Book Review: Night Magic
July 2025 :
Book Review: Star Gazers: Finding Joy in the Night Sky
by Leigh Ann Henion, New York: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2024, ISBN 978-164375-336-2, hardbound, $30.00 US
Reviewed by Francine Jackson
The full name of this book is “Adventures among Glowworms, Moon Gardens, and other Marvels of the Dark.” The premise of it is the author’s nighttime treks to organizations that introduce the public to nature only found in darkness.
Living in a region where night walks can be done without many streetlights and roaring traffic, the author joins others to attempt to observe the main glowing flora and fauna that so many of us have never seen or possibly never heard of: Finding caterpillars that will become beautiful moths at the annual Mothapalooza; losing her fear of bats by joining the overnight Bat Blitz; spending time with night-moving salamanders.
Often she takes her young son with her, hoping he will become aware of the wonders of the night that so many miss, and surprisingly, he does begin to see why his mother is so adamant to be have him understand what so many are not aware: the owls in her neighbor’s tree, the amazingly different colors present on fireflies, even the array of flowers that bloom only after the Sun sets.
Also, the author attends a “firemaking” class, learning to start a fire using only what nature donates. This is surprisingly more difficult than she could ever have dreamed. And then, her mentor asks her a question she never believed she would hear when it’s time to leave: What would she like to do with her fire? How does a fire “power down” naturally?
This book has to be read slowly, as there is so much to learn. It introduces the concept of the natural world at night, when people normally aren’t looking for the varied plants and animals that depend on darkness to perform beautifully. The author, in alerting the reader to what most of us are missing by staying inside after dark, clearly admits that by writing this book, she understands she can’t save the planet from light pollution, but she does hope that the reader will stop and think of the wonders that are waiting for all of us in the dark. All we have to do is venture outside, and hope the area around us is dark enough to see what is waiting for us, often just in our backyards.
Night Magic was the first book of choice for the newly formed DarkSky book club. For all of us star lovers, this is a wonderful way to introduce the public to the need for darker evenings.
