Has anyone read His Dark Materials?

[Chovexani]

I've been hearing about this YA series from a lot of people and I was wondering if anyone here had read it and could offer opinions.

I am always looking for new fantasy books to read. :)

[RevolutionaryActs]

1. I have. They are wonderful books, very well written and thought out,

and very sweet. They're a really great read, they go down quickly and they have a lot of meaning. I highly recommend them. :)

[LWolf]

2. I read them and enjoyed them.

Of course, as an elementary school teacher and former elementary school library tech, I have a special affinity for kids and ya novels. ;-)

[Khephra]

3. The series is well written, well plotted and all that

But I just couldn't get into it. The plucky young girl hero just annoyed me. I'm glad it was written, as it really pisses off fundies, but after trying to get past the first book about 20 times I finally gave up.

Like the Potter books, I'll probably enjoy the films that are being made of this series, but I just couldn't finish the books. It's more my current state of mind than the book's fault.

[robbedvoter]

4. Tell us more - author. theme, please.

[LWolf]

5. Young adult fantasy.

Author: Philip Pullman

A trilogy consisting of:

I The Golden Compass
II The Subtle Knife
III The Amber Spyglass

Heroine: Lyra; a young girl caught in a battle between worlds.

Setting: an alternate, concurrent earth/world, where people are accompanied by "daemon familiars," and a battle is fought over "dust," a manifestation of magic/energy.

This doesn't do the stories justice; it's been over a year since I read them, and I can't remember the nature of "dust" well enough to describe it. Along with the political tensions, there are some complex characters and interesting interplay between Lyra and other characters.

[Chovexani]

6. I couldn't remember the author, sorry

But it looks like others have filled in the blanks. :)

[politicat]

7. I think they're incredible.

My nephew and I have been reading them over the phone for the past couple months. (Since he's 1000 miles away, this is the only way that Auntie gets to read to him.) We read about 45 minutes a day, twice a week and at the same time I'm recording them to audio for him and for my niece.

They are some of the best children's lit around, IMNSHO. Such an intricate plot, so many threads, and such great philosophy without being blatant about it. (Then again, I think Potter is a wonderful intro for kids to the concepts of Kant and Bentham...)

I recommend them highly.

Pcat

[bobbieinok]

8. yes...1st was great; 2nd pretty good; 3rd just so-so IMO