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A review by banned_book
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Starting off my summer of reading books that were banned from my childhood household, I'm glad to say this was a much better investment of my time than The DaVinci Code. My goodness. I'm a little insulted that my dad thought I couldn't distinguish the difference between a fictional church and the one he was a part of, and surely would not have interpreted the individual daemons as anything but deeply connected animal companions. Funny how my views on theology came to mirror Pullman's without any help from his writing! It's almost as if Catholic corruption breeds contempt by itself. Crazy.
Anyway, I found Lyra lovable in spite of her unruly loquaciousness. She is earnest, energetic, and bossy the way a child realistically would be at her age. Her wide-eyed perspective cast the world in a wondrous and mystical light. The contrast between her and Pan's personalities made for good back and forth to develop her maturity level and justify her decisions. The villains were very well crafted and grew ever more menacing as the book went on. Pullman managed to push and pull at my impressions of Lyra's parents up until the very end - their relationship is complicated and imperfect. They toe the line between toxic and healthy, honest and duplicitous, good and bad for each other quite beautifully.
Anyway, I found Lyra lovable in spite of her unruly loquaciousness. She is earnest, energetic, and bossy the way a child realistically would be at her age. Her wide-eyed perspective cast the world in a wondrous and mystical light. The contrast between her and Pan's personalities made for good back and forth to develop her maturity level and justify her decisions. The villains were very well crafted and grew ever more menacing as the book went on. Pullman managed to push and pull at my impressions of Lyra's parents up until the very end - their relationship is complicated and imperfect. They toe the line between toxic and healthy, honest and duplicitous, good and bad for each other quite beautifully.