there was a movie called the golden compass; a few years back i liked a lot, kind of didnt do well enough to get the sequels but i was wondering if the books were worth a read?
Absolutely! The movie barely scratched the surface. The books contain much more detail, and are a good read.
Indeed! I also enjoyed this series very much. Many religious themes that were left out of that movie (or at least taken down a few notches). In many ways it’s very similar to The Chronicles of Narnia.
cool off to audible feels like a good commute book.
I loved the first book, liked the second and didn’t care much for the third as the politics of atheism goes beyond the pale. Its okay to have a message as long as you don’t beat the reader over the head with it.
So if I like atheism, I might like it, then? Definitely a series I intend to check out soon. The movie didn’t do much for me, but as I understand it the film didn’t do the greatest job of bringing the words to screen.
Phillip Pullman is a gifted writer and thinker. His opinions on atheism make for interesting writing. The Dark Materials saga seems to be intending to be categorized as the anti-Narnia. In the first two books you can see his views on atheism very clearly, depicting God as a lazy petty loathsome being whose followers are hell-bent (pun intended) on controlling everything. This is before we even get to the Amber Spyglass. Once there, his declaration of war on God (literally) gets very messy and affects how we look at the characters. Pullman makes the critical mistake of putting his message before his characters, making for one of the most disappointing endings of a trilogy since The Matrix Revolutions.
But again, this is my opinion. You might not be as disappointed and if so then I will be glad.
I love the first two books but I agree with Moviedude Amber Spy Glass was a tough sell. The ending to this day makes me cry like a baby while at the same time wanting to hurt something. I will say there aren’t alot of books that can affect me that deep.
wow ok that’s quite a testimonial, for good or ill. I was raised catholic, but the atheist perspective is perfectly valid and doesn’t put me off things. my interest is officially peaked.
finished the first one, (golden compass) it was quite good; so good i bought it for my nephew for Christmas. shh… don’t tell anyone…
Oh, I love this series. Weirdly enough, it’s one of the ones I like to read around Christmas 
Maybe it’s the polar bears in the first one… dunno. The athiesm bit never bothered me–I don’t mind the allegory in the Narnia books, and I think it’s fascinating to see allegory from other points of views. Bonus points if it’s done with talking animals and interdimensional travel.
I found out that my local Borders has a copy of Lyra’s Oxford. YAY! Guess what I’m spending my inevitable gift cards on this year?
well my nephew took one look at the book said the obligatory thanks and started to put together Anakin’s Lego Y-wing. Well i don’t blame hopefully he’ll get into it later.