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The protagonist of the book is Lyra, a young girl, who is parentless and seemingly friendless. She has grown up i
This novel is an absolute work of pure genius, and is in my top ten reads of all time. Before I go into the depths of character and plot, let me start by saying this book is up there with other fantasy hard hitters: by this I mean books like The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia: the books that define the genre. This is high praise indeed, and this novel is worthy of it.The protagonist of the book is Lyra, a young girl, who is parentless and seemingly friendless. She has grown up in an Oxford College and has developed a detachment to her guardians. She spends her days enjoying her youth and harassing those that turn out to be some of her greatest allies. For her, this book is a journey of self-discovery: a way of exploring the limits of her character and potential. Her adventure sees her befriend an armoured polar bear and become the wielder of the golden compass. This is initially described as a lie detector but it is apparent that the depths of its power have not been fully explored.
"It lay heavily in her hands,the crystal face gleaming, the brass body exquisitely machined. It was very much like a clock, or a compass, for there were hands pointing around the dial, but instead of the hours or the points of a compass there were several little pictures with extraordinary precision, as if on ivory with the slenderest sable brush. She turned the dial around to look at them all. There was an anchor; an hourglass surmounted by a skull; a bull, a beehive…..Thirty-six altogether and she couldn't even guess what they meant."
This book retains all the classic elements of fantasy: magic, mythical creatures and supernatural phenomena. The world Pullman has created is physically intertwined with our own; there are references to cities and countries in which his idea has been planted.
Each human has a daemon that is essentially their soul. These take on the form of an animal that is representative of the person, for example someone who is enthusiastic and friendly has a colourful cat whereas as solider has a wolf or a hound. The author does very little to explain this. It is just thing "thing" that we are told about at the start but through the book but we begin to see the significance of it. The fact that children's daemons change is a subtle hint how children can be influenced and have not found their identity where as adults are secure and confident. In this the author has created an air of mystery as we explore the true meaning of the bond as we read further.
The plot is fantastic. The author manages to surprise the reader on several occasions as he drops several, massive plot turns. This sees the story go into unexpected directions. From the beginning of reading a book, you begin to predict what will happen. Some books are completely predictable and obvious in their direction; this one was not. I physically gasped at some moments as I found myself awed by the author's storytelling; this is when several characters origins, in relation to Lyra are defined. The book begins as a simple rescue mission but ends as a story that is questioning the morals of all characters involved. The fate of the characters is destined in the mysteriousness of the northern lights; the gateway to beyond.
This is one of those books that is applicable to all ages; it originally appears to be a children's book, but it can be enjoyed by anyone. Much of the content in here touches on themes that most children would not comprehend fully, never mind be able to philosophise about. The author considers spirituality, religion, morals and the existence of the soul, amongst other things. Most children would not pick up on these references and understand the significance of them; however, they would still adore the book.
The book can be seen as two separate entities existing at the same time; the first, and most obvious, is the one that appeals to children; the saving of innocents from despotic adults with lots of exciting characters. The second is on a deeper scale; the author explores the conflicting powers of science and religion, manipulation and morality in terms of actions being for a greater good. In this the author is a genius, he has wrote a book that can be both a children's bed time read and an adult's point of pondering.
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Notes: A solid story and well written, but very much a children's tale with one child going on a quest to save other children. (B+) 78% | Good
Notes: A solid story and well written, but very much a children's tale with one child going on a quest to save other children. ...more
*Ducks as he is castigated by the seething masses*
I also don't love green vegetables, punches to the face, or going to the dentist, though I don't think those revelatory disclosures will elicit much in the way of rage-fueled attempts to slit my throat with the jagged edge of a broken CD (compact disc, kiddos—look it up).
So, why risk a severed jugular on the day before I'm going to stuff myself so full of turkey that I'll have a snood coming out of my ear? Well, because
I don't love the Beatles.*Ducks as he is castigated by the seething masses*
I also don't love green vegetables, punches to the face, or going to the dentist, though I don't think those revelatory disclosures will elicit much in the way of rage-fueled attempts to slit my throat with the jagged edge of a broken CD (compact disc, kiddos—look it up).
So, why risk a severed jugular on the day before I'm going to stuff myself so full of turkey that I'll have a snood coming out of my ear? Well, because it's the best way I can think of to articulate my feelings about The Golden Compass.
I don't LOVE the Beatles, but I recognize their skill and talent and appreciate them for the impact they had on popular music. There are Beatles songs that I enjoy. I think I might have a Beatles album on my iPod (though I've never actually played it on my iPod). But, I'm never going to suddenly say to myself, "Geez, I really need to hear a Beatles song RIGHT NOW" and rush off to listen to one. (Side note: I do occasionally get an urge to listen to Yesterday, but just the Boyz II Men version…so perhaps I'm not the most qualified judge of musical quality on the planet.)
Is Philip Pullman a Beatles-level authorial entity? Well, no. But, he is a skilled writer with a gift for storytelling and world building. He's a talented technician and stylist. But, I don't love The Golden Compass.
I appreciate that it's a well-written and well-conceived story, but, as agents revel in saying to me when I pitch them, "I just didn't connect with the material." I can see why people (ahem, Kristin) love this series, and I certainly would not dissuade anyone who's interested in reading it from giving it a go. It's well done.
Someone asked me, as I was finishing this, if I was going to check out the second book in the series, but I think I'll Let It Be.
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Philip Pullman's Northern Lights is an ambitious combination of all of the above. The protagonist, young Lyra Belacqua, lives in an alternate England. Her world is, in general, similar to ours, but everything is a little bit misaligned. It's a world where a puritanical Church rules over everything, where Scandinavian culture is pervasive, where people travel mostly by boat and zeppelin (steampunk-style), where each person has an accompanying dæmon — a sort of sentient cuddly pet, shamanistic animal spirit, or Freudian Id, perhaps —, where one can meet witches and armoured bears, and own strange objects that look like a pocket watch but tell the truth instead of the time… At all events, Pullman has built one the richest, weirdest, most fascinating and consistent fictional worlds in contemporary literature. He also has succeeded in creating a magnificent gallery of supporting characters: Lord Asriel, John Faa, Iorek Byrnison, Serafina Pekkala — all are endearing and colourful. Pullman's prose is exquisite, and the scope of his story is staggering. For all that — possibly because this was meant to be a children's book —, the plot is surprisingly lively and easy to follow — some of the scenes are memorable indeed, like the attempted poisoning at the start (ch. 1) or Lyra's slyness with the bear-king (ch. 19).
I find it surprising that Pullman's book was not received with at least as much acclaim as, say, J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. The fact that Northern Lights contains some anticlerical ideas and gave the god-botherers a queasy stomach is beside the point. However, it is possible that Pullman's novel introduces too many ideas at the same time without developing them fully and does not quite provide a clear sense of closure and of what it is all about by the end of this long first part. It left me with a downbeat sensation, asking myself while closing the book, "eventually, why should I care about all that picaresque and slightly fantastical adventure?". The 2007 film adaptation (with Nicole Kidman, Ian McKellen, Derek Jacobi, and Christopher Lee) tried to compress Pullman's novel even further but only managed to highlight the plot's flaws. At any rate, I am sure that the next part, The Subtle Knife, will compensate for these slight inconveniences.
Edit: Watched the first season of the BBC/HBO His Dark Materials TV series. It is much better than the 2007 movie, probably because a TV series provides ample space to develop the storyline, while a 120 minutes movie was like a bed of Procrustes, compressing and sabotaging Pullman's narrative. The TV show seems to be taking the exact opposite direction and expands on the plot and characters beyond the limits of the novel. The result is still somewhat confusing, but the slower pace provides a sense of danger and darkness that is quite gripping. Dafne Keen and Ruth Wilson, who play the two female protagonists, are both fabulous.
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I never read this as a kid and maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I had, but it was just okay for me!
pullman however, has
the golden compass trilogy seems like a natural progression in christian literature. yes, it is christian literature, the same way the chronicles of narnia are. aslan is only a lion when the reader is about 10 or so in the united states. after a point, he unrepentantly becomes jesus. and the four children are like, the gospels or something. and the story is somewhat ruined then, because as an adult, you can't just shoehorn jesus into a lion outfit without snickering a little.pullman however, has solved this problem. i can't continue without utterly spoiling the story for everyone who hasn't read it, so consider yourselves warned...
he made jesus into a little girl. even better, he made jesus into a little girl who doesn't even know she's jesus. now how's that for a new twist on the new testament? the part that's particularly brilliant about it, is that it actually worked. lyra is never really anything like christ... she just follows the path of his narrative. first, she has the absent father. lord asrael is desperately involved in his own ideas, so though he's not actually in heaven, he may as well be.
wait a sec, isn't this just dogma again? sort of, except dogma is really more relevant to catholicism in particular, rather than scriptures. and instead of linda fiorentino who is kind of a mopey christ, we get a 10 year old girl. 10 year old girls are the best focal point for any story. i've been one for years.
and this is a perfect choice, because she really never takes time to mope. she doesn't miss her faith or wrestle with it... she doesn't believe at all. and therein lies the genius of pullman's work, that has all the christians in a snit; she's also the antichrist.
why would he do that?
because the bible does. if you really take a look at the word antichrist, it does not mean "evil". khristos, from which christ is derived, means "anointed". so what does antichrist really mean? unanointed, or that which is against the anointed. there's a bunch of baggage on top of that meaning, which is how we got those omen movies, but at the heart of it, it just means smeared with fat. actually, it means recognized by the divine... but in ancient times, we did that by smearing the recognized thing with the fat of a sacrificed animal or person. and that, is why we celebrate the crucifixion. it was the point of christ's birth. as if it wasn't obvious enough, it's why he's referred to as the lamb.
wow. so this is heavy... pullman has gone all the way back to the origins of the judeo-christian faith and said, this important guy, was just the carrier of this magical stuff that we're obsessed with, that we don't even use anymore. it's like we're infected or poisoned by this idea. we need an antidote. we need an antichrist, to show us how far we've wandered from the truth, which had nothing to do with trooping along after some guy.
and this explains why christians are so antagonized by the books. they've been following the beast for years without recognizing it. the golden compass referred to in the book, is the bible we've all forgotten how to read. and in its stead, we've rallied around the church which claims to help us understand the symbols. but in reality, it is the beast referred to. the one which rose from rome, with many heads that change over time. so what really, is the golden compass about? it's about how to be human again. how to regain an understanding of the world, that doesn't rely on our fragile expectations for good and evil. all it requires, is that you give up everything, in order to discover what is important again. and i don't know how christians could have missed that primary message.
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after the reread, i am suprised that i read this as a child. this is definitely a 'childrens book' that is not meant for children, in my opinion. the deeper meanings are pretty subtle but, rega
i first read this when i was like 10 or 11 and i remember really liking it. i recently came across an online thread about this book/series and the message(s) the author was intending to convey, and i was taken aback. i honestly really didnt remember anything except for talking bears that wear armour. lol.after the reread, i am suprised that i read this as a child. this is definitely a 'childrens book' that is not meant for children, in my opinion. the deeper meanings are pretty subtle but, regardless, i have no idea how i was able to read and enjoy this because i highly doubt i really understood what was going on half the time. so it was an interesting experience to read this with an adult perspective. i still enjoyed it, but it was a completely different reading experience than when i was a kid, understandably.
↠ 4 stars
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1. I cleared my rating. If that doesn't sufficiently refute the claim that I "just wanted" to give THE GOLDEN COMPASS 1.0 star, then you're irrational, and further discussion is pointless.
2. I am a BOOK REVIEW BLOGGER. That's what I do. If you want to make cracks about being a trophy wife, go right ahead, but to insinuate that I would "skim" a book to have the minimum knowledge required to give the appearance of having read it so that I can give it a bad review b/c reasons, is an attack
9/8/17:1. I cleared my rating. If that doesn't sufficiently refute the claim that I "just wanted" to give THE GOLDEN COMPASS 1.0 star, then you're irrational, and further discussion is pointless.
2. I am a BOOK REVIEW BLOGGER. That's what I do. If you want to make cracks about being a trophy wife, go right ahead, but to insinuate that I would "skim" a book to have the minimum knowledge required to give the appearance of having read it so that I can give it a bad review b/c reasons, is an attack on my character and work ethic.
I'm not some conservative religious zealot who think books with magic are sending our children straight to hell. I don't have children. I'm not a Christian.
I do, however, have four nephews, all under eight years old that I have already given HARRY POTTER and many, many other similar books, THE GOLDEN COMPASS not among them.
3. In regards to my perceived lack of faith in a child's intelligence, I'm baffled that you think that's the only issue. "Children aren't stupid. They have good instincts. Shame on you."
Are you going to tell me that children also have excellent impulse control? That they're always rational? That they aren't capable of making bad decisions when overwrought?
And am I also to assume that you all strictly adhered to the suggested age requirements on books? None of you were specifically informed that you read several grade levels ahead of your peers?
This isn't the simple issue some of you are trying to make it.
You MUST know I'm a advocate for free thought, for going against the grain, for individuality vs. hive mentality . . .
I believe it's important to teach children to question, to think for themselves.
BUT.
I feel this book crosses a line for its intended audience. The two adults Lyra should be most dependent on are villains, and whether or not there are good role models among the secondary cast of characters, they are SECONDARY, ultimately insignificant roles as evidenced when dollface takes off on her own b/c her parents cannot be trusted, and she knows better than they do.
The fact that it's true in her scenario is exactly what concerns me.
You can draw a straight line through all the steps on the path to a child's inevitable conclusion that Adults are the Enemy, and to do good, to do right, you cannot trust or obey them.
I think that's a very dangerous, potentially harmful thing to teach a child.
You don't have to agree with me. In fact, the whole reason I'm writing this, years after I read the book, is b/c I didn't want to be that person who essentially outlines their own (possibly contradictory) review on someone else's post.
B/c those people suck. FYI. <------
I don't recommend this book for readers not in their teens. Yes, some children mature faster than others, and, especially, if the child in question is your own, you're the best judge of what is appropriate--I would never tell anyone what to do with their children. I am merely voicing a concern and suggesting that one might consider personally screening THE GOLDEN COMPASS before passing along to young, impressionable minds.
This is my opinion. If you are violently opposed to it, I invite you to WRITE AND POST YOUR OWN REVIEW.
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Northern Lights (known as The Golden Compass in North America and some other countries) is the first book of "His Dark Materials" trilogy.
Set in a parallel universe, it features the journey of Lyra Belacqua to the Arctic in search of her missing friend, Roger Parslow, and her imprisoned uncle, Lord Asriel, who has been conducting experiments with a mysterious substance known as "Dust".
Northern Lights is a young-adult
Northern Lights = The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1), Philip PullmanNorthern Lights (known as The Golden Compass in North America and some other countries) is the first book of "His Dark Materials" trilogy.
Set in a parallel universe, it features the journey of Lyra Belacqua to the Arctic in search of her missing friend, Roger Parslow, and her imprisoned uncle, Lord Asriel, who has been conducting experiments with a mysterious substance known as "Dust".
Northern Lights is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995. A children's tale with one child (Lyra) going on a quest to save other children.
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز دوم آگوست سال 2008 میلادی
عنوان: نیروی اهریمنی اش - کتاب اول - سپیده ی شمالی در دو جلد؛ نویسنده: فلیپ پولمن؛ مترجم: فرزاد فرید؛ تهران، کتاب پنجره، 1384 تا 1385، در پنج جلد؛ شابک دوره پنج جلدی: 9647822146؛ چاپ سوم 1387؛ شابک دوره: 9789647822145؛ چاپ چهارم 1388؛ موضوع: داستانهای کودکان و نوجوانان از نویسندگان انگلیسی - سده 20 م
عنوان کتاب نخست از مجموعه ی: «نیروی اهریمنیش» شامل دو جلد بخش اول و دوم: سپیده ی شمالی؛ عنوان (جلد سوم) کتاب دوم: خنجر ظریف؛ و عنوان (دو جلد چهارم و پنجم) کتاب سوم: دوربین کهربایی است؛ نیروی اهریمنی اش؛ عنوان مجموعه ای سه گانه از داستانهای تخیلی ست، که: «فیلیپ پولمن» آنها را نگاشته است. کتابها به ترتیب: «سپیده شمالی (1995 میلادی، در آمریکای شمالی، با عنوان: قطب نمای طلایی؛ منتشر شده)»، «خنجر ظریف (1997 میلادی)» و «دوربین کهربایی (2000 میلادی)» نام دارند. داستان کتاب در مورد دو نوجوان به نامهای: «لایرا بلاکوا»، و «ویل پری» است؛ که در دو دنیای موازی زندگی میکنند، و وارد ماجراهایی حماسی میشوند. کتاب سوم از مجموعهٔ «نیروی اهریمنی اش» در سال 2001 میلادی برنده ی جایزه کتاب سال «وایت برید» در «انگلستان» شد، که یک جایزه ی معتبر ادبی به شمار میرود. روزنامه ی «آبزرور» از این مجموعه به عنوان یکصد رمان پرفروش دنیا یاد میکند. در کتاب نخست: «لایرا» به کمک دوستش که توسّط «شفن»ها دزدیده شده رفته، تا او را نجات دهد. ولی در انتها درمییابد که...؛
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 11/01/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
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Listened to this on audio, which was a lot of fun!
M. then said that she didn't think a book, to be special, necessarily had to
Later....A friend said to me today that if you read this book properly, it should make you a better person. I'd just earlier in the day been thinking pretty much the same thing. When I asked S. in what way was he made better, he said he couldn't say, just that it had. Exactly. I think you have a sense as you read this book that Lyra's goodness has rubbed off on you, she's made you better in an entirely non-specific way.M. then said that she didn't think a book, to be special, necessarily had to have a moral impact, it could give you other terribly important things. For her to read the first Harry Potter was to be given back magic. And yes, an author, if he can return to you something you had lost and not even realised you had, has done something equally to be treasured.
I have promised to read HP soon. I find it difficult to believe I'm going to get anything out of it, but, then, thus had I felt about Northern Lights.
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I really didn't want to read this. It's fantasy, it has made-up words, it is a trilogy – WHY!!!!! Why can't somebody write a fantasy book that stops at a decent time???? There is an explanation of how to pronounce 'daemon' before the book even starts and that's enough to make my heart sink. So why am I reading it? Because I've been backed into a corner by a friend and I can't figure out another way of getting out. Here it is then. A grumpy person reading a type of book they don't want to read and are opening it up for all the wrong reasons.
And then…straight away, within a page or two: what a heart-thumper, what a brilliant unputdownable ripsnorter. Impossible not to compare with Larsson's books, and comes out so far ahead on all counts I don't know if I'll be able to read the last Girl-Tattoo book after all.
This guy writes well, Larsson doesn't. He has a plot that is worthy of the name for the entire book. When I wanted to stop reading the first Larsson after 140 pages and was told that it got good soon, well, honestly, I stuck with it and the advice was correct, but still. That's a lot of wasted pages.
Larsson's female character is a pastiche of current fashion:
(1) Anti-social
(2) Metal in odd places
(3) Punk rocker
(4) Shags girls, heterosexual male fantasy
(5) Shags much old men, ditto
(6) Boob job
(7) Computer whizz
Larsson gets away with this, even though this amalgam feels fake. Lyra needs nothing. She is just a girl with nothing special about her at all and she is fabulous. Already I'm wondering if this series is going to get spoiled by her growing up and sex coming into play. One of the things this book demonstrates is how utterly irrelevant and tedious the sex is in books like Larsson's. It is just there to titillate, it has no intrinsic purpose whatsoever.
I'm gobsmacked by how much more believable this book is than Larsson's. Daemons, talking bears, witches, universes coming out of universes – I'm half expecting a string theorist to pop into the story, but as long as that doesn't happen I can't imagine anything could spoil the rest of it. I'm trying to picture who wouldn't enjoy this, and I'm coming up with a complete prune of a person. If I enjoy this, honestly, anybody would.
And yes, ladies and gentlemen, I'm even going to give the rest of the series a go.
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Finished! The last forty pages or so, after the duel of the bears, lost me. Maybe because they weren't really about the story, they are about setting the scene for the next book...I don't know. But I have to say that after 350 pages where every sentence made my heart beat too fast, I feel rather churlish saying that.
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9/25/2020:
This is a second reading of Pullman's classic, accomplished on vacation in a car, with the family, by listening to the 9 cd audio collection, with Phillip
9/25/2020:
This is a second reading of Pullman's classic, accomplished on vacation in a car, with the family, by listening to the 9 cd audio collection, with Phillip Pullman Himself reading the narration and beautifully, with a cast of fine actors taking various parts. The first of a trilogy entitled His Dark Materials, which is a great fantasy story supposedly appropriate for grade 6 (American schools) but is really all ages, and like Wrinkle in Time, has dimensions in it which you will discover at any age. It IS a kid's book, in so many ways, with a strong girl main character, Lyra, 11, who is set on freeing her friend and other children from the north, with the help of Gyptions, an armored polar bear, witches, a Texan aeronaut balloonist, among others. This first volume is wonderful fun, focused as it is on Lyra and adventure. Lyra is a pretty unforgettable young girl character, who really grows over the trilogy, and though others also come to take the stage, in this book she is up there front and center.
The series is also a commentary on and critique of C. S. Lewis's The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe series, which Pullman, an atheist, found as he finds all Christian theology, too simplistic about the nature of the universe. Pullman once commented that he finds it interesting that he is placed in the category of "fantasy" writer, which he thinks is dismissive and evidence of the narrowness of vision that dominates the planet: fact and fantasy. In other words, Pullman sees the world as multiple, not binary, not just good and evil, Heaven and Hell; he thinks there are multiple worlds, and he thinks science/physics increasingly supports what many people know about the presence of multiple spiritual realms.
Pullman is also widely castigated/denounced as critical of The Holy Roman Catholic Church, which seems to be true in my reading of this book, though I think he is critical of almost all religions that see the world narrowly and are bound up in a view of the world as comprised of Sinners and Saints. Pullman especially finds the notion of Original Sin, which is the very foundation of the Dutch Calvinist Reformed Church in which I grew up, reprehensible, certainly limiting as a foundation for life. I think the Catholic Church, seeing Pullman as an atheist and his work as an exclusively anticlerical tract, may have helped to crush the continuation of the fine film series, which only has one third of the story, focused on this book, produced, though that film was tame compared to the book. But I think the series is more about the nature of True Religion than anti-religion, and Pullman says as much himself.
The series also owes a lot to Milton's Paradise Lost, which will become more evident as the series goes along, though you don't need to have read that work to appreciate the tales. Pullman loves Milton, and also argues with him, too. As with Warner Brothers cartoons, there's a kid level and an adult level on which you can appreciate the wonder of the tales. But it's not just a fantasy adventure! As with all great literature, it's about what is at stake in making meaning. It's a great classic.
But enough about all that theology jazz! Lyra is the hero of this first volume (and ultimately of the whole series). She is a liar (Pullman pronounces her name Lie-rah), a storyteller, fantasist, without which she could literally not survive. We named our daughter after this main character, so you know I am a fan, though we pronounce the name Lee-rah (as in Lyrical).
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A delightfully (and I really mean that) interesting and multi layered, yet easy to digest adventure ensues and expands this universe. To top that off the main protagonist is a young girl, and t Pullman sets this story up almost perfectly presenting un-parented wild-child 12-year old Lyra, who living in, and playing round, Jordan College in this alternate reality, where every human has a daemon, a sort of additional living and breathing soul-like part of themselves shaped in the form of an animal.
A delightfully (and I really mean that) interesting and multi layered, yet easy to digest adventure ensues and expands this universe. To top that off the main protagonist is a young girl, and the story plays with the trope about a sub-reality inhabited by the young having to interact, with the arrogance and at times unpleasantness of the adult world. The fantasy perspective is fully realised with not just the daemons, but a number of other sentient non-human races; and finally there's Dust. What's Dust? Read the book!
On the verge of being a well deserved modern classic. 8 out of 12.
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The narrator is probably supposed to be an all-knowing narrator (sorry, don't know the english term for that), but he slips into Lyra's POV with no pattern I could discover. And the fact that I even noticed this shows how disturbing it was.
The protagonist is, well, I don't know why anyone writing children's book would invent an "unimaginative" (quote), lying, sometimes even hateful character like Lyra. I started to like her a bit more during the second half of the book, but mostly because I felt sorry for her. Then I discovered that she is supposed to be older than 11, when she makes herself younger by telling someone that she is eleven. Until the I had thought she was maybe 8 or 9. Shortly after that I stopped reading the book.
P.S.: After having read numerous other reviews of this book, I feel the need to point out that I'm an atheist and that no, I didn't give this book a bad review because it "offended my christianity". In fact, I seem to be so much an atheist that I completely missed how the book could be controversial or offensive in that regard. I know it offended me by being a bad book sold with a lot of hype, but that's not Pullman's fault. However, I did read that Pullman called himself an agnostic somewhere, and that explains rather a lot to me.
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I'm having a problem understanding why this is considered a children's book. I can't imagine a child fully understanding all the political banter that takes place in the first section of the book. Also there are things like Daemons that aren't full
I struggled with this one. I felt the story was very slow and I understand that it's the first in a trilogy and the author had to do some world building, but even so I felt there were details that were left unexplained, details that needed explaining.I'm having a problem understanding why this is considered a children's book. I can't imagine a child fully understanding all the political banter that takes place in the first section of the book. Also there are things like Daemons that aren't fully explained until the end of the book. I was even confused as to exactly what they were until it was explained.
Towards the end of the story things did start to pick up and I did start enjoying it more, but I'm not sure if I enjoyed it enough to pick up the next book in the trilogy.
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Please join us if you can!
-- Discussion on blog: February 28th
-- Hashtag #tmgreadalong if you'd like to discuss as you read on Twitter.
More details on the blog: http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2014...
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My review:
Wildly imaginative and thrilling, this complex and be
Hello friends! We're reading THE GOLDEN COMPASS together throughout the next few weeks as part of our goal to read more classic YA/MG books this year.Please join us if you can!
-- Discussion on blog: February 28th
-- Hashtag #tmgreadalong if you'd like to discuss as you read on Twitter.
More details on the blog: http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2014...
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My review:
Wildly imaginative and thrilling, this complex and beautiful story follows brave, fierce Lyra Belacqua in her quest to save her childhood friend. The book is filled with dazzling adventure and marvelous inventiveness, as well as many scenes that will fill readers with utter horror and pity.
There are witches, gypsies, daemons, and best of all--armored polar bears! The warrior bears have a spectacular battle scene towards the end that still shakes me to the core when I read it. There aren't words enough to describe what an important work of literature this is, not only for children, but also for thinking, feeling, dreaming adults as well.
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Then a couple years later the TV adaptation came out on HBO which I started watching and fell in love with. So I've always been curious about returning to this series, especially now as we wait for the 3rd and final season to arrive. When I stumbled on these books in a used bookstore and a Little Free Library near my home, it felt like fate—time for me to pick them up again. And I'm so glad I did!
I absolutely loved revisiting this fantasy epic. I think for me watching the show actually helped me with the re-read, since I had a visual connection to the world and also was better able to discern the various characters, their motives, and picture it all in my mind as I read it.
Lyra, our hero, is truly one of the great protagonists of children's literature, or really any literature. Her journey is a true coming-of-age tale that is extremely fantastical and yet relatable at the same time. What happens when everything you thought you knew turns out to be false? How can you trust others when the ones you have trusted betray you? These, and many other questions, come up throughout the novel, all while we are taken on a fantastic adventure.
I am super excited now to keep going in this series. I know some of what happens in book 2 because of the show, but after re-reading book 1 I can tell they kept as much as possible while adding in new elements or bringing plot points from later in the series to earlier episodes which I think was really smart. I think with the way this is going this could turn out to be one of my favorite fantasy series and one that I will re-visit time and time again.
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This book started off as a dull, boring, and somewhat confusing high fantasy, but as the story progressed, I became captivated with the story and I fell in love with this book.
The characters were the part of the book that stood out to me the most. Iorek was a really interesting character to read about. He was such a big, ferocious beast yet he also had a strong heart and he cared for others. Lyra was definitely my favorite character. She's one of the best protagonists that I've read about. She's determined, brave, intelligent, and she has strong morals. I admired her a lot.
Warning: the rest of my review has spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.
My major issue with this book is that it's labeled as a children's book, but I truly wouldn't want anyone under 12 reading this book.
The gobblers and the separations were very dark. Kidnapping children and then essentially separating them from their best friend and their soul would make lots of kids sad and scared.
The book was also surprisingly gory. There was a whole long, detailed passage about people cutting holes in their heads and the polar bear fight was very graphic. The details of the jaw flying off and then ripping out the polar bear's heart made me extremely nauseous.
It explained what castration was toward the end of the book, too. Imagine a kid coming up to you and asking more details about castration because they read this book...
I wanted to note that I wasn't allowed to read this book when I was a kid because it was "anti-Christian." I am slightly baffled about why it's considered anti-Christian. The church is to some extent a villain in the book, but it's also not? And the book even quotes part of the Bible... I just don't understand what the issue with this book is?
Well, that's enough of me rambling. Though this book had flaws, I still really enjoyed it and I found it to be a fascinating read. I will definitely be continuing with this series.
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Lord Asraiel and Mrs Coulter make perfect villains. This book does not really end but segues into the second book.
This was a reread and I listened to it on audio. They did a fantastic job, I have to say, with different actors for all the voices.
Recommended. ...more
it's going to be awesome.
(My name has got that sam I really like that the Iorek Byronison, the bear, is always referred to by full name. When I'm Bear King, I definitely want to be on a full-name-all-the-time basis. Then I will battle challengers to mortal combat, tearing through armor, swiping off heads with my massive paws, slicing open chests and devouring hearts. And as I gorge myself on bear blood, I will cry out "Bears! Who is your King?" And my name will roar from a thousand bear throats.
it's going to be awesome.
(My name has got that same elegant mysterious beauty. Like a sound you'd expect if you hit a fairy with a shoe.)
9/14/07
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The movie was just ok. I thought the lead kid did a good job playing Lyra, and Nicole Kidman made a very menacing Ann Coulter. But my very favorites were Daniel Craig as the zealot Lord Asriel and Eva Green as badass witch Serafina Pekkala.
Serafina Pekkala is one of my favorite witches in literature: she's grounded in her connection to the earth, she's beautif
I really liked this book! I think it is easily among the best of the crop of Potter-era YA lit (even though it actually came out first!).The movie was just ok. I thought the lead kid did a good job playing Lyra, and Nicole Kidman made a very menacing Ann Coulter. But my very favorites were Daniel Craig as the zealot Lord Asriel and Eva Green as badass witch Serafina Pekkala.
Serafina Pekkala is one of my favorite witches in literature: she's grounded in her connection to the earth, she's beautiful, she doesn't have to hover over the cauldron all day to perform her magic, she's immortal (more or less), she can fly and she has awesome archery skills. She is also tragically romantic, because she is cursed with watching the man she loves die, because he's mortal. Pathos! But I think that is in the second book.
Speaking of which, I will say I did NOT like the second movie. It made no sense and did not follow the book at all! For one thing, they changed the name, which I do not get. Maybe it was the British name? (The first book/movie is called Northern Lights over there.) But I don't remember any casinos in the second book. And not only do they have Serafina and Asriel dressed all wrong, they have them get together!!!
That does NOT happen in the books. And then Serafina DIES?! Also Lyra isn't even in it, hello?
Facebook 30 Day Book Challenge Day 14: Book whose main character you want to marry. (Um, Serafina. Not Asriel. Just to be clear.)
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I never added a review of this but I'm going to now. I'll admit that this one was a bit slow for me at parts (especially compared to the sequels) but what kept me reading was the fascination with the daemons. I liken them to the patronuses (patronii?) from the Harry Potter series in that they are the animal totem of a character, and can change until someone is "set in their ways". How many other people have held conversations about what their daemon or patronus animal is, and then changed it fre
I never added a review of this but I'm going to now. I'll admit that this one was a bit slow for me at parts (especially compared to the sequels) but what kept me reading was the fascination with the daemons. I liken them to the patronuses (patronii?) from the Harry Potter series in that they are the animal totem of a character, and can change until someone is "set in their ways". How many other people have held conversations about what their daemon or patronus animal is, and then changed it frequently?
I'll also admit that I don't particularly care for Lyra. I find her too abrasive for my liking as she seems to always have a chip on her shoulder and wants to turn everything into a fight. The titular object (at least in the American version of the book) is an Alethiometer, a clock-like divination device that she can use.
The character who I really liked (and thought we needed much more of) was Serafina Pekkala, Queen of the Witches. Not only was she boss with a bow, but she was always magical flying astride her cloud pine branch.
All in all, 3 stars when compared to the sequels.
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I think I might have been a bit unfair to the book in my original review. Or maybe I was a bit disgruntled with YA literature in general at the time. Or maybe I was getting tired of the whole chosen one with the miraculous oracle bit driving the plot forward.
But let's back up a bit here. In the particulars, I liked running around like an urchin. I did like all the Daemons. I liked growing up among all the academics. I liked running around and being a very English nuisance and g
Re-read, 11/4/19:I think I might have been a bit unfair to the book in my original review. Or maybe I was a bit disgruntled with YA literature in general at the time. Or maybe I was getting tired of the whole chosen one with the miraculous oracle bit driving the plot forward.
But let's back up a bit here. In the particulars, I liked running around like an urchin. I did like all the Daemons. I liked growing up among all the academics. I liked running around and being a very English nuisance and getting involved very civilly with evil folks and right proper decent parliamentary folk.
And what could be better than to top it all off with a trip to the north where all the Scandinavians are! Um, I mean bears. And witches. And evil research facilities that OUGHT to have been where Santa's elves made some non-dusty toys.
Yeah, it was pretty entertaining. Very quick-paced. Somewhat annoyingly light on the character-building so everyone seems like pieces on a big game board with a big narrator pushing them around by a rather cool compass... but okay for all that.
I guess I tended to remember this book in a slightly lesser light than it really deserves, considering how many YA novels are like it these days.
Original review:
After reading the first nine-tenths of the novel, I was expecting nothing other than a YA adventure novel. When I finished it, I saw the interesting bits finally come alive. The writing is smooth and the characters, while rather one-sided and painted with broad strokes, works well here. I can't complain, because most book's characters rather fall into the same category and so I must focus on ideas and how those ideas are pulled off. The locales are charming, and even though we're missing some depth, it's to be expected by the type of the novel it is. I did find myself wanting the viewpoints of the parents more than our lovely silver-tongued liar, but I think this is just my own frantic desire for understanding a character's psychology. Good book, and I'm looking forward to more adventure.
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I found elements that questioned Christianity and Catholicism and the nature of God and its works, but I also found elements that questioned parental authority, the ethical and practical roles of Science, and the nature of
After all the talk about Pullman's supposed anti-Catholicism or anti-Christianity or atheism or whatever one wants to label it, I approached The Golden Compass (known originally as Northern Lights) with an open mind and found something other than what I'd been told to expect.I found elements that questioned Christianity and Catholicism and the nature of God and its works, but I also found elements that questioned parental authority, the ethical and practical roles of Science, and the nature of good and evil. And it is this consistent questioning that I see as the message of Pullman's first book of "His Dark Materials" -- not any of those messages that were focused on during the movie's release.
The notion that we should question everything, even if we are children -- or especially if we are children -- is one of the most important messages humankind can hear, and one of the hardest for us to learn or employ. Most people simply do not want to question. It takes work; it takes struggle; it takes strength, and far more strength than unquestioning faith or simple acceptance require.
The fact that Lyra questions everything around her at all times is her salvation. And ours if we would only learn the lesson.
Say what you like about Pullman's story, but regardless of your religion or politics or economics or taste he does something brave that needs to be respected -- he challenges us to think about everything. Even his book (with its flaws...and there are a couple).
I understand that he can't maintain the amazing level of The Golden Compass, nee Northern Lights, in the books that follow, but I am compelled to read them to see for myself. I think Pullman would appreciate that.
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"You cannot change what you are, only what you do."
So begins the story of a fantastic invention of a parallel world to the one we live in and the adventures of a brave-hearted young girl.
Lyra is bound to stay in Oxford to learn and play with her friends, however, when talk of Gobblers arise with children disappearing, and with her close friend Roger being one of those children, Lyra, along with her daemon, Pantalaimon, set out and are determined to find his whereabouts.
Their quest leads
"You cannot change what you are, only what you do."
So begins the story of a fantastic invention of a parallel world to the one we live in and the adventures of a brave-hearted young girl.
Lyra is bound to stay in Oxford to learn and play with her friends, however, when talk of Gobblers arise with children disappearing, and with her close friend Roger being one of those children, Lyra, along with her daemon, Pantalaimon, set out and are determined to find his whereabouts.
Their quest leads them North, where there are armoured fighting bears who rule their own kingdoms, and clans of witches flying through the nights sky- however there are also scientists conducting abhorrent experiments that are very dark and horrible, which questions everything on the scales of morality.
Lyra constantly faces and overcomes strange terrors and events, always questioning and determined to find out important answers. Where are the missing children going? What is dust and why is it so important!?
Through this grand task Lyra sets herself, she encounters the most interesting people and creatures- Lyra must determine whether these are allies or foe, as the wrong decision can have severe consequences.
Lyra is a heroine I absolutely love. Flawed, curious, determined, fiercely passionate and brave. There was a great selection of secondary characters as well (some more lovable than others!).
I am absolutely fascinated by the world that Philip Pullman has created as well as the creatures, objects (alethiometer) and dust mentioned in the book.
This novel was beautifully written and was a wonderful and fantastical literary adventure. Philip Pullman has the ability to blend theology and magic into a parallel world and create a mesmerising story.
...moreAs a passionate believer in the democracy of reading, I don't think it's the task of the author of a book to tell the reader what it means.The meaning of a story emerges in the meeting between the words on the page and the thoughts in the reader's mind. So when people ask me what I meant by this story, or what was the message I was trying to convey in that one, I have to explain that I'm not going
As a passionate believer in the democracy of reading, I don't think it's the task of the author of a book to tell the reader what it means.The meaning of a story emerges in the meeting between the words on the page and the thoughts in the reader's mind. So when people ask me what I meant by this story, or what was the message I was trying to convey in that one, I have to explain that I'm not going to explain.
Anyway, I'm not in the message business; I'm in the "Once upon a time" business.
Philip Pullman is best known for the His Dark Materials trilogy: The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass, which has been named one of the top 100 novels of all time by Newsweek and one of the all-time greatest novels by Entertainment Weekly. In 2004, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. He lives in Oxford, England.
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They sat for a while longer, and then parted, for it was late, and they were old and anxious."
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