The Amber Spyglass - Philip Pullman
"Lyra and Will, the two ordinary children whose extraordinary adventures began in The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife, are in unspeakable danger. With help from Iorek Byrnison the armored bear and two tiny Gallivespian spies, they must journey to a dank and gray-lit world where no living soul has ever gone.
All the while, Dr. Mary Malone builds a magnificent amber spyglass. An assassin hunts her down. And Lord Asriel, with troops of shining angels, fights his mighty rebellion, a battle of strange allies - and shocking sacrifice.
As war rages and Dust drains from the sky, the fate of the living - and the dead - finally comes to depend on two children and the simple truth of one simple story. The Amber Spyglass reveals that story, bringing Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials to an astonishing conclusion."
** Warning: This post will contain spoilers. Do not read if you don't want to know how it all ends. **
So the trilogy ends, and kudos to Pullman for not making it too predictable. Throughout the first two books, you're set up to anticipate a two-sided battle, in which Lyra has to choose a side. There is a certain element of that, but that ultimately isn't all there is to it, and things are much more complicated.
I was really impressed with the pacing, especially in the second half of the book. It seemed like the kids would just managed to get out of one scrape, and then all of a sudden have a new terrible danger to contend with. Putting the book down during the second half of it, while not quite impossible, was not something I was particularly thrilled about having to do periodically, either.
I'll admit that I didn't much care for the ending. The romantic in me likes things to end on happier notes. Having them fall in love and then have to part forever? Don't like that at all. Now, the cynic in me points out that there's barely teenagers yet, and the odds of them staying in love forever, even if they got to stay together, are rather slim, but the romantic in me overrules, and says they should at least get the chance. So it's really sad that they don't.
Great temptation, though. When the prophecy was first revealed, that Lyra would be faced with a temptation and would likely fall, I of course started pondering what that temptation might turn out to be. I hadn't guessed that it would be that sad. What's interesting, though, is that Pullman never comes right out and says something like "And thus, Lyra resisted temptation and saved the universe." He leaves it to the reader to conclude that that was the temptation. And considering the impact on the universe of her choice, you almost can't blame the church that sends an assassin after her to prevent her from making that choice. On the other hand, Pullman may have intended the temptation in question to actually be the falling in love with Will in the first place, which would kind of make more sense in the context of the setup and various other things that were mentioned, but I think the parting was a much better and stronger one.
Ultimately, though, a great little series, although I can understand why some churches take issue with it. Sort of. The funny thing is, there's definitely much for the church to be offended by, but most church people who are offended by it haven't actually read the whole thing, and are mainly concerned with the fact that it's full of daemons. In case I already addressed this when I read The Subtle Knife, I'll be brief. I just think it's hilarious that the daemons, which are closer to souls than anything else, and are certainly not little cloven-hoofed, fork-tongued devils, are what has so many people's panties in a knot, considering how much more there is to be upset by in these books. God dies, for heaven's sake. After suffering the indignity of being old and decrepit.
And just one more thing. Metatron? Honestly, Mr. Pullman, you named the head angel Metatron, of all things? I couldn't take him seriously. I kept picturing him as a Transformer. Metatron?!? OK, I'm done.
Bible update: I've finally finished 2 Chronicles, and let me tell you, the last several books have been extraordinarily dull. "A became king and ruled for X years. He did good and followed the ways of the Lord. Here are a few things that happened to him. Eventually he died, and his son B became king. B became king and ruled for Y years. He did evil and did not follow the Lord. Here are a few things that happened to him. Eventually he died, and his son C became king. C became king and ruled for Z years. He did good and followed the ways of the Lord..." and so on and so on, ad nauseum. I've pretty much summarized the whole thing for you. It's ridiculous. I did find myself wondering, though, how the people felt about their kings alternately tearing down their "heathen" idols and whatnot and then rebuilding them a few years later. So much labour and supplies went into all this over the years. It's ridiculous. The other thing that's ridiculous is the sheer numbers of livestock that were slaughtered just for sacrifice. Most of that doesn't get eaten; it's just gets burned. And I can't help thinking what a horrifying waste that was. But that's me, and I still can't get over this incredibly insecure god who needs reminding of how incredibly amazing he is at all times, or he throws a hissy fit. Ooh, how's that for blasphemy? Anyway. Carrying on.
Next up: Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy
All the while, Dr. Mary Malone builds a magnificent amber spyglass. An assassin hunts her down. And Lord Asriel, with troops of shining angels, fights his mighty rebellion, a battle of strange allies - and shocking sacrifice.
As war rages and Dust drains from the sky, the fate of the living - and the dead - finally comes to depend on two children and the simple truth of one simple story. The Amber Spyglass reveals that story, bringing Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials to an astonishing conclusion."
** Warning: This post will contain spoilers. Do not read if you don't want to know how it all ends. **
So the trilogy ends, and kudos to Pullman for not making it too predictable. Throughout the first two books, you're set up to anticipate a two-sided battle, in which Lyra has to choose a side. There is a certain element of that, but that ultimately isn't all there is to it, and things are much more complicated.
I was really impressed with the pacing, especially in the second half of the book. It seemed like the kids would just managed to get out of one scrape, and then all of a sudden have a new terrible danger to contend with. Putting the book down during the second half of it, while not quite impossible, was not something I was particularly thrilled about having to do periodically, either.
I'll admit that I didn't much care for the ending. The romantic in me likes things to end on happier notes. Having them fall in love and then have to part forever? Don't like that at all. Now, the cynic in me points out that there's barely teenagers yet, and the odds of them staying in love forever, even if they got to stay together, are rather slim, but the romantic in me overrules, and says they should at least get the chance. So it's really sad that they don't.
Great temptation, though. When the prophecy was first revealed, that Lyra would be faced with a temptation and would likely fall, I of course started pondering what that temptation might turn out to be. I hadn't guessed that it would be that sad. What's interesting, though, is that Pullman never comes right out and says something like "And thus, Lyra resisted temptation and saved the universe." He leaves it to the reader to conclude that that was the temptation. And considering the impact on the universe of her choice, you almost can't blame the church that sends an assassin after her to prevent her from making that choice. On the other hand, Pullman may have intended the temptation in question to actually be the falling in love with Will in the first place, which would kind of make more sense in the context of the setup and various other things that were mentioned, but I think the parting was a much better and stronger one.
Ultimately, though, a great little series, although I can understand why some churches take issue with it. Sort of. The funny thing is, there's definitely much for the church to be offended by, but most church people who are offended by it haven't actually read the whole thing, and are mainly concerned with the fact that it's full of daemons. In case I already addressed this when I read The Subtle Knife, I'll be brief. I just think it's hilarious that the daemons, which are closer to souls than anything else, and are certainly not little cloven-hoofed, fork-tongued devils, are what has so many people's panties in a knot, considering how much more there is to be upset by in these books. God dies, for heaven's sake. After suffering the indignity of being old and decrepit.
And just one more thing. Metatron? Honestly, Mr. Pullman, you named the head angel Metatron, of all things? I couldn't take him seriously. I kept picturing him as a Transformer. Metatron?!? OK, I'm done.
Bible update: I've finally finished 2 Chronicles, and let me tell you, the last several books have been extraordinarily dull. "A became king and ruled for X years. He did good and followed the ways of the Lord. Here are a few things that happened to him. Eventually he died, and his son B became king. B became king and ruled for Y years. He did evil and did not follow the Lord. Here are a few things that happened to him. Eventually he died, and his son C became king. C became king and ruled for Z years. He did good and followed the ways of the Lord..." and so on and so on, ad nauseum. I've pretty much summarized the whole thing for you. It's ridiculous. I did find myself wondering, though, how the people felt about their kings alternately tearing down their "heathen" idols and whatnot and then rebuilding them a few years later. So much labour and supplies went into all this over the years. It's ridiculous. The other thing that's ridiculous is the sheer numbers of livestock that were slaughtered just for sacrifice. Most of that doesn't get eaten; it's just gets burned. And I can't help thinking what a horrifying waste that was. But that's me, and I still can't get over this incredibly insecure god who needs reminding of how incredibly amazing he is at all times, or he throws a hissy fit. Ooh, how's that for blasphemy? Anyway. Carrying on.
Next up: Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy