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Read by the author and a full cast 8 hours 55 minutes, 8 cassettes The universe has broken wide, and Lyra's friend lies dead. Desperate for answers and set on revenge, Lyra bursts into a new world in pursuit of his killer. Instead, she finds Will, just twelve years old and already a murderer himself. He's on a quest as fierce as Lyra's, and together they strike out into this sunlit otherworld. On this journey marked by danger, Will and Lyra forge ahead. But with every step and each new horror, they move closer to the greatest threat of all—and the shattering truth of their own destiny. In this stunning sequel to The Golden Compas, Philip Pullman continues His Dark Materials trilogy and confirms it as an undoubted and enduring classic. AWARDS AND HONORS ALA Best Books for Young Adults Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year Horn Book Fanfare Honor Book Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbon Book Book Links Best Book of the Year Parents' Choice Gold Book Award American Bookseller "Pick of the Lists"
Read by the author and a full cast 8 hours 55 minutes, 8 cassettes The universe has broken wide, and Lyra's friend lies dead. Desperate for answers and set on revenge, Lyra bursts into a new world in pursuit of his killer. Instead, she finds Will, just twelve years old and already a murderer himself. He's on a quest as fierce as Lyra's, and together they strike out into this sunlit otherworld. On this journey marked by danger, Will and Lyra forge ahead. But with every step and each new horror, they move closer to the greatest threat of all—and the shattering truth of their own destiny. In this stunning sequel to The Golden Compas, Philip Pullman continues His Dark Materials trilogy and confirms it as an undoubted and enduring classic. AWARDS AND HONORS ALA Best Books for Young Adults Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year Horn Book Fanfare Honor Book Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbon Book Book Links Best Book of the Year Parents' Choice Gold Book Award American Bookseller "Pick of the Lists"
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
From the cover
Will tugged at his mother's hand and said, "Come on, come on ..."
But his mother hung back. She was still afraid. Will looked up and down the narrow street in the evening light, along the little terrace of houses, each behind its tiny garden and its box hedge, with the sun glaring off the windows of one side and leaving the other in shadow. There wasn't much time. People would be having their meal about now, and soon there would be other children around, to stare and comment and notice. It was dangerous to wait, but all he could do was persuade her, as usual.
"Mum, let's go in and see Mrs. Cooper," he said. "Look, we're nearly there."
"Mrs. Cooper?" she said doubtfully.
But he was already ringing the bell. He had to put down the bag to do it, because his other hand still held his mother's. It might have bothered him at twelve years of age to be seen holding his mother's hand, but he knew what would happen to her if he didn't.
The door opened, and there was the stooped elderly figure of the piano teacher, with the scent of lavender water about her as he remembered.
"Who's that? Is that William?" the old lady said. "I haven't seen you for over a year. What do you want, dear?"
"I want to come in, please, and bring my mother," he said firmly.
Mrs. Cooper looked at the woman with the untidy hair and the distracted half-smile, and at the boy with the fierce, unhappy glare in his eyes, the tight-set lips, the jutting jaw. And then she saw that Mrs. Parry, Will's mother, had put makeup on one eye but not on the other. And she hadn't noticed. And neither had Will. Something was wrong.
"Well ..." she said, and stepped aside to make room in the narrow hall.
Will looked up and down the road before closing the door, and Mrs. Cooper saw how tightly Mrs. Parry was clinging to her son's hand, and how tenderly he guided her into the sitting room where the piano was (of course, that was the only room he knew); and she noticed that Mrs. Parry's clothes smelled slightly musty, as if they'd been too long in the washing machine before drying; and how similar the two of them looked as they sat on the sofa with the evening sun full on their faces, their broad cheekbones, their wide eyes, their straight black brows.
"What is it, William?" the old lady said. "What's the matter?"
"My mother needs somewhere to stay for a few days," he said. "It's too difficult to look after her at home just now. I don't mean she's ill. She's just kind of confused and muddled, and she gets a bit worried. She won't be hard to look after. She just needs someone to be kind to her, and I think you could do that quite easily, probably."
The woman was looking at her son without seeming to understand, and Mrs. Cooper saw a bruise on her cheek. Will hadn't taken his eyes off Mrs. Cooper, and his expression was desperate.
"She won't be expensive," he went on. "I've brought some packets of food, enough to last, I should think. You could have some of it too. She won't mind sharing."
"But ...I don't know if I should ...Doesn't she need a doctor?"
"No! She's not ill."
"But there must be someone who can ...I mean, isn't there a neighbor or someone in the family—"
"We haven't got any family. Only us. And the neighbors are too busy."
"What about the social services? I...
About the Author-
PHILIP PULLMAN is one of the most acclaimed writers working today. He is best known for the His Dark Materials trilogy, which has been named one of the top 100 books of all time by Newsweek and one of the all-time greatest novels by Entertainment Weekly. Pullman was knighted for his services to literature in the 2019 New Year Honours.
The Book of Dust, Pullman’s eagerly anticipated return to the world of His Dark Materials, will also be a book in three parts. It began with La Belle Sauvage and continues with The Secret Commonwealth.
Philip Pullman is the author of many other beloved novels. For younger readers: I Was a Rat!, Count Karlstein, Two Crafty Criminals!, Spring-Heeled Jack, and The Scarecrow and His Servant. For older readers: the Sally Lockhart quartet (The Ruby in the Smoke, The Shadow in the North, The Tiger in the Well, and The Tin Princess), The White Mercedes, and The Broken Bridge. He has written a magnificent collection, Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm, and his essays and lectures on writing and storytelling have been gathered in a volume called Dæmon Voices: On Stories and Storytelling.
Philip Pullman lives in Oxford, England.
Reviews-
Classic themes of good versus evil, innocence versus experience intertwine with those of intrigue and deception, compassion and loyalty in this second volume of the fantasy trilogy HIS DARK MATERIALS. The audio production is equally well crafted. The clear, crisp tones of author/narrator Philip Pullman blend seamlessly with the multi-voiced cast of characters. From first to last, the actors bring the vivid landscape of personalities to life, while the phrases of music by composer Peter Pontzen, which introduce each chapter, add color and texture to the story's predominantly dark mood. The superb production of this fascinating fantasy epic makes it a heart-thumping listening adventure. J.J.F. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine
November 1, 1999 In a starred review, PW said, "More than fulfilling the promise of The Golden Compass, this second volume in the His Dark Materials trilogy starts off at a heart-thumping pace and never slows down." Ages 12-up.
Starred review from July 21, 1997 More than fulfilling the promise of The Golden Compass, this second volume in the His Dark Materials trilogy starts off at a heart-thumping pace and never slows down. On the run after inadvertently killing one of the sinister men who have been stalking his emotionally disturbed mother, Will, 12, hitchhikes to Oxford to seek information about his father, an explorer who vanished in the Arctic over a decade ago. As Will searches for a place to sleep, he stumbles upon Cittagazze--a deserted city in another world--accessible via a sort of magic gateway located (in one of the story's many witty mixes of the banal and the unearthly) near an ordinary traffic circle. Crossing into this peculiar place, Will encounters Lyra (heroine of the previous book), who has left her own world to find out what she can about the mysterious substance called Dust. Will and Lyra (and Lyra's daemon) join forces and travel between worlds, performing a mind-boggling multidimensional burglary, uncovering the ugly secrets of Cittagazze and gaining hold of an ancient and powerful weapon (the "subtle knife" of the title). Adding to the suspense are subplots involving Lyra's former companion, the Texan balloonist Lee Scoresby; the evil but beautiful Mrs. Coulter; the fierce Northern witch clans; and the mysterious Dr. Stanislaus Grumman. As in Golden Compass, the Arctic settings prove a strikingly original fantasy terrain. And where the first book hinted at a defective cosmology, this work develops that theme in terms of Judeo-Christian theology. Squeamish readers should beware: the narrative touches on such grisly topics as trepanning and genital mutilation. Nevertheless, the grandly exuberant storytelling is sure to enthrall. Ages 10-up.
September 9, 2002 Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy now appears in sophisticated trade paperback editions, each title embossed within a runic emblem of antiqued gold. The backdrop of The Golden Compass: His Dark Materials, Book I sports a midnight blue map of the cosmos with the zodiacal ram at its center. The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass carry similarly intriguing cover art, and all three titles offer details not seen in the originals: in Compass and Knife, for example, Pullman's stamp-size b&w art introduces each chapter; Spyglass chapters open with literary quotes from Blake, the Bible, Dickinson and more.
Publishers Weekly, Starred
"More than fulfilling the promise of The Golden Compass, this second volume starts off at a heart-thumping pace and never slows down....The grandly exuberant storytelling is sure to enthrall."
The Horn BookMagazine, Starred
"The intricacy of the plot is staggering. . . .There is no doubt that the work is stunningly ambitious, original, and fascinating."
Booklist, Starred
"The character development as well as the relentless pace . . . make this a resoundingly successful sequel . . . it will leave readers desperate for the next installment."
The Boston Globe
"A literary rollercoaster ride you won't want to miss."
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Classic themes of good versus evil, innocence versus experience intertwine with those of intrigue and deception, compassion and loyalty in this second volume of the fantasy trilogy HIS DARK MATERIALS. The audio production is equally well crafted. The clear, crisp tones of author/narrator Philip Pullman blend seamlessly with the multi-voiced cast of characters. From first to last, the actors bring the vivid landscape of personalities to life, while the phrases of music by composer Peter Pontzen, which introduce each chapter, add color and texture to the story's predominantly dark mood. The superb production of this fascinating fantasy epic makes it a heart-thumping listening adventure. J.J.F. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine
