Rating: 
Summary: One Small Problem...
Review: The Amber Sypglass was one of the best books I have ever read. It was moving and gripping *EXCEPT FOR THE ENDING!*That was the biggest problem. The ending was stupid and sappy and totally unlike the rest of the book. That's why I took off a star.
Rating: 
Summary: A Brilliant Conclusion to His Dark Materials
Review: I have read a variety of fiction, and have never been drawn to read one author's books as I am compelled to read those by Philip Pullman. The Amber Spyglass is a riveting culmination to His Dark Materials trilogy. When I first encountered The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife, I was skeptical as to whether the third and final book in the trilogy would live up to the standards set by the previous two. Well, I should never have doubted Philip Pullman's ability to weave yet another incredible story with the outrageous characters encountered in The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife. Any lingering questions of motivation or origination are answered. Lyra knows that she has a destiny that must be fullfilled and she and Will attempt to find out what it is. With the Church still trying to frustrate their mission, Lyra and Will must gather their courage and make decisions that will impact their lives and the lives of others. Whom can you trust when both the Church and Lord Asriel are dispatching spies to track the children? Who is more powerful, Lord Asriel and his allied Angels, or the Church with the Authority and Metatron? The Amber Spyglass will keep you on the edge of your seat. The story incorporates aspects of betrayal, loyalty, friendship, hatred, and love. The Amber Spyglass is full throttle Philip Pullman at his best.
Rating: 
Summary: Betrays our trust in a talented writer's story
Review: Yuck. This was a very disappointing book. Pullman is a great writer with considerable talent, which makes this book all the more of a let down. I loved the first two and hoped the conclusion wouldn't degenerate into christian-bashing, but in the end it is mostly for atheists raising atheist children. Its shaky conceptual foundations are best described as a haphazard mix of greek mythology and plain-vanilla secular humanism. There are many, many logic gaps. The worst thing about this book is that it is for children. Adults can dismiss the nonsensical philosphical junk, but kids are more impressionable. After writing two stellar novels for children and garnering rave reviews, Pullman betrays the trust of all faith-based families with this third volume. I'm not a raving right-wing conservative, but this book offended me, and it could have a damaging effect on the faith of impressionable children. Not recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing!
Review: In this "wrap it up" novel, the author fails to maintain the sense of wonder and mystery he established so well in the first two books. The children no longer discover mysterious new dimensions and the major portion of the writing is given over to descriptions of action which is essentially boring. But it's worse than that: Pullman plays amateur theologian and pokes fun at aspects of Christianity of which he is apparently ignorant. The notion of a priest, for instance, who is granted absolution before his crime is ludricrous and may be funny to some non-Catholic adults but for young adults reading this book it may just seem absurd or worse, an indictment of religion altogether. Here is the betrayal of the book - that it essentially lured us in as a fantasy and then degenerated into philosophizing. This is not unlike the recent very poor work of Anne Rice - both authors seem attracted to picking apart religions and traditions which they know a little about, and undermining those traditions for the sake of their plotlines. It was more than disappointing - it was insulting, and I can no longer recommend any of the books in this trilogy since they have no authentic conclusion.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: I enjoyed this book. The continuing story of Lyra and Will was inspiring. The book started off slow, but it began to pick up speed about 100 pages in. I know thats alot, but if you read the first two, you have to know what happens. Trust me, its worth it. The tale is beautifully woven and completes the journey wonderfully. The end was sad, but also happy. You'll just have to read it to find out. I commend Pullman for his superb trilogy.
Rating: 
Summary: Some fine moments, but overdone and tendentious
Review: Each of the books in this series is weaker than its predecessor. "Spyglass" contains some deeply affecting sections -- notably the underworld journey and the tragic conclusion. However, the bulk of this volume is marred by too many cutesy creatures (the 'angels' and the eco-utopic mulefa, especially) who lack the complexity of the armored bears and, at least as originally presented, the witches. In this respect, the book resembles "Return of the Jedi." Finally, I found the gratuitous chapter (it added nothing to the plot) caricaturing the Russian Orthodox priest deeply offensive. ....
Rating:
Summary: totally different from the others, but better
Review: I read the first two books when I was eight and ten (i'm 13 now), but even accounting for the age difference I got more out of this book than any book in this series, and maybe any in the whole world. The librarian at my school asked me if I thought that she could reccomend this, because she had thought that it was slightly disturbing. I wholeheartedly endorsed it, but for older children than the first two. My copy is full of sticky notes on the pages that really affected me, especially about Dr. Mary. Mrs. Coulter, whose character is portrayed totally differently but brilliantly, makes the speech that impacted me most about God, and I had it memorized right after I read it. This book has the same excellence of the others but pushes the envelope with its ideas in a way that i didn't think was possible.
Rating:
Summary: What a cop-out!!
Review: I truly loved the first two books in this series and also was quite taken with this one until the last few chapters. Pullman then seemed to completely switch books. Some of the most interesting characters completely changed personalities with no apparent motivation or explanation. It was as if he couldn't figure out how to resolve all the various ideas, so he just took the easiest possible way out and quit writing. Perhaps he was getting pressure from his publisher to hurry it up. If he couldn't figure out a reasonable denoument, I would much rather he have continued the story into a fourth volume than wrap it up the way he did. I doubt I'll be buying any more of his books.
Rating:
Summary: A Fantastic Conclusion To A Mesmerizing Trilogy
Review: I honestly can't remember a book that I've savored literally chapter by chapter. Not wanting this triumphant trilogy to come to a close, I'd only allow myself one chapter in the morning when I woke up and one before I went to bed. Having just completed it I feel like my head has just expanded. Pullman continues through the worlds we've come to know with Will and Lyra and takes us to some new and wildly original ones such as the world of the dead, and the village of the mulefa.(Don't ask. The beauty in this is his desciptions of both.) Already I've bought the first book, "The Golden Compass" for friends of mine so I'll have someone else to talk with about this. The books have gotten stronger each time out, and this one is the tops. I also appreciated that Pullman has plenty of opportunity to dip into sentimentality, but chooses instead to write with careful restraint; the result being a moving and perfect ending.
Rating:
Summary: Gut wrenchingly wonderful
Review: First of all, DON'T read this book if you haven't read the first two. Secondly, DON'T read it if you can't handle emotion. This book, though it may have plot holes, is poignant and moving, and I thouroughly reccomend it. Today, I fell asleep in Math class because I was up until four in the morning crying over the end. You will love it if you've loved other Pullman works, especially the Sally Lockheart trilogy. Just expect many, many surprises.
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