NIGHTFARING

A global and internal quest to appreciate the dark half of existence.

Eaves-Egenes, an American-born, London-based travel writer and activist for preserving dark skies in a world increasingly polluted by 24-hour artificial light, journeyed to nearly every corner of the globe to reckon with humanity’s (and her own) ambivalent relationship with night and dark. Recovering from divorce, the loss of her dream job, and the death of a beloved stepfather, all of which led to a debilitating depression as she entered her 40s, the author sought to recharge herself and renew a sense of purpose by writing this book. She confesses her fears and vulnerabilities as she meets various Virgils of the dark, each showing her different aspects of night and leading her toward understanding. Her adventures take her to New Zealand, where she learns about Maori astronomy; the Dolomites for a pre-dawn chorus of rewilded wolves; Tanzania for a terrifying close encounter with a leopard; Ireland, where she hears about the relationship between legendary banshees and keening ritual mourners; Samarkand, Uzbekistan, to ponder medieval Muslim astronomer Ulugh Beg while visiting one of the most pristine skies on earth for a telescope in the foothills of the Himalayas; an island off southern Japan where the beach is covered by millions of starlike shells of tiny sea creatures. Perhaps the centerpiece of the quest is the four-night stay at a German kloster, where she is voluntarily confined to a “dark room” in which no light enters. Not much “happens” there besides daily showers and meals, but the experience leads her through spiritual and physical agony to mind-altered revelation. “This must be what it’s like being born,” she muses.

Sumptuous, confessional storytelling with an accessibly philosophical aim.