I read an explanation for this in the accompanying book.I’ve been drawing one card daily and came up with a chant to say while I shuffle: “What animal spirit ally/is coming out to play/and coming to assist me/on my journey today? I sincerely give, in advance,/my heartfelt thanks to you--/for any advice you can share/your unique point of view.” Today I drew the “White Raven Spirit” card which has the phrase, “Trust in the magic”. I do…. oh I do!I find Collette Baron Reid to be a very gifted author and creator of divine wisdom decks. Like most of her other works, this deck will inspire, inform, and guide you and the people you share it with. It is definitely a worthwhile addition to a seeker’s divinatory library.

Where to start? Ok... the box is nice and sturdy. It is a flip top with a magnetic closure. There is a pretty ribbon to easily pull out your cards and guidebook. You get a message on the inside cover and on the side near the magnetic closure. Personally I like the other style better but it’s still a beautiful, solid box.The book is about 200 pages. It starts out with a warm welcome, an introduction, how to work with the deck, and the card meanings. In the “how to” section you get a few spreads and tips on readings. I have taken some of Colette’s online workshops and her tips have REALLY helped to improve my readings! Anyhoo back to the point...The “how to” section also includes a sample reading for us by Colette using the Spirit Animal Oracle.The section about the cards includes a small black and white image of the card with a key phrase (which is also printed on the card). You get the Oracle message (upright) and Protection message (reversed).If you’ve never used reversed cards, don’t worry, it’s painless. lol Just more ways for the Universe to get you the messages you need.The cards themselves are a nice weight card stock, comparable to her other decks and the same size as well (at least the Wisdom of the Oracle, The Enchanted Map, and the Good Tarot). They have a more matte finish.The back design is fully reversible.There are quite a few cards in this deck (yay) but due to the size might be a bit difficult to shuffle all at once. Not a problem for me, I usually shuffle in rounds and then mix them all together.The artwork on the cards is GORGEOUS!! The colors are rich and vibrant. I downloaded this oracle as a free for 7 day app which allowed me to see all the cards and get a feel for it. Which on one hand was great because I got a good intro to the deck and bad on the other hand because I loved it so much I had to order it even though I already have all the above stated decks! (AND the Mystical Shaman!!!!) Not to mention she has a Goddess deck coming out next year. Colette, why are all of your decks so amazing?! *sigh* My poor wallet. lolSeriously though, it’s worth it. (And actually I haven’t been disappointed by a deck of hers yet) They also play well with other decks. Usually I just pull one to see what to work with for the day, but I’ve also done three card spreads using a few different decks. It’s fascinating to see how the cards work together.I think you can also go to her website and use the deck, I’m not 100% sure but I know you can try out a few of her decks so it’s worth a trip. (And you can also sign up for fun stuff!)As a recap, excellent physical quality cards and box, beautiful insightful cards, informative guidebook, an all around great deck.

I loved this Oracle! The material is great, the images are gorgeous, and the box it came in is very sturdy!