Customer Reviews
A far cry from Harry Potter. Children's book? Hah! 
2008-05-13
Of course, I have never read Harry Potter. So basing my comparison with the first 3 movies of HP, I would say that this goes beyond the Harry Potter genre. Everybody reads Harry Potter, right? But His Dark Materials is not for everyone. To label this as a children's book is a grieve mistake for I am sure the little ones will miss the central message of the author. But as for adventure, it is non-stop and most people from all ages will absolutely enjoy it.
After watching the movie, "The Golden Compass" my sister bought the set. The movie had instilled an interest in me. The bear fight scene "Bears! Who is your King?" cheesed me out, which made me realize how OLD I am. So thinking that the book is targeted towards children, it took me a while to pick this up and finally after 4 months, I continued on with Lyra's adventure. But when I did, my whole week is automatically committed. For five days, my sister saw me flipping book after book after book.
THE GOLDEN COMPASS: I decided that I would start from the beginning. It is a general agreement that the book is always better than the movie, no? Except this time, I think the movie handled some of the scenes in the book much better. The movie moved and switched some of the scenes around but it still worked. Book fans bashed the movie because it left a big chunk of the book's ending. I wouldn't worry about it though because if they included the real ending, then it'll be much more of an excruciating cliff hanger. I don't think I could wait 3 more years to see next sequel. Still, several scenes has been skipped - important scenes and that's why in retrospect, the book is still better. But to put the movie in a better light, when I imagine the daemons and dust and those flying machines, I could refer back to the movie. Nicole Kidman is the perfect Mrs. Coultier! So in essence, the movie gives us a small peek of what goes on inside Philip Pullman's head.
THE AMBER SPYGLASS: Since I've watched the movie, the first book was not as exciting as the second one. The Amber Spyglass made me stay up the whole night. Lyra's new friend and another main character, Will, started off as an annoying character but proved to be as courageous, as smart, as likeable (if not more likeable) as Lyra. Looking back, this book was so jam-packed and I felt like I flew through the pages so quickly.
THE SUBTLE KNIFE: Finally, I think the series' tandem faltered a tiny bit in this last installment of Pullman's epic adventure. After building up so much intrigue and mystery, I was disappointed at the sloppy ending. He easily convinced me of the existence of the imaginary worlds he created but the most human and normal twist in the story fell out flat and forced. For twelve year olds, okay...sure, it's possible...but why can't I believe it? Well, I'm not spoiling anything.
Albeit the weak ending, this series will definitely one of those books I'll keep recommending throughout my lifetime.
His Dark Materials 
2008-05-10
I picked up these books out of morbid fascination after seeing the movie and hearing a coworker talk about the book. I borrowed the first one from her and found my self intrigued so I bought the series and waited anxiously for the post man to deliver it. I found that I love these books! They are together a great work of fiction. They carried me to worlds I had never imagined through perils I would never have known. The characters are engraved in my heart. Each cut and bump and soul wrenching tear made me love them all the more. I wanted so badly for true love to win and triumph over evil and In the end I could barley see through my tears and with no truly happy ending in sight I love these books all the more.
His dark materials trilogy Phillip Pullman 2008-05-08
Excellent trilogy. Once you start reading it you will not want to put them down.
Great books in one place 2008-05-07
The best part of this book is that it is actually all of Pullman's Dark Materials in one book. It is definitely cheaper than buying all the books separately.
Adapted as a screenplay in late 2007, The Golden Compass follows Lyra through her world of Oxford and beyond as she goes on a mission to rescue her friend Roger and the other children of the country (what would be England) suddenly start disappearing by the Gobbers. Along the way, she meets and collects a collage of supporters, from families of gypsies, an armored polar bear, and an aeronaut. Their mission is to save the children and find out what is really happening to them. The book, expectedly, explains more than what the movie actually shows, including reasoning for certain events and actions, as well as scenes that never made it to the movie.
The Subtle Knife starts in England, with Will finding an entrance to another world. In that new world, he encounters Lyra, and a knife that can cut through anything, including air space to make new openings to new worlds.
The Amber Spyglass deals with the upcoming war between two sides over science and religion. It also describes the conflicts that Lyra must face, including fulfilling the prophecy and saving the universe and all the parallel worlds, including Lyra's and Will's.
Personally, I didn't like the ending of the Amber Spyglass, but the books are a must read if you have lots of time to spare. Settle down for a long weekend. If you wait too long between readings, you can easily forget what happened when you last read. The suspense will keep you going until the last pages.
Good lure, strange logic 
2008-05-04
If you're only interested in the 'story' aspect of fiction, go for it. Be aware that the premise beneath, is Material Atheism. His style is not as fluid as Rowling, but it's a good story. The logic that only those things we can prove to exist, actually exist, though... Well if that's the case, the world really was flat before Galileo. For those who believe in the big bang, and believe it's proven by science... well, all the necessary elements for the creation of a sand castle are present in hurricanes. Funny, I've never gone to the beach and found that in the winds of nature a castle was set into place, not even after Hurricane Andrew. If you sit on the beach and throw sand in the air, how long do you think it will take to form a perfectly working castle? Hmm... might take you more than time to prove that theory. Guess Material Atheists aren't that scientific after all.
The following is from an interview of Pullman. "Those who are committed materialists (as I claim to be myself) have to account for the existence of consciousness, or else, like the behaviourists such as Watson and Skinner, deny that it exists at all."(Phillip Pullman, in an interview. [...]By the way, shouldn't a writer correct their spelling before putting something into print? "behaviourists" was his own misspelling; I copied and pasted this quote. I'm not a perfect speller, but I watch for red dots or squiggles beneath my words; even "gmail" warns of errors now.
A fine feast for fantasy lovers 2008-05-02
In the epic trilogy His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman unlocks the door to worlds parallel to our own. Dæmons and winged creatures live side by side with humans, and a mysterious entity called Dust just might have the power to unite the universes--if it isn't destroyed first. The three books in Pullman's heroic fantasy series, published as mass-market paperbacks with new covers, are united here in one boxed set that includes
The Golden Compass,
The Subtle Knife, and
The Amber Spyglass. Join Lyra, Pantalaimon, Will, and the rest as they embark on the most breathtaking, heartbreaking adventure of their lives. The fate of the universe is in their hands. (Ages 13 and older)
Loved it! 2008-05-02
The story is imaginative and brilliant. The author combines a child's deepest feeling about friendship and closeness into an adventure tale. Absolutely magical and a great read for children and adults with imaginations. Don't miss these tales. They will become classics.
Not Impressed - There are better writer's out there 
2008-05-02
After finishing all of the His Dark Materials trilogy, I have to say that I was not impressed with Pullman's writing style. As an Adult reader, I felt that there was quite a bit lacking in terms of scenery and in terms of characterization, and there were so many parts that droned on and on. And yet, at the end of all three books, there was a sense of a hurriedness that made the books feel really incomplete, especially in the first book (which was the best out of all of them). While the book was not bad enough for me to give up reading on it, I really abhorred the non-climactic ending of the trilogy. I am too spoiled by Tolkien's Hobbit and C.S. Lewis Narnia.
As for children though, I would say they will probably eat it up and it's a good book for them to read if you don't mind the Anti-Church themes that begin to permeate around the middle of the first book. This hate for the dogmatism of religion culminates in the end of the third book as "'Christianity is a powerful and convincing mistake...'" which I am quoting directly from the Amber Spyglass. So parents beware if words like these frighten you. I am Christian myself, and was not offended because I see what Pullman is REALLY attacking, and it is religious zealots, but children may not be wise enough to understand.
I will not be picking up anything by Pullman again because he simply bores me after a while.
depends on your taste in books 2008-05-01
We've bought this trilogy from our 12 y/o son's Christmas wish list. He is Harry Potter fan and LOVED these books. He rereading it over and over and still finds the stories entertaining. As far as a parent's concern - great buy!
A good read. 2008-04-27
An exciting tale with great imagination and characters. NOT for younger children because of violence and religious topics.
