Customer Reviews

Exploring the Night Sky: The Equinox Astronomy Guide for Beginners (Equinox Children's Science Book Series)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is great for anyone who (like me) has never been able to figure out stars beyond the big dipper or to understand what are the relationships of scale between stars, galaxies, clusters, etc.... Adults (including me and my father, age 73) will enjoy this book as much as (probably even more) than children.

Not only it contains celestial maps that make it easy to find the stars, but also it gives some extremely useful tricks for finding them (i.e. using your fist to estimate 10 degrees of arc). Finally, it gives some extremely well narrated and illustrated examples of relative astronomical dimensions, starting from the distance between the earth and the moon and ending with the distances between galaxies. Definitely the best first book to buy to get a clear idea what our universe is all about.

This wonderful book is the one that got me hooked onto astronomy when I was just an 8-year old boy. Now as I am in college and studying astronomy, this book even though old (written c. 1986), has not lost its charm and magic to me. The best part of this book is the beautifully rendered paintings of the night skies and other sights around the universe, which will leave you breathless and in awe of the majestic canvas of the skies. I give it a 2 thumbs up and many stars!

This book won the New York Academy of Sciences award for children's science literature. And with good reason. The pictures are out of this world. The constellation maps are the easiest to use out of any I have seen. If you are thinking about buying a telescope for your child, you may want to get this book first. It will help you make a decision about how to buy your first telescope, and ensure that your child knows what he or she is looking at.

This is a good introduction, and the pictures are great. However, it's dated now. "Jupiter will be below Pegasus in 1987". The stargazing sections give a useful, though basic, guide to the night sky for each season, taking the reader logically from one constellation to another. References to the locations of the planets span 1987 to 1999. Don't look to this book if you want to know where to see the planets tonight. Despite that, the book was worth buying as a first introduction to astronomy.

My eight-year-old grandson practically ate up this book, he was so excited and interested. He had gotten a telescope for Christmas and this book brought his explorations of the night sky to life.

I used to read this book as a child, and I still find it fascinating and informative as an adult. The illustrations are incredible, particularly the artist's renderings in the first section of the book, which takes a journey from our solar system to beyond our galaxy. The second section details the night sky during different seasons of the year. I highly recommend this book.

THIS GUIDE IS VERY USEFUL AND INTERESTING. WE ARE TOTALLY BEGINNERS AND FACINATED AT THAT.

We purchased this book for our grandchildren so that they can learn about & enjoy the night skies through our telescope.

Purchased as a gift, the recipient seems pleased with this beginner's book. Skimmed through it and it appears to be well done.

We purchased this for our eight year old grandson. We selected this particular book for its clear text. Our grandson seemed pleased to receive it.