The Secret World of Twilight

Beautifully observed and carefully researched Brigit Strawbridge Howard

The real voice of the proper countryside John Lewis-Stempel

Every day, just before sunrise and straight after sunset, magic happens. Dawn and dusk – those fleeting, half-lit hours – are when the ordinary becomes extraordinary. Skies flare with colour, landscapes shift in mood and an unseen cast of creatures emerges from the shadows. Welcome to twilight.

In The Secret World of Twilight, author and smallholder Sally Coulthard invites us into this magical in-between realm, where seductive night-blooming flowers open, secretive mammals stir, giant moths reign, and fantastical sea creatures ride the tide. Twilight profoundly affects human life too – but in our age of electric light and closed doors, we’ve almost forgotten how to see it.

Blending natural history, folklore, and memoir, Coulthard reveals twilight as a vital, liminal force: one that has inspired awe for millennia and still has the power to illuminate our daily lives.