Stargazer's Guide

by winterburn-emily

Have you ever found yourself looking up at the starry night, wondering and wanting to know more?

Congratulations You're a stargazer.

Unlike its more scientific sister astronomy, stargazing requires no equipment--except perhaps something comfortable to sit on and a star map. "The Stargazer's Guide" provides these maps and shows you what there is to see in the sky, why it's interesting, and how previous generations viewed and interpreted it. Organized by month, "The Stargazer's Guide" takes you through the night sky's stories--mythological, historical, and scientific--offering simple diagrams that enable you to easily identify the constellations. Let expert stargazer Emily Winterburn enthrall you with true stories of romantic and scientific endeavors, and mythic tales of beasts and battles that led to the naming of the stars. With this enchanting, accessible, and fun guide to the heavens, you'll discover and revel in the beauty and wonder of the night sky.

Genres: Science, Astronomy, Nonfiction, Reference

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[David Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most astronomy books are glossy picture books that are either too basic for the average amateur astronomy, too complex to understand the math, or without any information other than nice pictures of deep sky objects. This book is different. I enjoyed how the author described the different constellations and how different cultures through time have perceived the stars and planets. I don't finish many books or read every single word on a page, but this book made it easy to read and follow along. Having this knowledge has led me to further explore the biographies of other famous astronomers and has improved my ability to share the nights sky with others at our monthly star parties.

[Jonathan]

im reading this a chapter a month, whilst reading other books as each chapter is a different month in the year. I will read it again and again to truly master the science of Astronomy. I will read chapter 1 - April in April and chapter 7 - October in october, to learn the topics covered in the month. It isnt a reading book, just a reference book for when you are stargazing.
The star charts at the back of the book are very helpful and clear.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a very amateur/wannabe stargazer. Emily Winterburn wrote a beginner's guide to astronomy so full of cool anecdotes and interesting history that it made me feel like I was an insider. A first-rate bit of accessible science. Winterburn is fabulous, and I very much look forward to reading her forthcoming book on Caroline Herschel.

[Meriyou · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative, but i haven't been able to do any serious stargazing, so i can still only find Orion and Cassiopeia :/

[Katie O’Connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a complete newbie to stargazing, I found this book informative and a substantial introduction to the concerns of astronomy. It surprised me as being rather textbook-ish, but I learnt to appreciate its month-by-month structure looking at monthly constellations as well as history of astronomy and relevant discoveries. I do think it would be best read as a reference when stargazing. The writing is repetitive in places, but as someone who read the book cover to cover I appreciated the reminders of what I had learnt in previous chapters. Overall, I really enjoyed this dive into a topic that is new for me, and my interest in astronomy has grown as a result.

[Jeroen van Essen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite an interesting read, at first. However, sadly, Emily writes rather repetitive, making every chapter feel like it is a stand-alone article on the monthly stars. This can be helpful if this book was meant as a handbook to the heavens per month. Sadly, the book gave the impression that it is meant to be read from cover to cover as a full read.

[Paul De Belder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rommelig boek maar wel veel leuke dingen. Spijtig genoeg ook enkele bladzijden onzin over de uiteraard mythische ster van Bethlehem. En een aantal ergerlijke flaters, mogelijk door de vertaling. Vertalingen van populair-wetenschappelijke boeken zijn dikwijls verschrikkelijk slecht.

[Wouter Vande Winkel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Het boek neemt de kalender als basis om de sterrenhemel te verduidelijken en maand na maand krijg je meer te weten over wat er die maand te zien is. Op zich lijkt dit een goed uitgangspunt, maar het resultaat is uiterst verwarrend en weinig consistent. Het resultaat is een amalgaam van weetjes over hemellichamen, historische benaderingen van de sterrenkunde en vooral een overvloed aan Chinese, Indische, Afrikaanse, Maya of Azteekse mythes - weinig verhelderend dus!

[Timm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and easy to read. Usually, books about galaxies are intimidating and difficult to follow but Emily Winterburn speaks a lot about appealing to children and helping the beginner mind approach something as vast and daunting as the universe.

There's also a bit about how stars got their names and how to view the night sky month by month.

[Jenine]

Didn't take.