Secrets of Romani Fortune-Telling
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Join Paulina Stevens & Jezmina Von Thiele, cohosts of the Romanistan podcast, for this Banyen event on their new book, Secrets of Romani Fortune-Telling: Divining with Tarot, Palmistry, Tea Leaves, and More. The book is available from Banyen: https://www.banyen.com/item/ZUCHLFAE2Ftvndh04jde8A
See Jezmina and Paulina's Linktree: https://shorturl.at/F4qwR
In 'Secrets of Romani Fortune-Telling', Paulina Stevens and Jezmina Von Thiele introduce the history of the Romani people and their infamous relationship to fortune-telling. They share divination methods, tools, and techniques that have been created, adapted, or popularized by the Roma, including card reading, palmistry, dream divination, and tea leaf and coffee reading. They also share exercises to strengthen your intuition and discover your natural gifts and explain how divination helps with shadow work, blockages, and self-awareness. Fortune-telling is both a job and a spiritual practice for Roma. The authors, cohosts of the Romanistan podcast, share their knowledge from their own personal experiences of being raised to be fortune-tellers, providing tips on how to emulate the professional polish that Roma have perfected over the centuries, as well as guidance for reading for clients with acumen and cultural awareness.
Jezmina Von Thiele (they/she) is a writer, educator, performer, and fortune-teller in their mixed Sinti Romani tradition. Their work has been published in Prairie Schooner, The Kenyon Review Online, and Narrative Magazine under the name Jessica Reidy. Jezmina reads tarot, palms, and tea leaves online and at Deadwicks Ethereal Emporium in Portsmouth, NH. They also teach classes on divination, spiritual wellness, and the creative arts, and perform poetry with The Poetry Brothel in Boston. Jezmina cohosts Romanistan, a podcast celebrating Romani culture, and runs the Etsy shop Evil Eye Edit. They are based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Paulina Stevens grew up in an insular Romani-American family, destined to leave school, marry young, and become a fortune-teller. By age seventeen, her fate was sealed—until she decided to leave it all behind. Paulina is the subject of the podcast Foretold. Hosted by Los Angeles Times reporter Faith Pinho, the podcast follows Paulina as she navigates the consequences of her decision to leave her community and redefine her identity. The cohost of Romanistan, a podcast celebrating Romani culture, Paulina is based in Los Angeles.
Banyen Books is Canada's most comprehensive bookstore specializing in spirituality and healing. Located in Vancouver, Canada, since 1970, Banyen is open for in-person browsing as well as web & mail orders. Visit for books, products, and upcoming events. https://www.banyen.com
Event Host & Producer: Jacob Steele