Rating: 
Summary: A Magnificent Story with only a few minor glitches
Review: Philip Pullman almost does it again with this mostly marvelous final volume of his Dark Materials series. The issues portrayed are more adult than in the first two books. Will and Lyra, just on the verge of growing up, discover what it means to be truly in love. The author follows Lyra's private feelings more than Will's, who is more focused on the quest than on the girl until it is finally fulfilled.The same adventure and suspense pervades throughout much of the story, with descriptive detail that absorbs the reader from the start. There is also a certain "Harry Potter" type feel to the book where all the puzzles and wonderings of the major characters are tied up in the last few pages where Will and Lyra fall in love. I believe the author could have done a somewhat better job of this, especially where scholar Mary Malone is fated to play the biblical 'serpent' figure. It is not exactly clear how Lyra is tempted by her to do the wrong thing; she merely packs an apple in Will and Lyra's lunch which acts as the trigger for love. I also believe the end of the story may be a bit saddening for children...this book does not have a happy ending at all, but rather one that leaves the reader thinking and the children shouldering more responsibility than is realistic for people of their age to handle. But these are minor points...the book is well worth the price for the suspense and action of many scenes...the quest in the world of the dead, Lyra's rescue attempt, and the scholar Mary's stay with the wheeled elephant-like mulefa creatures all make this book an excellent read!
Rating: 
Summary: Phillip Pullman does it again (WARNING! SPOILERS!)
Review: First let me start off by saying that this book, in my opinion, is the best in the series. Some reviews below will say this is not as good as the first two, becuase it is lacking action. This is wrong. The book is filled with it- but it's filled with a lot more. The Amber Spyglass is filled with emotion. And while there wasn't a lack of emotion in the first two, it had nothing like this one. Mr. Pullman descibes everything in such detail that you can feel everything going on: when Lyra abandons Pan on the shores of the Land Of The Dead, you can feel it. I cried several times while reading this book, especially at the ending, and you will too. Early in the book I suspected that Will and Lyra were in love, and I'm sure many of you suspected that in the Subtle Knife. This turns out to be true. After Dr. Malone tells Lyra and Will a story about when she was their age and in love, Lyra feels that she had been given the key to a dark house and all the lights went on. When the love surfaces, it is so passionate and so pure. Then Lyra and Will learn they have to be sepparated for the rest of their lives. I'm not going to tell you anything else, partly becuase, like the Golden Compass, the plot is so complex it is hard to describe, and partly becuase I don't want to give away too much. But I will say this is easily the best book of the series and if you even enjoyed the first two a little bit you have to read this one.
Rating:
Summary: Talk About A GREAT Book!!!
Review: This was THE best book I have ever read! I have read some of the other reviews where people wrote that it is against Christianity, but wouldn't you have stopped reading by NOW!!! I do think that it is a very sad book though, and I DEFINETLY do not recomend it to a younger reader (9 and below) for a few reasons: 1) This is a pretty gory book 2) Some of the vocabulary is pretty advanced 3) Some of the scenes would not be appropriate 4) And I doubt a kid would even understand it An astoundingly good book!
Rating:
Summary: Trevor
Review: I thought it was a great book, sad but good. I cried for about ten minutes at the part where Lyra and Will had to leave their Dæmons behind on the jetty in order to enter the wold of the dead! But I particularly like the last few Chapters like when the Dust starts falling sraight into the wheel pod flowers. But I Would recommend that anybody who is reading it read the first and second book before they launch into this one.
Rating:
Summary: My Two Cents
Review: First of all, don't read this book unless you've read the first two in the trilogy. You'll be lost. If you have, however, read the first two, then I see no reason why you shouldn't enjoy this last installment of His Dark Materials. I'm not going to go into details here and pick the novel apart, but there are a few general notes that I'd like to make for those wondering whether or not to read the series in the first place. Obviously, given my five star rating, I think that you should READ IT. A few provisos, though, especially for parents wondering if this is appropriate for their kids. If you're the type of person who thinks that Harry Potter should be banned because the books promote witchcraft, DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK. If, however, you're a freethinking soul who isn't afraid of letting your kids do their own thinking, then by all means, BUY. Pullman's book is wonderfully imaginative, full of magical lands and creatures. It's very thematically adult, though, and weighs heavily on the heart and mind. If you're a fan of fantasy, if you enjoy LLoyd Alexander or C.S. Lewis, then you're in for a treat. A recommended read for both adults and children.
Rating:
Summary: Wonerful Conclusion
Review: This story is amazing. I couldn't put it down. While some say it doesn't have the action and suspense of the first two; I was certainly kept on the edge of my seat. From the dying off of the huge trees that give the mulefla their way of life, to the tiny Gallivespians who help Lyra and Will on their quest to free the dead, to the end of the Authority, this book is always giving you something to wonder about.
Rating:
Summary: A Book That Will Amaze You
Review: This is a great book by a great author. It is a book that will take the reader on an adventure through different worlds. You will see things in your imagination which you have never seen before. The two main caracters are two children, one named Will and the other named Lyra. I would not like to be one of them at all. They have to leave their own daemons. Daemons are their souls that become different animals; they finally take a form that they will stick with forever. Imagine leaving your own soul. They go through the world of the dead where Lyra meets her own friend and where Will's father is. Their job is to free the dead from the horrible world. They also are in a war with Lord Asreal's side. Asreal and his side is trying to kill God who is not nice. You will love the book.
Rating:
Summary: A Compelling Addition to "His Dark Materials"
Review: The Amber Spyglass, was a fantastic end to the Dark Materials trilogy, and definitely the better of the three. It was compelling, intriguing, amazing, happy, and sad all at once. The end leaves you with tears in your eyes and wishing for more, as do many parts of the book. Will and Lyra are on a series a missions which all involve learning a little more about themselves, and having to let go something that they love very dearly.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!!
Review: This book closes the His Dark Materials Trilogy with a bang! The action in the final battle of The Authority's forces is thrilling. Some people state that the name of this book is misleeding, but the amber spyglass is just as instrumental to stop the evil as any of the other magical instruments in the series. Mary Malone also has a great contribution, for if she didn't tell Will and Lyra stories of her life, they probably would never have fallen in love and stopped the flood of Dust leaving the world. Mary plays a subtle serpent, but a very effective serpent nonetheless. Kudos to Pullman!!
Rating:
Summary: Anti-Christian? Pah!
Review: Pullman has written a beautiful novel, his meticulous editor must also be worth a mention, and I read the whole thing in two sessions interrupted only by work. Reading is always a pleasure but a finely crafted piece like this is a special treat. Pullman summarises his work ethic as "Read like a butterfly, write like a bee." It is easy to see that this novel must have required a lot of both types of insect behaviour. My 12 year old daughter, for whom I bought it ;-) loved it and considers the series among her favourites, well up with Harry Potter and William Horwood's Duncton novels. I note with dismay that a significant number of reviewers marked this book down because of the theme, which does not support their Judeo-Christian viewpoint. Sad really; the Koran doesn't get criticised for differing from someone else's views. I suggest that, unless you are unable to tolerate alternative viewpoints, this is a great work, with a very positive message, well up to Pullman's usual extraordinary standard and you will consider it well worth the price of purchase. This is not a religious novel so don't read it as such. A word to those who have not read the preceding volumes; buy all three now, read them one after the other. This is a story in three volumes and deserves to be read as such. I wish there had been books like this when I was a child.
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