Under the Stars

More about the book

Light pollution is everywhere. Not only is it damaging to humans and to wildlife, disrupting our natural rhythms, but it obliterates the subtler lights that have guided us for millennia. Moonlight, starlight, the ethereal glow of snow in winter ... When you turn off the electricity, other forms of light reveal themselves. In this beautifully written exploration, Matt Gaw ventures forth into darkness to find out exactly what we're losing. Walking by the light of the moon in Suffolk and under the scattered buckshot of starlight in Scotland; braving the darkest depths of Dartmoor; investigating the glare of 24/7 London and the suburban sprawl of Bury St Edmunds; and, finally, rediscovering a sense of the sublime on the Isle of Coll, he finds beauty and awe, fear and wonder in the interplay between light and dark that is as old as time. A stunning investigation of the power of light, this beautiful book is a timely and urgent reminder to reconnect with the natural world, showing how we only need to step outside to find that, in darkness, the world lights up.