Our Dark Materials

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:28:45 GMT

By Victor Canete

10th anniversary edition cover of The Golden Compass

A world full of dangers, which we know we can conquer with our true faith and power, are found in the dark fantasy, The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. The first book in a trilogy, The Golden Compass is filled with many things that will surprise you from armored polar bears and abducted children to witch clans and daemons. The book starts off with a little girl named Lyra Belacqua and her daemon, Pantalaimon, running around the halls of her home in Jordan College awaiting the arrival of her uncle, Lord Asriel. A daemon is a creature that follows its owner and can transform into other animals. While hiding in her uncle’s wardrobe in his room, Lyra hears a discussion between her uncle and several scholars about a recent phenomenon which involves northern lights, a mysterious city and a child severed from its daemon. The next day, she plays “kids and gobblers” with her friend, Roger, the kitchen boy, and tells him of what she overheard . Word soon spreads around the college that actual gobblers may have been sighted and that some children have been missing. Lyra learns that Roger is nowhere to be found, and worries that he may have been abducted by the gobblers. Then at a dinner, Lyra meets an Oxford scholar named Mrs. Coulter, whom Lyra becomes very fascinated with. Later Mrs. Coulter gives Lyra a golden compass which can “show her the truth.” The truth, of course, comes out, and Lyra finds herself in danger. She learns that her uncle has been imprisoned in the land of Bolvangar, where the children have been experimented upon. She then flees in the middle of the night joining two Gyptian men, traveling to the North, and vows to rescue Roger, her uncle, and the abducted children as well. She then learns a shocking secret about her birth parents and her place in a dire prophecy that will determine the fate of the universe. During her journey, Lyra meets many people including a witch queen named Serafina Pekkala, a hot air balloon commander named Lee Scoresby, and Iorek Byrnison, an exiled armored polar bear, all of whom help Lyra reach to Bolvangar. However, when Lyra finally enters Bolvangar, she’ll is horrified by what she sees inside. I’ll start by saying that The Golden Compass is definitely is not your average fantasy. There are some moments in the story that tend to be a bit dark and it will surprise you in every chapter. However, the novel will grab you with its bedazzling characters and staggering storytelling. The main character, Lyra Belacqua, definitely surprised me with her wit and bravery. The novel also manages to relate to other similar fantasies such as Harry Potter , The Chronicles of Narnia , and Percy Jackson . There is no doubt that readers will enjoy The Golden Compass and its two sequels as well. Title: The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials – Book One) Author: Philip Pullman Length: 400 Pages Grade: A

MINDSCAPES

Our Dark Materials