The Golden Compass
The His Dark Materials Trilogy, Book 1
Philip Pullman
Del Rey
Fiction, MG? Fantasy
Themes: Alternate Earths, Bonded Companions, Epics, Girl Power, Religious Themes
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Description
Young Lyra lives in a world not unlike our own in a previous era, but where every human has a daemon, which is like a living extension of their soul.
Until adulthood, a daemon can change shape as it pleases, but then settles into an animal form that reflects something of its human.
It has been discovered that Dust, a mysterious substance visible only through special photography methods, will "stick" to adults, but not to children.
This is the "proof" that the church-backed government has been looking for concerning sin. Lyra, by way of her estranged parents, is caught up in the
search for the source of Dust, and the horrible plans to keep it from "sticking" to adult humans. All she has to guide her her daemon Pantamalion and a
strange golden compass which can tell the truth, if you know how to read it. In her journeys, she meets tree-witches and the mighty armored bears of the
north, as well as other friends... and dangers.
Review
If that sounded confusing, it's not entirely my fault. The book is hardly the most coherent thing I've read. This is often placed in the Middle Grade
section, but I can't see why. Some of the tale is a little too complex and definitely too disturbing for younger readers, not to mention graphic. There is
a fight scene with the armored bears that, were it in the theater, would earn at least a PG-13, if not R. (Yes, I know there's been a movie made of this
book; I haven't seen it yet, so I don't know how true to the text they were - I'm just saying, the book's fight got pretty gruesome.) After slogging
through the first half of the book, I finally found myself getting the hang of the universe and getting into the story... just before the ending. I was
warned at the outset that this was a three-parter, so it wasn't a total shock, but it did throw me a bit. The early parts drag and meander something
fierce, with just enough glimmer of hope to keep me reading, and then it goes and ends on me! What gives? Anyway, it was an okay story overall, with a
few decent characters and some different situations. If I'd paid for the hardcover edition, I would've been really ticked off, but at paperback price it
was a reasonable read. When I bought it, I was looking for something different, and I got it.
I see that the second book is now out in paperback. I may pick it up someday, but maybe not. I just don't know if I want to struggle through 3/4 of a story
only to just start enjoying it before it ends. Again.