For the Love of God, DON'T LET YOUR KIDS READ!!!
Well, I predicted this would happen...
I was having a conversation recently about Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, and the upcoming movie The Golden Compass based on the first book. The person I was talking to noted that the books hadn't generated much controversy. My reply was that the protests would start in earnest when the movie came out, because after all, the people who would be inclined to protest this work would be unlikely to discover it by reading.
Sure enough, the movie is about to be released, and it's front page news in the Houston Chronicle this morning. The article notes that many groups have come out against the movie, not so much because of the content of the movie, but because it might prompt the little ones to want to read the books.
The library at the Annunciation Orthodox School in Montrose has removed it's copies of The Golden Compass, which has been on the school's recommended reading list for ten years.
I, like Mr. Pullman, am an agnostic. Some of the protesters have described him as an atheist, but since they don't read they can't be expected to know the difference. Anyhow, I believe the underlying theme of the series is not at all against religious belief-there are religious elements and symbolism, and there is certainly no attempt to deny the existence of god.
The irony here is that the series goes up against the tendency of organized religions to try to control access to information.
And no doubt Mr. Pullman is saying to the people wanting to keep kids from reading, "Thank you for helping me make my point."
I was having a conversation recently about Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, and the upcoming movie The Golden Compass based on the first book. The person I was talking to noted that the books hadn't generated much controversy. My reply was that the protests would start in earnest when the movie came out, because after all, the people who would be inclined to protest this work would be unlikely to discover it by reading.
Sure enough, the movie is about to be released, and it's front page news in the Houston Chronicle this morning. The article notes that many groups have come out against the movie, not so much because of the content of the movie, but because it might prompt the little ones to want to read the books.
The library at the Annunciation Orthodox School in Montrose has removed it's copies of The Golden Compass, which has been on the school's recommended reading list for ten years.
I, like Mr. Pullman, am an agnostic. Some of the protesters have described him as an atheist, but since they don't read they can't be expected to know the difference. Anyhow, I believe the underlying theme of the series is not at all against religious belief-there are religious elements and symbolism, and there is certainly no attempt to deny the existence of god.
The irony here is that the series goes up against the tendency of organized religions to try to control access to information.
And no doubt Mr. Pullman is saying to the people wanting to keep kids from reading, "Thank you for helping me make my point."