This is going to sound a little embarrassing but when I was younger, maybe twelve or thirteen years old, perhaps younger, I was reading an article that featured Emma Watson. She discussed books that she loved reading at the time and I jumped at the chance to read something similar to an actress I loved. One of the books she recommended was The Golden Compass (Northern Lights outside of the US) by Philip Pullman. I knew I wanted to be like her so, the next time my mother took me to Barnes and Noble, I got a copy. My life was changed – literally.
I fell in love with Pullman’s universe and with Lyra, the center of it all. Sure, she was a little brash and rambunctious, but she was also bold, resourceful, and unafraid, things I struggled with (and still do). The Golden Compass, and its sequels The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass, became and remain to this day some of my favorite books ever.
I have read the trilogy multiple times over and I have even written about them for papers in college (mostly in undergrad but I did reference them in a grad school paper). They have become integral to my life and to who I am as a person. I can honestly say that a lot of my values were bolstered by reading this trilogy: how I view and respect humanity and how I treat animals.
The books can make me laugh, fume, sob (like a baby) still to this day, even after multiple rereads. I will never not love the books. As I said above, they have become integral to who I am as a person and how I view the world.
I have not yet read the sequel trilogy, The Book of Dust, for multiple reasons. One, I am hesitant because I know that a lot of the headcannons I have built up for after the original trilogy will be challenged. Two, I wanted to wait until the final book was out before starting them and just haven’t been able to pick them up since (I own them all already though). And three, I am worried that they will not be as wonderful as the original trilogy. I know Pullman is a fantastic writer, but we all know a case where a sequel doesn’t live up to the original. Still, I plan to read the entire series next year, including both trilogies and all of the other books that take place in that universe.
I know there is a lot of religious discourse around the books and their themes and I will not address it here as I am not versed enough on all sides. It has sparked a fair amount of condemnation so I understand that the series is not for everyone and that is okay.
But if you love fantasy, animals, and strong female characters, this is definitely a series to check out.
Have you read the series? What are your thoughts?
xTheBookWench
PS: If you have read the series but have not seen the HBO show check. it. out. It is so so good!
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