abgushte's reviews
122 reviews

The themes are a bit obvious for an adult reader, but I think they might be a little over the heads of perhaps some middle schoolers. Otherwise, the plot is pretty enjoyable, though with some rather obvious plot devices that are treated with a heavy hand. Like I said, it's kind of obvious but it keeps you reading.

I'm trying to decide if the time line on this plot is too slow or just plain leisurely. I feel that it's really a book that you should take time to soak up. I've been reading plot-driven books for so long that this little gem was a pleasant change of pace--reading for the experience of a narrative where plot or agenda are secondary (I think some people might refer to this as "literature" (also, she might be pushing an agenda but it doesn't FEEL like she's pushing an agenda. Mostly.)). Yet the story is actually quite powerful, and though I found myself preferring to read in short bursts through most of the book, I really pushed myself to finish it because I just wanted it all to finally unfold. It's hard to deal with a leisurely paced story when you're really impatient.

Anyhow, I think Roy has a brilliant voice, but it looks like she hasn't written any other fiction. A fact that deserves a sad face. :(

If I could give this book 3.5 stars I would, but I was so bored during the first half that I'm gonna go with 3 stars. Like I said, the first half is kind of dull. It's not that the story is slow--in fact, it moves along rather quickly, but the story-telling is so uninteresting. We're introduced to Will rather quickly and without much depth, and the rest of the book doesn't really develop him much further. I couldn't put the book down for the second half of the book but only because I wanted to know how far it would go.

As far as how trilogies go, this book seems kind of weak..."the forces of good gathering for a war against the forces of evil" meme doesn't really come together until near the end, and Pullman makes it painfully obvious which side is supposed to be which in spite of supposed appearances (though he has never tried to make the Authority appear as anything other than wretched, so I don't know who he thought he was convincing...). As far as how prophecy epics go, this book seems extremely weak, the characters being quite difficult to relate to with Lyra's role being greatly minimized and thus largely ignored throughout most of the book, and Will being a kid with just two motivations: his mother and his father (again and again they are brought up throughout the book--where they are, what they are doing, what they are thinking about, if they're thinking about him, and if they will ever return... *snicker*) and outside of those two motivation I can't really see what kind of person he is.

I realize it's supposed to be a children's book, but that doesn't mean that the deeper message has to be emphasized at the expense of weaving a carefully crafted story. Maybe I'm just spoiled, but to me it seemed that Pullman never really stopped to pull us into the story, the plot just kept trudging straight on, and after a while that kind of pace leaves you out of breath. It was very difficult to sit back and enjoy this story.

But who knows, maybe Pullman wanted to extend the whole thing out another two or so book's worth but was pressured to shorten it into three shorter-length books.

Regardless of it all, I'm looking forward to the third book.