DK’s Astrology Resources Short List
Astrology Books
Astrology Primers and Cookbooks
The Inner Sky – Steven Forrest. Good, easy-to-assimilate book that covers all the basics.
Sexstrology – Starsky and Cox. It is, of course, a titillating title. And they do cover the sexual characteristics of each sign, both alone and in relationship. However, this book is full of great, in-depth writing about the Sun signs. One thing I love about Starsky and Cox is that they describe each sign in general and then show how male and female natives express the characteristics of the sign. It’s an approach I have not seen utilized with this level of detail elsewhere and I found it explained some things I had not been able to wrap my head around previously.
The Astrologer’s Handbook by Frances Sakoian and Louis S. Acker. Starts with an introduction to how astrology works. Then a section with detailed-enough overviews of the signs, planets, houses, and aspects. Then a section describing the planets in the signs and houses (Neptune in Scorpio, Pluto in the 4th House) and planets in aspect to one another (Mars sextile Saturn, Sun conjunct Venus).
Planets in Transit by Robert Hand. I love Robert Hand! I was given a paperback volume of this book when I started out. It still sits on my shelf with whole sections having come loose from the binding. The spine is completely covered in grey duct tape in an attempt to hold it together. Detailed, psychological descriptions of how the transiting planets affect us, including transits of the houses (Mars through the 12th House, Saturn through the 5th House) and transiting aspects to natal planets (Uranus conjunct natal Venus, Mercury trine natal Mars).
Love Signs – Linda Goodman. I haven’t read this one cover to cover but so many people I trust swear by it, I feel safe in recommending it.
Books on the Core Concepts of Astrology
The Inner Guide Meditation by Edwin Steinbrecher. Even though this isn’t an astrology book per se, it is great for understanding more about the 22 archetypes common to astrology and tarot as living beings. Steinbrecher shows how the planets and signs in the birth chart give us a blueprint for working with the archetypes. Plus, Steinbrecher is the one who divined the Alien Patterns – which he presents in this book.
The Real Astrology by John Frawley. John Frawley is probably my favorite astrology writer of all. He’s wickedly funny and he’s great at explaining, in the simplest terms possible, why and how astrology works. My beef with this book is that is was written during the period when (I believe) Frawley was still out to make a name for himself by bashing modern astrology. Much of what he says about modern astrology and modern astrologers is valid, but you can’t take everything he says at face value. Not for the thin-skinned, in other words.
The Houses: Temples of the Sky by Deborah Houlding. One of the great traditional astrologers of our time, Houlding has written a compact book on the houses that corrects many modern pop astrology misunderstandings about house meanings. Includes lists of keywords for each house, and a brief but thorough overview of how house meanings were developed based not on the signs but on the daily movement of the Sun and the classical four elements framework.
Cosmos and Psyche by Richard Tarnas. This is an exhaustive study of the historical epochs as defined by the outer planet cycles (Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto). You’ll learn so much about archetypes and how outer planet placements determine generational behavior and define the quality of different time periods throughout history.
Books on the Soul Mission in the Chart
Pluto: Evolutionary Journey of the Soul by Jeffrey Wolf Green. The standard for understanding Pluto as the evolutionary force of the soul. Not an easy read – intermediate level and beyond – but worth the effort.
Astrology for the Soul by Jan Spiller. Great book. Describes the lesson of the Nodes in-depth for each house/sign and gives helpful advice on how to work with your nodal placements.
Chiron by Barbara Hand Clow. By far the most useful book on Chiron I’ve encountered. Intermediate level and beyond.
Books on Other Interesting Topics
The Lunation Cycle by Dane Rudhyar. In-depth exploration of how the Sun and Moon relate to one another – and the meaning of the Moon’s phases in natal charts, transits and progressions. Rudhyar is not for everyone – very dense “humanistic astrology” writing style, so check him out before you buy: http://mindfire.ca/
Dynamics of Aspect Analysis by Bil Tierney. A thought-provoking work on the nature of the aspects. Guaranteed to help you understand why a sextile is friendly and a square is conflict-producing, etc.
Astrology Websites
Basic Astrology Resources
Astro.com (Astrodienst) – Probably the single greatest collection of useful astrology resources online. You can also sign up for a free membership and generate charts.
Cafe Astrology – Well-organized site that covers all the basics and a lot more.
Ephemeris.com – To know where the planets are, were, and will be on any given day.
Celebrity Charts
Astrodatabank – Includes biographical information and Lois Rodden’s rating as to how accurate the birth time is thought to be.
Astrotheme – Probably more current (younger) celebrity charts than Astrodatabank; this is a great resource but be aware that many of the charts are for unknown birth time, meaning the Ascendant and exact Moon position are unknown.
Astrology Planners and Books
Quicksilver Productions – I’m a longtime user of the Astrologer’s Datebook – pocket planners that give you the planetary positions and aspects for each day of the year.
Llewellyn – New Age publisher with a wide variety of astrological calendars, planners and astrology books.