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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
The Evangelicals I grew up with were more concerned about this series than Harry Potter, so this is my first time in Lyra's world! I'm enamored with: the concept of having a dæmon, Lyra's relationship with Iorek Byrnison, and the way science and religion are so intertwined. I don't actually like Lyra all that much, but younger Kami wouldn't have been able to stop thinking about Adam and Eve being like the square root of minus one.
• • •
"Seems to me a man should have a choice whether to take up arms or not."
"We have no more choice in that than in whether or not to be born."
"Oh, I like choices, though," he said. "I like choosing the jobs I take and the places I go and the food I eat and the companions I sit and yarn with. Don't you wish for a choice once in a while?"
Serafina Pekkala considered, and then said, "Perhaps we don't mean the same thing by choice, Mr. Scoresby. Witches own nothing, so we're not interested in preserving value or making profits, and as for the choice between one thing and another, when you live for many hundreds of years you know that every opportunity will come again. We have different needs. You have to repair your balloon and keep it in good condition, and that takes time and trouble, I see that; but for us to fly, all we have to do is tear off a branch of cloud-pine; any will do, and there are plenty more. We don't feel cold, so we need no warm clothes. We have no means of exchange apart from mutual aid. If a witch needs something, another witch will give it to her. If there is a war to be fought, we don't consider cost one of the factors in deciding whether or not it is right to fight. Nor do we have any notion of honor, as bears do, for instance. An insult to a bear is a deadly thing. To us . . . inconceivable. How could you insult a witch? What would it matter if you did?"
"D'you want me to ask the symbol-reader about it?" Lyra said.
"Well, I dunno. There's things I'd rather not know. Seems to me everything I heard of since the Gobblers come to Oxford, everything's been bad. There en't been nothing good more than about five minutes ahead. Like I can see now, this bath's nice, and there's a nice warm towel there, about five minutes away. And once I'm dry maybe I'll think of summing nice to eat, but no further ahead than that. And when I've eaten maybe I'll look forward to a kip in a comfortable bed. But after that, I dunno, Lyra. There's been terrible things we seen, en't there? And more a-coming, more'n likely. So I think I'd rather not know what's in the future. I'll stick to the present."
"But. . ." Lyra struggled to find the words she wanted: "but it en't true, is it? Not true like chemistry or engineering, not that kind of true? There wasn't really an Adam and Eve? The Cassington Scholar told me it was just a kind of fairy tale."
"The Cassington Scholarship is traditionally given to a free-thinker; it's his function to challenge the faith of the Scholars. Naturally he'd say that. But think of Adam and Eve like an imaginary number, like the square root of minus one: you can never see any concrete proof it exists, but if you include it in your equations, you can calculate all manner of things that couldn't be imagined without it."
• • •
"Seems to me a man should have a choice whether to take up arms or not."
"We have no more choice in that than in whether or not to be born."
"Oh, I like choices, though," he said. "I like choosing the jobs I take and the places I go and the food I eat and the companions I sit and yarn with. Don't you wish for a choice once in a while?"
Serafina Pekkala considered, and then said, "Perhaps we don't mean the same thing by choice, Mr. Scoresby. Witches own nothing, so we're not interested in preserving value or making profits, and as for the choice between one thing and another, when you live for many hundreds of years you know that every opportunity will come again. We have different needs. You have to repair your balloon and keep it in good condition, and that takes time and trouble, I see that; but for us to fly, all we have to do is tear off a branch of cloud-pine; any will do, and there are plenty more. We don't feel cold, so we need no warm clothes. We have no means of exchange apart from mutual aid. If a witch needs something, another witch will give it to her. If there is a war to be fought, we don't consider cost one of the factors in deciding whether or not it is right to fight. Nor do we have any notion of honor, as bears do, for instance. An insult to a bear is a deadly thing. To us . . . inconceivable. How could you insult a witch? What would it matter if you did?"
"D'you want me to ask the symbol-reader about it?" Lyra said.
"Well, I dunno. There's things I'd rather not know. Seems to me everything I heard of since the Gobblers come to Oxford, everything's been bad. There en't been nothing good more than about five minutes ahead. Like I can see now, this bath's nice, and there's a nice warm towel there, about five minutes away. And once I'm dry maybe I'll think of summing nice to eat, but no further ahead than that. And when I've eaten maybe I'll look forward to a kip in a comfortable bed. But after that, I dunno, Lyra. There's been terrible things we seen, en't there? And more a-coming, more'n likely. So I think I'd rather not know what's in the future. I'll stick to the present."
"But. . ." Lyra struggled to find the words she wanted: "but it en't true, is it? Not true like chemistry or engineering, not that kind of true? There wasn't really an Adam and Eve? The Cassington Scholar told me it was just a kind of fairy tale."
"The Cassington Scholarship is traditionally given to a free-thinker; it's his function to challenge the faith of the Scholars. Naturally he'd say that. But think of Adam and Eve like an imaginary number, like the square root of minus one: you can never see any concrete proof it exists, but if you include it in your equations, you can calculate all manner of things that couldn't be imagined without it."
Second read: I think I liked this more the second time. Lyra’s still occasionally a bit annoying as a main character, but the flow of the novel is strong.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Wonderful ideas in a book that slowly defies convention.
I love it and I keep wishing I had read this when I was younger.
Great book, although I think some of the concepts may be above the head of children. However, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I read the whole thing in about three days, I was reading it every chance I got.
The boys and I loved this book, the beginning more than the end. Dust, daemons, and the Gyptians kept us engaged and excited. Even Iorek, the deeply troubled armored bear, kept us riveted to the story. But all the battles at the end left us confused and drained traveling from setting to setting.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No