Lending Shelf: His Dark Materials

November 18, 2008 at 10:42 am · Filed under Pop Culture, Roba

Rating

The “His Dark Materials” trilogy by Philip Pullman are exactly the type of books that makes you wonder how books aimed at young adults could be more thought-worthy than a lot of the more complex adult versions. Beautifully written, very creatively conceptualized, and very fun to read, the trilogy is actually an inversion and a retelling of John Milton’s “Paradise Lost”.

In this book, tension forms between those who seek knowledge and those who blindly follow what they are told they should believe, in a science-versus-religion/ logic-versus-authority sort of battle.

It’s a very good read, although a lot of the people I know didn’t enjoy it much. As for the movie, The Golden Compass with Nicole Kidman et all, I watched it after I read the books and I did not like it. It felt like it was a trailer, with everything playing on fast-forward. Maybe I would have liked it more if I watched  it before I read the books, because it’s really fantastic directing and casting.

Have anyone read “His Dark Materials”?

Other book reviews on AndFarAway:

The Mists of Avalon 
All My Friends are Superheroes 
The Lord of the Rings
His Dark Materials
Persepolis




  • http://www.caledoniyya.com Layla

    I discovered Pullman’s trilogy shortly after Harry Potter, and found the saga astounding. It works on so many levels, challenging a plethora of concepts that has drawn ire from a multitude of quarters. Fabulous. Apparently the film is a bit flat because the creators were reticent to address the religion issue too closely, which subsequently brought them into conflict with Pullman. Perhaps as a consequence, the film seems to lack the grit that makes the trilogy so magnificent.

  • http://karaim.blogspot.com khalid

    Yeah I read those books. There’s just one thing to say: the ending was not what I expected and sad when Will and Lyra depart. That was just plain stupid, but the first and second books were perfect and the movie was stupid compared to book 1. And i got confused about DUST. Are you even supposed to know what it is?
    But in the end, it all comes down to the fact that it’s an awesome trilogy

  • http://www.simoncolumbus.de Simon Columbus

    Some of the best books I’ve ever read! It is truly amazing how Pullman managed to write a book which is both entertaining for kids (well, kids like me at the age of 12, maybe not the most usual) and interesting for adults.
    But what I don’t understand is why it is compared to Harry Potter all the time. What do these books have in common? Yes, they both deal with kids as main characters, yes, they both are set in a half-fictional world. But what else?
    For me, there is a real difference between both books because “His Dark Materials” is highly philosophic, which HP isn’t. HP never questions like Pullman’s story does (and yes, I like both, but of course His Dark Materials even more than HP ;-) ).

    And I certainly will not watch the movie ever. How could they turn a story like this into a movie for twelve year old girls? -.-

  • http://www.simoncolumbus.de Simon Columbus

    Oh, and something is I just read Khalid’s comment:

    The ending is the best part of these books!

    Nothing ends a book better than this bittersweet scene.

  • http://blog.haniobaid.com Hani Obaid

    Hadn’t heard of the book, but I’ve had the golden compass sitting in my DVD collection for a long time now, I think I’ll finally watch it now!

  • Peter S

    I have. I enjoyed them a great deal.

  • Pingback: Lending Shelf: The Mists of Amazon | And Far Away

  • Pingback: Lending Shelf: Maus | And Far Away