Nightfaring

In Search of the Disappearing Darkness

By: Megan Eaves-Egenes

Narrated by: Stephanie Cannon

‘A truly powerful paean to the night sky’ CAROLINE EDEN, author of Black Sea

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At a time of personal crisis, travel writer and ‘dark sky’ advocate Megan Eaves-Egenes turned to the stars for solace. But those same stars, which have guided humankind since the very earliest cultures, are vanishing. As nocturnal cities bleach our skies – which are becoming 10% brighter every year – are we also losing our connection with everything that can come from darkness too?

To explore her deep curiosity about the night sky, Eaves-Egenes embarks on a journey that takes her from New Zealand to Uzbekistan, Ireland to Argentina, the Himalaya to Japan, discovering the many ways that different cultures have mapped, mythologised and feared the darkness. She meets the extraordinary communities that have made it their mission to understand, preserve and celebrate the beauty of their night skies, learning to see darkness in a whole new way.

Blending travel with myth, history and self-discovery, Nightfaring is a profound and often startling journey through the endangered night, revealing its capacity to enchant and connect us.
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‘A raw, multisensory journey into the less-trodden nocturnal world’ Stephanie Vermilion, author of 100 Nights of a Lifetime

‘Insightful … reminds us of all that being in the dark brings alive’ PAUL BOGARD, author of The End of Night

‘There's a deep love of the night sky woven into every sentence, and a powerful lesson for humanity as it fakes a nocturnal existence: only in the stillness of night can we see the light’ JAMIE CARTER, FORBES

Critic reviews

'Nightfaring is an invitation to explore how the night sky connects us – to the past, to ourselves, to the planet and to the cosmos. Through rich storytelling and deeply reported histories, Megan leads us on a raw, multisensory journey into the less-trodden nocturnal world. This introspective read is a push to reimagine our relationship to the night ... It's also a reminder that travel, when done well, can be life's greatest teacher' (Stephanie Vermillion, author of 100 Nights of a Lifetime)

'Dark sky advocate Eaves-Egenes . . . tells stories not of the stars but of the night and its people in remote, dark places from Ireland to Italy via Tanzania, Japan and her native New Mexico. Her adventures reveal Western culture as dangerously allergic to darkness — cue the intensifying light pollution in cities — but also how only at night can we reevaluate, reset and renew. There's a deep love of the night sky woven into every sentence, and a powerful lesson for humanity as it fakes a nocturnal existence: only in the stillness of night can we see the light' (Jamie Carter)

'Mixing myth and history with the latest science, Eaves weaves her story with clear, insightful prose, offering an entertaining journey into the darkness that is so vital for life on earth and so easily forgotten. Nightfaring reminds us of all that being in the dark brings alive and allows, what we lose when we overuse artificial light, and the good wildness that makes the night so key to our wellbeing' (Paul Bogard, author of The End of Night )

‘A truly powerful paean to the night sky offering a kaleidoscopic mix of science, adventure, spirituality, psychology and insights into our inner lives and deepest fears' (Caroline Eden, author of Samarkand and Cold Kitchen)

‘From Uzbek observatories to Guaraní fire blessings, Maori star compasses to Irish banshees, Nightfaring is an engaging and illuminating exploration of our relationship with darkness and the night sky. A thoughtful, perceptive and insightful writer, Megan Eaves-Egenes will change the way you look at the stars’ (Shafik Meghji, author of Crossed Off the Map and Small Earthquakes)

'Megan Eaves-Egenes readers on a journey around the world to reveal what we’re collectively missing out on under the influence of artificial light. In captivating scenes that take place in Tanzania, New Zealand, Japan and a variety of other locales, Eaves-Egenes explores the importance of natural darkness for diverse ecosystems – and her own health – as she reminds readers that, even though we’re collectively turning on too many lights, natural darkness is still our shared home' (Leigh Ann Henion, New York Times bestselling author of Night Magic)