Book of the Month March 2019

Apollo’s Fire: A Day on Earth in Nature and Imagination

by
Michael Sims

Step outside during a typical 24-hour period on Earth and you experience so many aspects of the world above and around you.  Author Michael Sims reminds us that there is so much more to “an ordinary day”, and then goes ahead and points out a plethora of tidbits that grace our earthly packet of time.  Sims starts with the intricacies of morning twilight, and here and there muses on the role of the Sun that governs so much of the goings-on of the day.  The diversity of topics include:
  • why we actually start a new day in the middle of the night
  • a discussion of various animals that become active at twilight, notably bats and the Loch Ness monster
  • the detailed studies of Charles Darwin on how plants respond to the Sun
  • the role of the Moon in art and literature across many cultures
  • the enthusiasm of Galileo at the potential of the newly-invented telescope 
Needless to say, after reading this book you may never look upon an Earth day in nearly the same way!  Apollo’s Fire will be available at the Lamplighter Library at the conclusion of the RASC meeting.
 

Mark Zalcik
Librarian