The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, Book 1) (1995)

Initial Review: Intrigued me until the end, but with how child abuse and the religious themes in this book, I'm wary of continuing the series.

Thoughts Thirteen Years Later:

I never did read more. Coming-of-age stories of a frequently deceptive orphan Chosen One who travels with the help of a humanlike animal to save the world from spiritual ruin are deeply steeped in religious culture, making the claims that this is an "anti-religious" book confusing. Isn't this a fairy tale told from a religious viewpoint? A new mix of mythology?

I've read that the series was meant to be subversive and anti-religious. That doesn't align with my interpretation of the story, which read as no more subversive than reviving fantasies from 19th Century Christian writers would be today, at least in the USA where any story featuring magic and witches can inspire political protests. Pullman's use of tropes didn't feel as original to me as perhaps they would have if I had read the book in childhood; although, I doubt I would have wanted to read about the story's conversion camps then. The story felt oblivious to its real-life equivalents, as if the dangers are only fantasy, and that's incredibly frustrating.

The way Pullman fictionalized marginalized peoples who have in real-life been forcibly Christianized without addressing that history rubs me the wrong way, too. The polar bears (a mix of RL animals that are dying off with Native stereotypes) and Romagyptians are all just there to help the child of wealthy nobles from the dominant religious order bring holy power back into the world. (I feel that was better handled in the TV show The Mysterious Cities of Gold.)

Maybe one day I'll reread and better appreciate THE GOLDEN COMPASS by trying to read it either as a horror story or a Unitarian fantasy. For now, I'll continue looking for books I can enjoy with my child. ( )

This book was so fun and I don't know why it's taken me this long to start this series! ( )

Date approximate ( )

This was my second reading of this novel and I bumped my rating from 3 to 4 stars, because even though I knew the story and the ending, I found myself not wanting to put the book down. I also enjoyed Lyra even more then I remember! She a spunky, tenacious hero! ( )

I originally read this back in the 90s, sometime after the second book came out but before the third. I remember enjoying it at the time, but for whatever reason I never got around to reading the rest of the trilogy. As part of my goal to finish more series that I started but never finished, I decided this would be the next trilogy/series I tackled.

The Golden Compass definitely holds up. I didn’t remember too much – just the broad strokes of the plot and characters – but what I found welcome about it is that it’s the rare young adult book where the main character behaves like a kid, but she’s also smart and capable in a way specific to children. Lyra Belacqua never feels like a little adult trapped in a child’s body, and the book is all the better for it.

Pullman also has a way with words and a fascination with headier philosophical matters that weave throughout the story without ever overwhelming the plot.

This is a book for kids with stakes that feel real and dangerous and occasionally horrifying. The villains are truly villainous, and the book doesn’t pull any punches. I started reading the second book the day after I finished the first, so I’m already doing better than I did oh those many years ago. ( )