Reviews

The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

ineedsomemoretea's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

saranies's review

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4.0

This was tough to read because it broke my heart that Pan and Lyra were fighting. Interested to see where the next series goes.

Didn't love the sexual assault as plot device. Did Pan feel it happen? Lyra has to be getting tired of people seeing her as the only one who can do something (like going to the Blue Hotel and getting some kind of treasure) but not telling her about it. Who is Bonneville's mother? Why didn't we know Mrs Coulter was not British? Will there be Will in the third book?

oddcurlew's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

anacatnascimento's review

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3.0

Ok so, I'm pretty sure que a única razão por que este livro tem mais de 4* aqui no Goodreads é porque o pessoal está a dar uma de Tim Gunn no Project Runway e premiar os incríveis feitos passados de Pullman, mesmo tendo em conta que este livro ficou muito aquém. Digamos apenas que a Heidi Klum estaria muito perto de dizer auf wiedersehen ao autor.

O primeiro problema deste segundo volume, que decorre 20 anos após o primeiro e volta - à semelhança da trilogia original - a ter Lyra como personagem central, é a falta de foco: Pullman puxou a trama por todos os lados e de todas as maneiras que se lembrou para conseguir fazer menção a, possivelmente, todos os flagelos de que sofremos atualmente: crise de refugiados, tensões no médio oriente, lutas de poder pelo petróleo ou abuso de animais. Isto, claro, à parte da dinâmica da relação entre Pantalaimon e Lyra, e entre Malcolm e Lyra: tenho mixed feelings sobre a primeira, e francamente não entendo muito da segunda.

Sabemos que
SpoilerLyra teve de separar-se de Pan para salvar Roger
, e que o deamon não ficou grande fã dela depois disso. Percebemos que é normal que haja ressentimento, mesmo depois de tantos anos, e entendemos que é porque eles nunca falaram do assunto a sério, preferindo uma atitude passivo-agressiva típica de adolescente. Também não é difícil de nos relacionarmos com o facto de que aos 20 anos não somos quem éramos aos 13, e que essas mudanças nem sempre são do agrado de quem nos rodeia. Tudo isto é válido por si só, e não precisa de grandes filmes para passar a mensagem de que a relação entre os dois é, no mínimo, tensa, e que algo - seja o que for - vai certamente acontecer. Posto isto, era mesmo necessário colocar uma discussão filosófica sobre deamons serem "coisas" descartáveis ou partes essenciais a cada ser humano no centro das divergências entre Pan e Lyra? É que foi só mais uma acha para a fogueira onde ardiam todos os outros 348955367 assuntos que Pullman decidiu abordar neste livro.

Já a questão de Mal
Spoilerestar perdidamente apaixonado por Lyra achei só desnecessária, porque criou uma situação em que um homem adulto se sentia atraído por uma miúda de 15 anos
- e por muito que eu adore o Malcolm e saiba que ele seria a última pessoa de qualquer mundo a fazer algum mal a Lyra, toda a cena meteu-me um bocadinho de nojo.

Parece-me também que o entusiasmo de Pullman de falar de todos os problemas atuais e contemporâneos do universo, o fez esquecer de que estes livros têm um quê de passado, de antigo, e todo o ambiente que se vive em The Secret Commonwealth parece apenas mais um dia em 2019, num mês em que decidimos não usar telefone ou telemóvel e os aviões fizeram greve, obrigando-nos a fazer as nossas viagens de comboio. Houve uma desconexão grande com o primeiro volume e, acima de tudo, com a trilogia original.

Entre tudo isto, vemos lá ao fundo, assim tipo miragem no deserto, as coisas que realmente importam: a possibilidade de encontrar a resposta ao mistério dos deamons e do Dust, um segredo ligado a Lyra e a outra personagem que conhecemos no livro anterior, os ataques e contra-ataques do Magisterium dentro e fora das suas próprias paredes e a promessa de que o que está para vir, virá em grande. Temos ainda o prazer de assistir ao coming of age de Lyra, e ver a menina que salvou o(s) mundo(s) tornar-se uma mulher. Perante isto, não há como não sorrir.

As minhas 3* são maioritariamente por isto, e porque Pullman escreve de uma maneira que, mesmo quando está a falar do flagelo nº62 e a tentar encaixá-lo na história, é impossível ignorar; não dá para não sentir cada palavra, e vemos-nos incapazes de fechar o livro depois de um capítulo ou chegar ao fim sem pensar "dass, que este gajo é do c*ralho".

Mas, no final de contas, um livro é um todo, um conjunto de tudo o que o compõe. E o que compõe "The Secret Commonwealth não foi o suficiente para seguir as o rasto de Dust e transformar-se em algo mais.

“It was nothing more than what it was.”

maaike96's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

breakfastgrey's review against another edition

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4.0

After absolutely destroying the end of La Belle Sauvage with a crass sexual assault, Pullman decided to do the exact same thing with this book. Like last time, it left me with a very sour taste in my mouth, especially coming on the heels of the best chapter in the book. Still, there was quite a bit else that went sideways for me at the end of La Belle Sauvage, whereas I liked this book better on the whole.

It needs to be said that it is a middle book. It does not do much to resolve lingering mysteries and introduces quite a few of its own. Only time will tell what the payoff will be, but I'm choosing to trust that Pullman will stick the landing despite not liking the conclusion of His Dark Materials and having severe problems with the endings of both of the first two books in Book of Dust. Endings don't seem to be his forte, but I'm enjoying the ride and want to hope the ending lives up to the build up.

What is Pullman's strength, and what made me love the vast majority of this book, is his worldbuilding. I was heartbroken the first time I read the Subtle Knife when it broke away from the world of the Golden Compass. It wasn't until the reread where I was able to put that aside and enjoy it on its own merits. This book moves forward as if Subtle Knife and Amber Spyglass didn't happen for the majority of the characters because, to be frank, they didn't. Lyra went on a journey, but the rest of the world moved on having no idea of that quest.

And so, readers are treated to an embarrassing riches of worldbuilding here and return to the settings of the Golden Compass and Lyra's Oxford before moving forward. Some readers might label it slow, but this is the sort of thing I love--the politics, the societies, the rules of how it all works. Lyra and Malcolm's quests allow us to experience so much of that firsthand, even when it's not particularly obvious what the individual episodes have to do with anything.

In the end, I'm fully aware of the flaws in this book and this series. And yet, I still find myself captivated and eagerly awaiting its conclusion.

plutoz's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

dochyperturtle's review

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

val_eris's review

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2.0

Pullman seem to think if he keeps making old men call Malcolm ‘young’ we won’t remember that he’s a 31 year old man who is ‘in love’ with a 20 year old that he has known since she was a literal baby but it’s not going to work. IT IS NOT GOING TO WORK PHILLIP YOU CANNOT TRICK ME INTO THINKING THIS IS NOT GROSS. No matter how many responsible older women you try to make give lip service to how normal and good it is! It’s weird and bad! These books have always had a strange relationship to sex that I attributed to the Catholicism but what is with the whole rape-or-attempted-rape as a ‘necessary’ part of a female character’s transition to adulthood? What is going on with you Phillip. Why is this such a theme for you.

Anyway this book is aimless and all of the power and interest of the writing is sucked out of it by the ick ick ick. I’m going to return it! I loved Malcolm in the first book and you ruined him! What a creep!

callunavulgari's review

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1.0

This was actually incredibly disappointing. Most of the things I’m upset about seem to be what others are upset about too. Namely - assault. Why? Why did that chapter need to exist? Between the graphic attempted rape in this book and the confirmation of the assault that happened in the last one and the many implications of the last one, I’m just tired. Dear Mr. Pullman: not every woman in a story needs to be raped or otherwise assaulted. I’m just disgusted that chapter 31 even happened. Why? What made you think that needed to happen?

Over all, this was 600 pages of pure disappointment. As much as I loved the original trilogy, I’m not sure I want to read the conclusion of this one. Some things aren’t necessary. Some things don’t add to a damn story. And Lyra deserved her goddamn happy ending, not this endless train of absolute misery she’s been given.