"It lay heavily in her hands, the crystal face gleaming, the brass body exquisitely machined. It was very much like a clock, or a compass, for there were hands pointing around the dial, but instead of the hours or the points of a compass there were several little pictures with extraordinary precision, as if on ivory with the slenderest sable brush. She turned the dial around to look at them all. There was an anchor; an hourglass surmounted by a skull; a bull, a beehive…..Thirty-six altogether and she couldn’t even guess what they meant." Before I go into the depths of character and plot, let me start by saying this book is up there with other fantasy hard hitters: by this I mean books like The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia: the books that define the genre. This is high praise indeed, and this novel is worthy of it. The protagonist of the book is Lyra, a young girl, who is parentless and seemingly friendless. She has grown up in an Oxford College and has developed a detachment to her guardians. She spends her days enjoying her youth and harassing those that turn out to be some of her greatest allies. For her, this book is a journey of self-discovery: a way of exploring the limits of her character and potential. Her adventure sees her befriend an armoured polar bear and become the wielder of the golden compass. This is initially described as a lie detector but it is apparent that the depths of its power have not been fully explored. This book retains all the classic elements of fantasy: magic, mythical creatures and supernatural phenomena. The world Pullman has created is physically intertwined with our own; there are references to cities and countries in which his idea has been planted. Each human has a daemon that is essentially their soul. These take on the form of an animal that is representative of the person, for example someone who is enthusiastic and friendly has a colourful cat whereas as solider has a wolf or a hound. The author does very little to explain this. It is just thing “thing” that we are told about at the start but through the book but we begin to see the significance of it. The fact that children’s daemons change is a subtle hint how children can be influenced and have not found their identity where as adults are secure and confident. In this the author has created an air of mystery as we explore the true meaning of the bond as we read further. The plot is fantastic. The author manages to surprise the reader on several occasions as he drops several, massive plot turns. This sees the story go into unexpected directions. From the beginning of reading a book, you begin to predict what will happen. Some books are completely predictable and obvious in their direction; this one was not. I physically gasped at some moments as I found myself awed by the author’s storytelling; this is when several characters origins, in relation to Lyra are defined. The book begins as a simple rescue mission but ends as a story that is questioning the morals of all characters involved. The fate of the characters is destined in the mysteriousness of the northern lights; the gateway to beyond. This is one of those books that is applicable to all ages; it originally appears to be a children’s book, but it can be enjoyed by anyone. Much of the content in here touches on themes that most children would not comprehend fully, never mind be able to philosophise about. The author considers spirituality, religion, morals and the existence of the soul, amongst other things. Most children would not pick up on these references and understand the significance of them; however, they would still adore the book. The book can be seen as two separate entities existing at the same time; the first, and most obvious, is the one that appeals to children; the saving of innocents from despotic adults with lots of exciting characters. The second is on a deeper scale; the author explores the conflicting powers of science and religion, manipulation and morality in terms of actions being for a greater good. In this the author is a genius, he has wrote a book that can be both a children’s bed time read and an adult’s point of pondering.

I could not put this book down, even where the reading is a little slow and a struggle, the urge to find out what is happening drives you on. The first book is ok, with the second being a little slow and merely filling you with information and reference for later as for the third book, I started it feeling a little let down, that this wasn't going to be the great read I had expected, on finishing I feel emotional and distressed, craving more, it is a collection I shall treasure dearly and by far one of the best books I have read.

I'd give this series infinite stars if I could. I read it as a kid and I loved it, and decided to reread it after seeing the BBC adaptation (which I think is brilliant, and has stayed very true to the books). The incredible imagination it must have taken to build this world (these worlds, I should say), the skill with words- I fell in love with this series again and again every time I opened the book to continue with it. I cried many times, and the words on the pages touched my heart in a way few other books have done. This is certainly one series I could return to over and over again and never get bored of.

I never thought I would find a more thrilling story than "Lord of the Rings" but this is it. Exquisitely written and thought through, every page pulls you in to keep reading. this is easily one of the best book I have ever read (and believe me, I read a lot). I cannot wait to devour the Book of Dust.

This triology (in my opinion) is the best series that has ever been written. Ever. I first read it as a young teen, but I honestly think that anyone can enjoy this series, at any age, and I’ve reread it so many times! It has so many undercutting themes that might not be obvious at first, but it sparks so many ideas and thoughts that I had such an enjoyable time contemplating the ideas that Pullman puts forth. And even without that, the characters are brilliant, with multiple morally grey characters (which let’s be honest, are the best!) The worlds are beautiful, original and grab you from the first word. I love this series with all my heart and I urge everyone to give it a go because honestly I don’t know what I’d do without this to constantly come back to and rediscover this gorgeous series ❤️