Rating: 
Summary: Good
Review: I liked it much better than reading from the book, but I did not like how the pages were short, there ended up being over 1,000 pages. =)
Rating: 
Summary: If you have any imagination...
Review: This book (and the entire trilogy, really) are the most original fantasy I've read in *years*! I'm a die-hard fantasy/sci-fi fan, but so much of fantasy is derivative of Tolkien. It's been done folks, and much better than you could ever do it in a re-hash, so let's move on, can't we? Phillip Pullman has created a simply *amazing* multi-layered fantasy world with truly original and wondrous elements: daemons; armored bears, the alethiometer, and much, much more. You can read it simply on its surface as a great story. If you've ever studied philosophy, religion, physics, etc., you can end up with a deeper, more eminently satisfying read. Of course, this is a fantasy novel which means you've got to be willing to suspend your disbelief, take some things on faith, use your imagination, and so on. I've read the negative (one-star) reviews of this book, and as far as I can tell, they were written by people who (a) have their own agenda and can't abide anyone disagreeing with their comfortable little world view; (b) lack the imagination, intelligence, or whatever to let go and enjoy the ride; or (c) haven't read the book at all and based their reviews on the reviews of others and/or of critics. Well, that says a lot, don't you think? Think for yourselves -- read the book for yourselves. The vast majority of you will be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: Addictive Candy With a Deep Bite
Review: Already much-acclaimed, this book needs very little introduction. It is Pullman's entrance into the big-times, an original tale in the vein of many popular old fantasy writers, particularly C.S. Lewis, but the story is uniquely and entirely his own. I was drawn completely in within the first few pages, given no chance to set it down for long. It begins simply enough, with an unruly girl, Lyra, and her daemon hiding in a closet to save her uncle, Lord Asriel, from poison and to spy on a meeting. Some very strange and exciting things are heard here, but afterward live goes back to normal in the streets of Oxford... until a mysterious and beautiful woman shows up to spirit Lyra away to London. Before she leaves, the Master of her college gifts her with an odd golden machine covered in symbols. In London she becomes enveloped by Mrs. Coulter's high society, until she overhears at a party information about the 'Gobblers', a mysterious gang, almost urban legend, allegedly behind the disappearance of poor children in cities. She realizes at once that she must escape and sneaks away, running through the city until a violent encounter with slavers leads her to meet up with a gyptian family she knew from home. They are willing to hide her away, having heard that she's wanted, and take her to a meeting of all gyptians. They are organizing an expedition to find their own missing children, and figure out that they must go north. At first Lyra isn't welcome, but she soon becomes indespensible when her machine turns out to be an alethiometer, able to tell past, present, and future to one who is attuned and knows how to interpret it. This proves useful when they need to recruit a bear for the expedition by finding his armor. Farther north, they are ambushed and Lyra captured and taken to the facility where the other children end up, soon making a horrifying discovery. She ends up finding a way to burn the building down after Mrs. Coulter arrives, and just as her expedition shows up to crash the party, then spirited away by balloon to a lonely isle where her Uncle Asriel, actually father, is exiled. A lot of cunning keeps her alive long enough to get to him, but not to stop him from opening a path to another world -- which she follows. This book never stops moving. That is probably the most addicting part of it; no matter where you stop, there's always something peeking right around the corner that makes you _have_ to come back just as quickly as possible. At the same time, it's too fast for a single sitting; you just have to take a breather here and there to let things settle in your mind. There are many fascinating threads here, tied together in a world very like our late-19th century England. Daemons that are almost a physical manefestation of the soul; armored bears who are barbaric knights; a gizmo that speaks knowledge; the Aurora with the strange city inside it; and the mysterious Dust that everyone is so interested in. Yet it is all handled deftly, with easy aplomb. Even the more fantastic events and items turn out to have believable and grounded histories. One of the strongest points is in how the story unfolds: Instead of long expositions explaining every detail, or completely skipping by them, the world emerges in bits and pieces in thoughts, memories, and dialogue. In large part the reader is left on her own to figure out what's going on and why, given hints and pushes; the reader feels whirled along following Lyra, barely a moment given to see into other people. And now for the next chapter Pullman is giving us an entirely new world to discover. The story quietly explores its spiritualism, often mentioning the Church and Mrs. Coulter's connection, but never really showing how it affects others except indirectly. To Coulter, is it simply a vehicle to power, or is it a deeper faith that coincides with her ambitions? Instead, it focuses on the idea of external spirits: Children whose daemons are malleable and chaotic, adults' that are more fixed and sturdy, and especially a daemon being a soul; just the idea of being without it is horrifying. Thus the plot twist is pretty easy to see. Witches can send their daemons much further than others, and they are thus more autonomous. Then you have the bears, whose armor is practically their soul; they can make more if they have to, unlike humans. And there are people seen without souls, some mentally enfeebled, some just... lifeless. So it becomes the subject of some philosophizing. Highly recommended to anyone with an imagination and sense of wonder. This is something that will be as fresh and wonderful every time you read, and I am doubly looking forward to the next installment.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best!
Review: I am a Harry Potter fan, and have been waiting for the fifth one for some time now. While I have been waiting, I have read lots of other fantasies. This one is the best, next to Harry Potter of course! I loved it, and begged my mom to order the next ones. I think it is one of the best fantasy novels you will get, because it introduces a whole new way of thinking, and gets your imagination going. It has wonderful action and excitement in it too. If you're looking for a great book, this is one of the best!
Rating:
Summary: The Golden Compass
Review: Twelve year-old Lyra lives in our world, yet Pullman's version has magic that is as grand as the cosmos. He leads you along the almost Dickensian decrepit rooftops and dark underground passages of Oxford, only to take you far, far away to the north where snow and light melt into worlds that can only be dreamed of in Oxford. Lyra and every other human in her world have daemons, creatures that take the forms of animals and are locked into their humans' souls from birth. But what happens when they are ripped away is almost unbearable to think about. Lyra follows the trail of Oxford's missing children to the laboratory hidden in the snows of the northern wastelands where her estranged mother experiments with a "dust" whose vast powers she would control. Pullman has created a story of such depth and complexity that you are lead on and on, deeper into terrifying trouble, along with the bold Lyra.
Rating: 
Summary: What a disappointment
Review: I BOUGHT this book about three months ago and I only just finished it. Why did it take me so long? Because it ....! The first chapter alone took me two and a half weeks to read because it was so boring! Not only was I lenient and decided to choke my way through the rest, but I didn't hack it to bits either! (And believe me, it deserved it.) My friend told be it was a good slab of fantasy. . . Harry Potter is much better. If you want GOOD fantasy, try LotR or Harry Potter. But don't waste your time, life, or money, on this horrible, useless excuse for a novel. (Wait, did I say useless? It's a good prop for the uneven leg on your table. Or if you need something to feed your fire at Christmas. Or, you can also use it if you can't go to sleep at night. Worked for me!) Needless to say, this book will find its way into the firewood my dad is chopping at our cabin this summer. I can hardly wait.
Rating:
Summary: NOT for Children!
Review: I would give this book the BEST rating there ever is, no doubt. And why oh why is it considered a CHILDREN'S book???!?!?!?!!?!? I will never understand...this book is deeper in terms of writing style, philosophical and moral issues that it raises than some of the so-called "inspiring" books meant for adults. No children will be able to appreciate this book in all its complexity. The magic, the characters, the plot and everything cannot be taken at surface value! Even though I adore Harry Potter :) I have to agree it surpasses JK Rowlings. I definitely recommend this book!! It's a masterpiece. None of the fantasy books I've read (and I've read a lot) can measure up to this series.
Rating:
Summary: Among the best
Review: "The Golden Compass" is the first of three books of the "His Dark Materials" combo. Pullman's first installment ranks with the best of them, and if you happen to have caught the Harry Potter bug (no matter your age) and want to explore a new series of masterfully written original bliss- this is your starting point.
Rating:
Summary: Terrific
Review: "The Golden Compass" is a definite five-star effort, and for any adult it should be well worth taking a trip to the children's section of your bookstore or library, where this masterpiece is often incorrectly located, to find a copy. The area where this book really stands out is imagination. No yawn-inducing clichés, no predictable plotting, no tired language. Instead we get armored polar bears who will fight honorably for the right price (or at least they're supposed to), animal daemons who represent a person's inner soul, and parallel universes that offer the possibility of world-changing discoveries. There are two things that are amazing about the story arc in this book. First is the enormous amount of material, including plotting, description, and characterization, that Pullman fits into just four hundred pages. Second is the way that the novel keeps morphing into a new form while still remaining a coherent piece of literature. It starts out as a mystery about the disappearance of groups of children from various cities in England. It then shifts to an adventure story as the girl named Lyra joins a rescue mission to the far North. Near the end it seems more like a philosophical novel, but don't worry, there's still an action-packed climax waiting in the final pages. Of course, no review of "The Golden Compass" could be complete without some mention of the subject matter. Pullman's stroke of genius is to take abstract concepts that the major western religions have always been centered around, such as the soul and sin, and give them physical form, and then portray how religious institutions might react to that. His book analysis of religion and philosophy from this angle is never dumbed-down, and he doesn't shy away from the implications of the events and concepts that he's created. Regardless of whether or not you agree with Pullman's worldview, you have to grant that he makes you think about these questions in a new light, which is more than can be said for most fantasy authors in either the 'children' or the 'adult' sections.
Rating:
Summary: There are no words.......
Review: This trilogy, His Dark Materials, is...there are no words. Surrealistic. The questions it poses and the questions it answers are beyond words. I cannot describe. Lyra, a girl growing up in Oxford, in a parallel world to our own, overhears a conversation while hiding in a wardrobe. Because of this thing, her life spirals out of her control, sending her to the north amongst armoured bears and into other worlds. In a world where a human is reflected in animal form, where children are stolen from their homes, where Dust rains from the sky, Lyra must make a choice. And the fates of thousands of worlds depend on that choice.
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