David H. Levy's Guide to the Stars Map – 1 Dec. 2000

This planisphere is easy to use and very clear - and it can be used in the dark, unlike the more common, but more comprehensively marked and more cluttered, Philip's planisphere.This planishpere has a white background with dark star markings making it easy to use and read by red light at night. (The Philip's has a black background with white star markings.)A limited number, A to J, of visible (binocular) objects are suggested and marked. A list of Meteor Showers and dates is also included.Using this planisphere at night is really practical and I can recommend it. (I do also use a Philip's but only in the daytime and for comparison purposes.)Four stars rather than five because it is a bit expensive in the UK, and I would like just a couple more markings, eg, 0/24Hr Right Ascension reference line and Zenith Point, but well worth buying for usability.

I am extremely disappointed. I thought I had ordered David Levy's Guide to the Stars.. a professional quality Planisphere but what arrived is the cardboard child's version which normally retails for a much lower price.The correct version is plastic and has a lot of star and Messier information but this is just card and without a pivot pin.. it goes to bed at 10pm and is clearly a childs toy.Looking at the reviews, most of them describe the proper item and the cardboard version is clearly a substitute put on the original page.. looking now, the image at the top of the review page is the professional model. I would not have ordered the childs version and rather suspect that the front page has been changed retrospectively... this is very bad.Amazon did not publish my first attempt.. but this review is about the article and nothing to do with the packaging.