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The Amber Spyglass: His Dark Materials |  |
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The Amber Spyglass: His Dark Materials | |
A complex web of thoughts was weaving itself in the bear king's mind, with more strands in it than hunger and satisfaction. There was the memory of the little girl Lyra, whom he had named Silvertongue, and whom he had last seen crossing the fragile snow bridge across a crevasse in his own island of Svalbard. Then there was the agitation among the witches, the rumors of pacts and alliances and war; and then there was the surpassingly strange fact of this new world itself, and the witch's insistence that there were many more such worlds, and that the fate of them all hung somehow on the fate of the child.Meanwhile, two factions of the Church are vying to reach Lyra first. One is even prepared to give a priest "preemptive absolution" should he succeed in committing mortal sin. For these tyrants, killing this girl is no less than "a sacred task."
In the final installment of his trilogy, Philip Pullman has set himself the highest hurdles. He must match its predecessors in terms of sheer action and originality and resolve the enigmas he already created. The good news is that there is no critical bad news--not that The Amber Spyglass doesn't contain standoffs and close calls galore. (Who would have it otherwise?) But Pullman brings his audacious revision of Paradise Lost to a conclusion that is both serene and devastating. In prose that is transparent yet lyrical and 3-D, the author weaves in and out of his principals' thoughts. He also offers up several additional worlds. In one, Dr. Mary Malone is welcomed into an apparently simple society. The environment of the mulefa (again, we'll reveal nothing more) makes them rich in consciousness while their lives possess a slow and stately rhythm. These strange creatures can, however, be very fast on their feet (or on other things entirely) when necessary. Alas, they are on the verge of dying as Dust streams out of their idyllic landscape. Will the Oxford dark-matter researcher see her way to saving them, or does this require our young heroes? And while Mary is puzzling out a cure, Will and Lyra undertake a pilgrimage to a realm devoid of all light and hope, after having been forced into the cruelest of sacrifices--or betrayals.
Throughout his galvanizing epic, Pullman sustains scenes of fierce beauty and tenderness. He also allows us a moment or two of comic respite. At one point, for instance, Lyra's mother bullies a series of ecclesiastical underlings: "The man bowed helplessly and led her away. The guard behind her blew out his cheeks with relief." Needless to say, Mrs. Coulter is as intoxicating and fluid as ever. And can it be that we will come to admire her as she plays out her desperate endgame? In this respect, as in many others, The Amber Spyglass is truly a book of revelations, moving from darkness visible to radiant truth. --Kerry Fried --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
In concluding the spellbinding His Dark Materials trilogy, Pullman produces what may well be the most controversial children's book of recent years. The witch Serafina Pekkala, quoting an angel, sums up the central theme: "All the history of human life has been a struggle between wisdom and stupidity. The rebel angels, the followers of wisdom, have always tried to open minds; the Authority and his churches have always tried to keep them closed." Early on, this "Authority" is explicitly identified as the Judeo-Christian God, and he is far from omnipotent: his Kingdom is ruled by a regent. The cosmic battle to overthrow the Kingdom is only one of the many epic sequences in this novelAso much happens, and the action is split among so many different imagined worlds, that readers will have to work hard to keep up with Pullman. In the opening, for example, Lyra is being hidden and kept in a drugged sleep in a Himalayan cave by her mother, the beautiful and treacherous Mrs. Coulter. Will is guided by two angels across different worlds to find Lyra. The physicist and former nun, Mary Malone, sojourns in an alternatively evolved world. In yet another universe, Lord Asriel has assembled a great horde of otherworldly beings-including the vividly imagined race of haughty, hand-high warriors called GallivespiansAto bring down the Kingdom. Along the way, Pullman riffs on the elemental chords of classical myth and fairy tale. While some sections seem rushed and the prose is not always as brightly polished as fans might expect, Pullman's exuberant work stays rigorously true to its own internal structure. Stirring and highly provocative. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
Grade 6 Up-This book starts where The Subtle Knife (Knopf, 1997) left off. Lyra has been hidden away by her mother, and Will is determined to find her. Meanwhile, Lord Asriel is preparing to fight the forces of the Church's Consistorial Court, as well as the God-like Authority's Lieutenant, Metatron, who hungers for ultimate power over all worlds. At the heart of this discord is Dust, the mysterious substance that is linked irrevocably to consciousness; it is streaming away at an increasing rate, causing havoc in its wake. It is Lyra and Will's destiny to determine the outcome of this situation. Knowledge of the previous books is an absolute necessity in order to understand this one. Even so, it will take dedication and passion to unwind the extremely convoluted plot with its numerous characters. Lyra and Will are as noble, grand, and yet as utterly believable as any characters in children's literature, and they are surrounded by a host of memorable personages. The many facets of the story are so encrusted with tiny and arcane details that the narrative occasionally slows down, and the transitions between worlds and plot lines are often hard to follow. Organized religion is portrayed bleakly; the Church is essentially a dictatorship and the afterlife is a "concentration camp" world set up by the Authority. However, the message of the book remains clear and exhilarating; it is vital to use wisely the divine gifts of consciousness and free will. This is a subtle and complex treatment of the eternal battle between good and evil.
Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Booklist
f1\ansi\deff0\deftab720{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss MS Sans Serif;}{\f1\froman\fcharset2 Symbol;}{\f2\fswiss MS Sans Serif;}{\f3\froman Times New Roman;}}{\colortbl\red0\green0\blue0;}\deflang1033\pardDarkness Visible--Philip Pullman\rquote s Amber Spyglass
by Ilene Cooper
The long-awaited conclusion to Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, has arrived, bringing with it a host of expectations. Pullman has set the bar almost impossibly high for The Amber Spyglass. Along with fulfilling the destiny of the brave and irascible Lyra Belaqua, whose story began in The Golden Compass (1996), and that of her stalwart, loving companion, Will Parry, Keeper of the Weapon, who was introduced in The Subtle Knife (1997), the book must tie up a thousand loose ends, some as thick as rope, others as ephemeral as gossamer. Sometimes the work is seamless; at other times, the labor shows. Like the Dust (shadows or quantum particles with the power to bring self-awareness) that is so vehemently fought over in all three volumes, this book is full of intention and promise, but the writing can be elusive, amorphous\emdash as hard to hold onto as, well, dust.
The Amber Spyglass in no way stands alone. Those who haven't recently read the previous books--especially the second one--will be lost. The story picks up moments after Will and his long-lost father, John, have met and fought. John is killed by a vengeful witch, just as father and son recognize each other. Meanwhile, Lyra is being hidden by her mother, Mrs. Coulter, who keeps her in a drug-induced sleep. In pursuit of Lyra is the Church, which sees the girl as a threat to its very existence.
What is only hinted at in the previous books--Lyra's role as the new Eve--is fully realized here. The church hierarchy now understands that Lyra will be tempted; how she responds, the choices she makes, will affect not just her world but also the myriad worlds that overlap each other--worlds that Will is able to enter through windows he carves with his magic knife. So this book is the battlefield on which the war between evil, represented by the Church, and good, which is found in the consciousness of Dust and in people's ability to think, plan, hope, and love for themselves, is to be fought.
Like overlapping worlds, the story's many plot lines are complex and sometimes tangled. Suffice it to say that Dr. Mary Malone, the scientist Lyra met in The Subtle Knife and a seeker of Dust, is sent by that consciousness through one of Will's windows to help the young people. She finds her way to a land where small-horned, elephant-like creatures called mulefa ride on wheels made of seed pods. But their Dust is leaving them, and it is Mary's role to find out why. To do this, she fashions the amber spyglass, which allows her to see and eventually save their Dust. But Mary has another task. Unbeknownst to her, she is also to play the role of biblical serpent, the creature who will bring about the Fall.
The church hierarchy sets out to murder both Lyra and Mary, but other battles are being fought as well. When Lyra and Will are reunited, they are compelled to overcome death and must travel to a blank, hopeless Sheol to do so. Meanwhile, above ground, the Battle of Armageddon rages, as Lord Ariel, Mrs. Coulter, renegade angels, bears, witches, and God's regent, the angel Metatron, fight for the soul of all worlds.
The witches and wizards in the Harry Potter books will seem like cartoon characters compared with those in Pullman\rquote s religious pantheon. The first two books in the series exposed the Church as corrupt, bigoted, and evil. Now Pullman takes on Heaven itself. The Authority\emdash who is alternatively identified as El, YHWH, and God--is not the creator, as his acolytes (including Mrs. Coulter) believe. He is the first angel, who convinced the rest he is the Source. Millennia ago, he passed his power on to the angel Metatron. Now, the Authority is a demented old spirit, hardly aware of who he is, much less of his world, and Metatron, a power-hungry ruler, more devil than angel, is determined to put an even tighter choke-hold on those who believe.
There is no room for compromise in Pullman's world: the teachings of religion have kept people from knowing their true nature, abused their trust, tortured their souls. This is heady stuff for a children's book, though that appellation is almost meaningless when it comes to The Amber Spyglass. Yes, young people will read it, but teenagers and adults, who can understand (or argue with) Pullman's sometimes obscure theories, will find it the most rewarding. For some, wrestling with the book's philosophical issues will be the most exciting part of the experience. Readers will need to do some thinking here, and for all the book's diversions, delving into one's own belief system can be the most intense of all explorations.
Nor does Pullman shy away from Lyra's role as the new Eve. Mary does tempt Eve and Will with a story about her own burgeoning sexuality, and later, the two young people, by now in love, also make love (for Pullman's views on this matter, see the interview opposite). There is nothing explicit here. It's all stars and beating hearts, but it won't be easy for some readers to forget that Lyra is still 12 and Will a bit older. It would be pointless to say that Pullman shouldn't have taken the relationship this far; the whole series has been leading up to this moment, and it paves the way for an ending that is touching enough to bring tears.
The problem nonfantasy readers often have with the genre is getting straight the conventions of new worlds. This problem is compounded here, as Pullman invents multiple new worlds, each with its own structures. The details may make readers skip pages, and not because they can't wait to see what happens next. Pullman also has gone overboard with the many battle scenes. There are so many clashes, skirmishes, and wars throughout the series that when Armageddon arrives, it lacks the power of a final struggle. What Pullman does do uncompromisingly well is delineate each of his characters. Everyone--people, witches, mulefa--is drawn with exceptional nuance and understanding. He is particularly adept at layering his characters and allowing readers to watch them change. Lyra, Will, even Mrs. Coulter and Lord Astriel have been altered by their adventures, yearnings, and trials. It is fascinating to watch their growth.
Those who have waited so long to find out what happens in The Amber Spyglass may have mixed emotions about the book. There is room for delight, puzzlement, and in some cases, anger. Stylistically, the book is too full; a trilogy seems one book too short for all that needs to be accomplished to finish the series. But in the end, there must also be admiration for Pullman's high-wire writing. Each book bursts with life, dares to take chances. His Dark Materials has taken readers on a wild, magnificent ride that, in its totality, represents an astounding achievement.
Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Review
?Pullman has created the last great fantasy masterpiece of the twentieth century.??The Cincinnati Enquirer
?Absorbing. . . . Like Harry Potter creator J. K. Rowling, [Pullman] invents a world filled with strange divinations and wordplays.??Newsweek
?A literary masterpiece . . . [that] caps the most magnificent fantasy series since The Lord of the Rings and puts Harry Potter to shame. . . . A page-turning story that builds to a powerful finish.??Oregonian
?Impossible to put down, so firmly and relentlessly does Pullman draw you into his tale. . . . [A] gripping saga pitting the magnetic young Lyra Belacqua and her friend Will Parry against the forces of both Heaven and Hell.??Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
-- Review
Review
“Pullman has created the last great fantasy masterpiece of the twentieth century.”—The Cincinnati Enquirer
“Absorbing. . . . Like Harry Potter creator J. K. Rowling, [Pullman] invents a world filled with strange divinations and wordplays.”—Newsweek
“A literary masterpiece . . . [that] caps the most magnificent fantasy series since The Lord of the Rings and puts Harry Potter to shame. . . . A page-turning story that builds to a powerful finish.”—Oregonian
“Impossible to put down, so firmly and relentlessly does Pullman draw you into his tale. . . . [A] gripping saga pitting the magnetic young Lyra Belacqua and her friend Will Parry against the forces of both Heaven and Hell.”—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
