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A review by meggietothemax
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
4.0
I really loved this book. It's one of the first fantasy books I read where the main character was a plucky young female protagonist. She's written so delightfully bold, it's hard not to love her. This, and the deep lore and detail of the world is why I enjoy the book. It was Lyra that took me on this adventure, and I was happy to go with her.
Now, a lot has been written on the theological nature of this book and if it is or isn't anti-religion. Honestly, I think you need to read the trilogy as a whole to get beat over the head with that. This book alone doesn't really get into that much of a religious argument. Not only that, but you'd need to be a scholar of numerous works of theological fiction and epic poetry to even recognize much of the religious aspect in this book without the aid of being told beforehand that's what this book was about.
I worked in a library before this book was made into a movie and became hugely popular and written about endlessly. The vast majority of readers didn't even think about religion when they read it. Very much like unless you were specifically told what all the allegorical elements were in the Narnia series, you wouldn't on first glance immediately pick it out, the same is true of this. I think it's very hard for people to separate what they thought when they read a book from what they were told to look for in a book. If you're told in advance of reading a book that it's secretly about bees, you're going to, whether you want to or not, subconsciously see everything as it relates to bees. And you'll later say, of course, it was all about bees.
Yes, the author has made it clear this is all about religion. That being said, I'll argue that this book can easily just be read as an exciting fantasy adventure. In fact, most teens I talked to about it closer to the time it released never mention God, religion or any of that. They talked about the giant polar bears with armor. The next two books in the series are more obvious about it, but I also didn't like them as much because Pullman immediately sidelines Lyra as a character and she is truly the heart of this book.
As to whether or not it's YA or should be YA. I think it's fine for older teens. Younger I'd recommend more on a case by case basis. Part of the plot of this book is there's an organization that kidnaps children on the cusp of puberty and does something secretive with them that is quite dark indeed. But what they're doing is more of a B story plot that doesn't truly get fleshed out until the later, much more theologically and metaphysically minded, books. The true story of the first book is Lyra's quest to save her friend who was snatched up. This story is solved but does leave the door open for the other books.
Personally, I can read the book as merely a fantasy without thinking too much on the theological aspects of it. I've read a number of books where there are very similar themes but the religion is made up or involves magic. I suspect had the author gone the route of these other fantasy authors and hadn't explicitly mentioned it, no one would think much on it. It would be yet another fantasy where magical creatures and powers and dust stand in for god and belief. At least until the final book came out and it was made abundantly clear what Pullman was going for.
Where Pullman's writing truly shines is when he forgoes trying to tie in so much from Paradise Lost and focuses instead on Lyra and her overcoming the various challenges in her life. Lyra is an amazingly fleshed out character who drives the whole story and she's best when unburdened with an allegory that has already been told a hundred times before.
Recommended for those who enjoy deep fantasy worlds with more than a dash of steam-punk elements and who won't take issue with the theological elements.
Now, a lot has been written on the theological nature of this book and if it is or isn't anti-religion. Honestly, I think you need to read the trilogy as a whole to get beat over the head with that. This book alone doesn't really get into that much of a religious argument. Not only that, but you'd need to be a scholar of numerous works of theological fiction and epic poetry to even recognize much of the religious aspect in this book without the aid of being told beforehand that's what this book was about.
I worked in a library before this book was made into a movie and became hugely popular and written about endlessly. The vast majority of readers didn't even think about religion when they read it. Very much like unless you were specifically told what all the allegorical elements were in the Narnia series, you wouldn't on first glance immediately pick it out, the same is true of this. I think it's very hard for people to separate what they thought when they read a book from what they were told to look for in a book. If you're told in advance of reading a book that it's secretly about bees, you're going to, whether you want to or not, subconsciously see everything as it relates to bees. And you'll later say, of course, it was all about bees.
Yes, the author has made it clear this is all about religion. That being said, I'll argue that this book can easily just be read as an exciting fantasy adventure. In fact, most teens I talked to about it closer to the time it released never mention God, religion or any of that. They talked about the giant polar bears with armor. The next two books in the series are more obvious about it, but I also didn't like them as much because Pullman immediately sidelines Lyra as a character and she is truly the heart of this book.
As to whether or not it's YA or should be YA. I think it's fine for older teens. Younger I'd recommend more on a case by case basis. Part of the plot of this book is there's an organization that kidnaps children on the cusp of puberty and does something secretive with them that is quite dark indeed. But what they're doing is more of a B story plot that doesn't truly get fleshed out until the later, much more theologically and metaphysically minded, books. The true story of the first book is Lyra's quest to save her friend who was snatched up. This story is solved but does leave the door open for the other books.
Personally, I can read the book as merely a fantasy without thinking too much on the theological aspects of it. I've read a number of books where there are very similar themes but the religion is made up or involves magic. I suspect had the author gone the route of these other fantasy authors and hadn't explicitly mentioned it, no one would think much on it. It would be yet another fantasy where magical creatures and powers and dust stand in for god and belief. At least until the final book came out and it was made abundantly clear what Pullman was going for.
Where Pullman's writing truly shines is when he forgoes trying to tie in so much from Paradise Lost and focuses instead on Lyra and her overcoming the various challenges in her life. Lyra is an amazingly fleshed out character who drives the whole story and she's best when unburdened with an allegory that has already been told a hundred times before.
Recommended for those who enjoy deep fantasy worlds with more than a dash of steam-punk elements and who won't take issue with the theological elements.