From: Robin L. Gibson <gibsonro>
Date: Sat, 05 May 2001 14:16:12 -0700

I am thoroughly enjoying this discussion -- it's hard to know where to begin to jump in! I too found Lyra to be one of the most compelling heroines I've ever met with. I didn't have a problem with Pullman's not explaining how the daemons worked; I just accepted them. As with the small dragons Menolly discovers on Pern in Anne McCaffrey's series, I see the daemons as something that would be so appealing and attractive to children
-- wouldn't you love to have one of your own? Better than a pet, and to always have a companion, never feel lonely . . . what an appealing idea.

I first listened to the Golden Compass on tape -- read by the author himself, and I think this made it easier for me to get into them; I never had to question how to pronounce Pantalaimon, or that type of thing (things I actually stop and think about while reading -- which interrupt the process of getting absorbed in something.) I highly recommend the audio version. Pullman is a wonderful reader. I sat in the car, in the garage some nights -- I just couldn't turn it off!!

I also screamed at some of the books -- especially the so?lled ending of the Subtle Knife. It drove me crazy -- there was no end!!! I also ranted
(good-naturedly, I assure you) at Pullman for working on other things (the fun I was a Rat) . . . when he should have been finishing Amber Spyglass!!!

The question of age and appropriateness is an interesting one. I thought it was sad that the teacher who read it aloud to her class said she might not do so now, because of the later books . . . The books do progress, it seems to me. Still, we shelve The Golden Compass in our J fiction, because this is the age group I think it works for, and the later two in YA. Golden Compass can pretty well stand alone, but Subtle Knife most certainly can't, and Amber Spyglass needs the first two to be truly appreciated. Maybe some children find it particularly appealing because it is complex and challenging -- Pullman doesn't write down to children. And my husband, a physics professor and more of a science fiction reader than myself, found them quite compelling and enjoyable as well.

Oh how I am relishing this discussion -- and all the views expressed! Robin


&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&* Robin L. Gibson gibsonro at oplin.lib.oh.us Youth Services Coordinator 740/342A94 Perry County District Library 117 S Jackson St New Lexington OH 43764
Received on Sat 05 May 2001 04:16:12 PM CDT