Rating: 
Summary: SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE
Review: Compared to the vast majority of fantasy novels, The Golden Compass is a thorn in the side of redundancy. This, however, does not mean that this book is excellent, though, and unfortunatley. Philip Pullman creates an alternate universe that is not all too different from ours. If I were to place his universe in our timline, I would say it fits the WWI era best, the big giveaway being the existance of zeppelins. One of the biggest additions to this universe, though, is the existance of daemons, or one creature that is linked to one human. The daemon can talk and take the form of about any animal, but they normally prefer one form over all others. The human and daemon may seem very seperate, but once you read the chapter entitled "The Silver Guillotine", you'll realize how much the one needs the other. That chapter contains one of the most powerful scenes in the book, but you won't get to it until you're more than halfway through. Which leads me to my biggest problem with this book. It's original, yes, but dreadfully slow, especially towards the beginning. Thinking back, all I can recall is the awkward meeting with Lord Asriel, Oxford, and heading north while trying to stay away from Mrs. Coulter. The character development, I must admit, is above average, but the plot suffers as a result. However, once I got to the part entitled "Bolvangar", the book started to pick up to a proper pace, finally coming to an end that reminded me of the end of the novel Hannibal by Thomas Harris. If it weren't for the fact that the ending was somewhat satisfying, I would have rated this book less, but even as it stands, I really didn't find it all that exciting. Take your Alethiometer and ask it about a better book, I'm sure it'll come up with something better.
Rating: 
Summary: A Golden Novel
Review: Undoubtly the best novel I have ever read. The first book draws you in, the second brings new faces and describes the plan, the third brings the end of the amazing series. A truely awsome book.
Rating:
Summary: Librarian & Mother's Choice
Review: As a parent, children's librarian and avid reader, I have passed this book along to many ambitious children and several jaded adults. In no instance has anyone who has read this series told me they did not enjoy it. In fact, people continue to talk about it long after having finished the series. It is a rare and wonderful find in children's literature - a text that allows children to philosophize while becoming completely engrossed in a story. In no instance does the author hand-feed conclusions or force ideology, he presents a vivid and complex world that children and adults can ponder and enjoy without the "talking down" to children tone that permeates much recently published juvenile literature. I continue searching for books as inspiring and engaging and advise that you savor the last book slowly, as you will surely lament their are only three in the series!
Rating:
Summary: LYRA AND PANTALAIMON, THE DREAM TEAM
Review: FIRST OF ALL YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS IS MY FAVORITE BOOK IN THE KNOWN WORLD! The Golden Compass also happens to be the best of the three books in the series, His Dark Materials, which is also my favorite series in the known world. Lyra had the passion, intelligence, and bravery in this book. She lost all that in the second and third books. This goes for Pantalaimon too. Human and daemon were shoved out of their earned and well deserved spotlight by the dumb crybaby Will. This book is about a girl named Lyra who is from a different world than ours, which she knows nothing about. In her world things seem to be old fashined, and everybody has a daemon, your soul which can walk next to you and talk to you in an animal form. As a child your daemon can change into any animal it wants to depending on how it feels or even how its human feels. But during adolesence, it fixes into one animal form and keeps it until the human dies. The form it picks depends on the sort of person you really are inside.( For full details, READ THIS BOOK!) Soon into the story, a group of srange people(refered to as gobblers) begin taking children from their homes and taking them to the arctic to do horrible experiments on them,but I wont tell what experiments because it is too important to the story to revial in this review. Besides, it's a great thrill when you DO discover what the gobblers are doing to the kids in a place called Bolvanger. Lyra and Pan get to go to the arctic, meet armored bears and whitches, discover about her long lost parents, and takes care of an alethiometer,( a compass like object that you read to learn the truth) and learns to read it. This book is domenantely fantasy and adventure but also has aspects of sci-fi , horror, and suspense. In addition to this book, I would suggest buying all three of these books on tape. It's much more fun to listen to them than to read them. But then again, I listened to this book on tape before I bought the book. I then bought the second book and then on tape, because I am so used to hearing those great voices on the tape instead of that flat boring voice in my head when I read the books. I now own all three books and all three books on tape. Also if you like Phillip Pullman I would recomend Gathering Blue by Lois Lowery, the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, The Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien, A Series of Unfortunate Events series by Lemony Snicket, and Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer. One last thing, alot of religious fanatics say this book is evil or satanic or what ever. I'm not religious enough to believe that crap. If your an open minded, imaginative person who isn't a religious wimp like some people are, you will completely treasure this entire series. Just because these books completely destroy the aspect of a god, doesn't make it an evil book. Actually, to put it lightly, these books are like a kick in the face for anyone who is religious, but if your too smart for that these books are going to be with you until you die.
Rating: 
Summary: The Worst Book I Have EVER Read
Review: Like the title of my review says, this is absolutely, without a doubt, the worst book I have ever read. The plot is inane, the characters are irritating and stupid, and the setting is utterly ridiculous. The concept of daemons and the even sillier concept of bears having armor just makes me want to cry. ...
Rating:
Summary: best book ever written
Review: FIRST OF ALL- THE TRILOGY IS PRETTY MUCH ONE BOOK-SO THIS REVIEW IS ABOUT THE OTHER TWO BOOKS ALSO. this book is possibly the best book ever written. it transcends all genres, and creates a genre all of its own. it combines sci-fi, romance, fantasy, tragedy, horror, comedy- you name it, and it has it. it is a tale of destiny, a tale of a little girl who defeats great powers, all unknowing. lyra seems at the center of this tale, but she is really just representing what this trilogy is about- rejection of authority (in this case God). if you are offended about religion easily, you have to read this just so you can get [angry] because it makes you question your beliefs. the idea for this book is extraordinary in its own right, but then the way he writes leaves you gasping. you are taken to a place you feel you almost know, a place you could get to if only you could understand what you were feeling. if you know what i mean about that feeling you get when you finish a great book, you know what i'm talking about when i say that this book leaves you with that feeling in it's purest form. it is a great book, and i have no complaints. by the way, for you readers that don't like unlinear writing, this book is perfectly linear, although it makes you think...think so hard about its message i know it will make you change your beliefs.
Rating:
Summary: it all goes downhill from here...
Review: The Golden Compass is a pretty spellbinding novel. Take caution though. This book is like a good first date--it might be fun, but if you keep going without looking too closely, you're gonna end up involved with an unsavory character. As for the book itself: It is a derivative (shades of Milton, Blake, Lewis and Yeats here) yet entertaining adventure. A little girl (of questionable nature) gets wrapped up in events that end up dragging her across the vastness of the Polar regions on an alternate Earth. There she finds adventure, friendship, triumph and tragedy. Pullman creates some wonderful side characters, most notably the great armored bear Iorek Byrnison, the sharpshooting Texan Lee Scoresby, and the witch queen Serafina Pekkala. For abject terror, one cannot beat the scene Pullman has written in his Bolvangar. Yet, for as good as this book gets, there are glimpses even here in the first book of how politically correct and preachy (one might also throw in blasphemous) Pullman eventually gets in the second and third books of the series. The scene between Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter is the prime example here. Therefore--since this book is little more than a beautifully paved road to nowhere--I don't recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Golden Reading
Review: This is definitely the best book I have ever had the privelege to read. And just because I'm too lazy to write a long review doesn't mean this was a bad book. Anyone who doesn't like these is crazy. It is definitely a must read for anyone even remotely interested in fantasy or adventure books!
Rating:
Summary: Better than Harry Potter!!!
Review: And I am a devoted HP fan! That's why I picked up this book, because I was jonesing for the new Harry novel. I expected to be entertained, but found myself entranced. I was sucked into this familiar yet utterly unfamiliar world that Philip Pullman, "the most dangerous author in Great Britain" (according to the Catholic church), has created. Great Britain, the Church, and the Aurora Borealis are all known to me, but daemons (physical manifestations of the soul every person possesses), Dust and gyptians are unique to this book. Complex enough to challenge young adults, the plot also contains subtext for the adult. PLUS, it features a brave, resourceful, FEMALE hero. A terrific, fast read!
Rating:
Summary: What a ride!
Review: I've never really been a reader of teen literature (especially of the fantasy genre), but I had the good fortune of stumbling across this book in my school's library. And I am extremely grateful for my good luck in doing so. In The Golden Compass, Phillip Pullman shows us a world quite like ours, and the girl Lyra and her daemon Pantalaimon who live in it. Lyra's world is being upset by certain visionaries who believe in the existence of other worlds parallel to their own. The magic that allows this to happen? Dust, a gold shimmery substance whose attraction to young children and their daemons is unknown. Soon, Lyra must save her uncle, Lord Asriel, one of the men who believe in the existence of the multiple worlds. Along the way, Lyra meets Mrs. Coulter, a dangerous woman who takes a particular interest in Lyra, a polar bear, and the gyptians (or as we know them, gypsies). Her travels take you from Oxford University in Britain to all the way north in the Arctic Circle. Lyra's tale is dangerous, exciting, and in the exciting and heart-wrenching climax, leaves you begging for the second book, The Subtle Knife. It doesn't matter how old you are or what kind of books you like, this book is a sure winner with everyone.
|
