John Read sent me a copy of his latest book 50 Things to See on the Moon. I much enjoyed his last book, 50 things to See with a Telescope – KIDS and his new book does not disappoint.
Once again Read takes us through the basics of terminology and instruments that you need to observe the Moon. From there he walks through the 50 targets on the surface starting at the New Moon phase and picking out targets as the Moon’s shadow gives way to the growing lit surface of the Moon. By the time of the Full Moon, Read has walked us through his various targets.
Read supplies readers with views of his targets not only as seen with our eyes or binoculars, but also how the targets look when looking through different telescopes that can flip or rotate the image. This is something I have found useful when taking his book out under the Moon to explore.
Read also brings the Moon to life through interesting facts about how the craters or features got their names, how features were formed or about the many and various moon missions that have taken place. He also brings his wealth of experience and tricks and tips to make the experience fun and enjoyable. I have already found his approach of using a series of craters that form an L to remember that the L is for “landed” and points in the direction of the location of the Apollo 11 landing site.
Given that the book is again geared at new initiates to Moon gazing and likely a younger audience, there are at times technical terms or wording that is cumbersome, such as “Image of the same region on three subsequent nights.” instead of perhaps my personal choice of “Image of the same area over three nights.” This aside, the guide is accessible to both children and adults and makes for a great addition to any amateur astronomer’s library. I know I will be pulling it out again soon to go Moon gazing.
-KMSB