If you haven't read these books you really should. I know there has been a lot of controversy about them but there was controversy around Di Vinci Code and Harry Potter too, try them and decide for yourself.The series is mainly these three books that stand alone together, The Northern Lights is published in the US as The Golden Compass. The books follow a little girl named Lyra as she tries to rescue her friends. While she is trying to help her friends, she gets pulled into something much bigger and has many adventures as she tries to make the right decisions.
I know that is very vague but give me a break. There are three action packed books, a lot happens and I wouldn't want to give it away. Wikipedias page on His Dark Materials is really good if you want to know more about the plot. It talks about both sides of the controversies too. There is a lot of symbolism in these books; they are partially a retelling of Milton's Paradise Lost.
Basically these are fantasy novels that can be enjoyed as a child or read as an adult, similar to Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, or Harry Potter. Anyone of you who has read those know that there are many levels on which to enjoy the story, same thing here. And they have that "epic story" feel that I love. They have multiple worlds layered upon one world, armored bears, witches, magical tools, angels, and tiny spies. The characters are very well developed, with good back stories and realistic motivations; you really grow to love them and want to help them.
Andrew just finished reading these too and couldn't put them down. The first book is the slowest, so don't be discouraged when you are getting started. The movie also doesn't do the books justice, movies never do. The author put so much thought into this world and all of the details motivating the characters; a lot of those details are lost in the movie. I love these books, this is the second time I have read all three in less than a year. Maybe third...I can't remember. Also like Lord of the Rings, Chornicles of Narnia, and Harry Potter, you get something different each time you read them.
One last word about controversy. The controversy is that Pullman portrays the church and authority negatively and all of the "good" characters fight against the church. This is very true. But the church in His Dark Materials is bad. It is oppressive and controlling and wants to take away peoples ability to think and make decisions. The church is using the name of the Authority (or God) to do bad, bad things. Some religions have tried to do this before. Makes sense to fight against a church like that, right?
Makes me wonder about the churches that don't want people to read these books.
1 comment:
Five People You Meet In Heaven: Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his "meaningless" life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: "Why was I here?"
As I said before, this book is totally not gospel doctrine at all..but fun, easy read. I liked how Eddie got all his ?'s answered and was able to realize there was more to his life than he thought.
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