Later, Lee follows a boarding house acquaintance to a fiery political rally for mayoral candidate, Ivan Dimitrovich Poliakov. Enamored with the candidate's beautiful but ditzy daughter, Lee agrees to meet with Poliakov about an employment opportunity. He's almost sold on the deal, until he sees that Poliakov has hired a trained killer (and former acquaintance of Lee), one Mr. Morton (aka Pierre McConville).

Lee turns down the job and makes plans instead to help Captain van Breda free his cargo from the warehouse where it's being held by Poliakov and his men (including McConville). Iorek Byrnison overhears Lee's plan and decides to join in the assault on the warehouse (he resents Poliakov's anti-bear campaign).

A bloody battle ensues, and this, of course, is where Scoresby and Byrnison are at their best. They quickly gain each other's respect and start what ends up as a lifelong friendship.

Like Lyra's Oxford, this novella provides a unique glimpse into the His Dark Materials' verse. The volume includes sweet engravings by John Lawrence and a pull-out board game, Peril of the Pole. Overall, a must-read for diehard fans.

DweebMeter: 4.5/5

Links

CBBC Newsround Review of this book

Once Upon a Time on Wikipedia

Philip Pullman's Website

Pullman has also mentioned two other possible companion books to the His Dark Materials trilogy: The Book of Dust (now underway according to Wikipedia) and a green book about Will Parry (to contrast the red book about Lyra, aka Lyra's Oxford).

Check out an extract from Once Upon a Time from the Guardian.

Wikipedia Article on Once Upon a Time in the North

Sin ningun orden en particular:

                         Yoshi

                         Gizmo

Cualquier Pitufo

                               Alf

                         Iorek Byrnison

¿Cuál es tu lista?

Director: Chris Weitz

Rating: 6.5/10

This movie could have been so much more. But though mired by uneven production design and non-uniform pacing, it nevertheless is a superior film to much of the fantasy fare released recently (save for Stardust). The Golden Compass is based on Northern Lights, the first book in His Dark Materials, a fantasy trilogy by Philip Pullman. However the movie will not, in all likelihood, spawn a sequel.

A young girl named Lyra Belacqua (Dakota Blue Richards) is given an Alethiometer, which is a compass that guides one to the truth. Her uncle Lord Asriel (Daniel Craig) is an explorer of sorts. She lives in a world ruled over by Magisterium, an oppressive religious group. In this world, the soul of a person walks besides him as animal avatars named dæmons. And she must use the compass, and an assortment of characters on her way to find a friend who was kidnapped and taken to the 'North.' She must escape from the Magisterium and the watchful eyes of Mrs. Coulter (Nicole Kidman in a cold and sinister performance). She has allies- the Gyptians and an armoured polar bear named Iorek Byrnison (voiced by fantasy staple Ian McKellen). What follows is an epic adventure with magic, witches (lead by the delicious Eva Green as Serafina Pekkala), massive polar bear fights, a flying ship and veiled metaphors alluding to the Catholic Church.

My problems with the film are mainly due to disjoint scenes. The plot is entirely driven by deus ex machina, wherein at every point of conflict in the narrative, some object, character or plot device comes to the rescue of Lyra. However, the film did keep me engaged. And in the end, I did wish to see a sequel. What this film has going for it are the wonderful characters and the actors playing them. The color palette for the film is vibrant, and the cinematography is aptly over the top. The disjointedness of the narrative comes because of lackluster production design. At times the sets do not fit in with the overall mood of the film. And sometimes it feels too kitschy.

Despite it's flaws, I enjoyed the fare. But it's nothing more than a pleasant distraction.

It's not bad, as these things go. Fairly far removed from HDM, but us cynics expect that. Nicely written and would at least tempt me to see the film, if I didn't already want to do so. It also gives a taster of how things have changed in the film, which again is only to be expected. I hope this freebie will find a whole new fan base for HDM and Pullman books in general.

This witch is off to Oxford, again, with the nerdy Son in tow. We have tickets for Philip's fundraising event for the Pegasus theatre. Will let you know how it goes.

At the same time, Mary Malone, the expert in dark matter, travels through the world of Cittagazze and into a strange new world populated by antelope-like creatures, called mulefa, who travel on wheels and have human consciousness. In this world, Mary discovers the true nature of Dust. She forges the amber spyglass, which allows her to see Dust, and finds that all of the Dust is being sucked out of the world, causing the end of human consciousness.

http://www.useless69.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/pages/mulefa.html

Meanwhile, Lyra and Will have set out on a mission to the land of the dead so that Lyra can apologize to Roger, the boy whose death she caused, and Will can see his father, John Parry, again. In order to enter the world of the dead, Lyra and Roger must leave their daemon's behind and meet their own deaths. In the end, they realize they have a greater purpose in this world.

Back at Lord Asriel's castle, war wages between the forces of the Authority and Asriel's armies. Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter have realized that Lyra will determine the fate of the battle. They fight Metatron, the Regent for the dying Authority, in a final attempt to save Lyra's life. In the land of the mulefa, Lyra and Will finally meet the "serpent," Mary Malone, who will awaken them to the temptation that will decide the fate of all humankind. Will they make the right choice? Or will all of the Dust go out of the world forever?

Pullman has crafted a masterful universe suffused with deep human truths. This is one of my favorite books of all time. I cannot say enough good things about it. In 2001, Pullman became the first children's author to ever win the prestigious Whitbread prize for literature for The Amber Spyglass. (Read the Guardian article about Pullman's victory).

DweebMeter: 5/5

Philip Pullman's Website

Amber Spyglass on Wikipedia

Random House Info on His Dark Materials

Golden Compass Movie Info

Books about His Dark Materials:
2007. The Rough Guide to His Dark Materials.

Colbert, David. 2006. The Magical Worlds of Philip Pullman.

Freitas, Donna. 2007. Killing the Imposter God: Philip Pullman's Spiritual Imagination in His Dark Materials.

Frost, Laurie. 2006. The Elements of His Dark Materials.

Gresh, Lois. October 30, 2007. Exploring Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials: An Unauthorized Adventure Through The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass .

Gribbin, John and Mary Gribbin. 2005. The Science of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials .

Lenz, Millicent. 2005. His Dark Materials Illuminated: Critical Essays On Philip Pullman's Trilogy.

Squires, Claire. 2006. Philip Pullman, Master Storyteller: A Guide to the Worlds of His Dark Materials.

Wheat, Leonard F. 2007. Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials: A Multiple Allegory: Attacking Religious Superstition in the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Paradise Lost.

Yeffeth, Glenn. 2005. Navigating the Golden Compass: Religion, Science and Daemonology in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials (Smart Pop series).

The Golden Compass

Plot for those who haven't read the book yet:

The story is set in a parallel universe, where the "souls" of humans stand next to them as their daemons (familiars). Lyra Belacqua is a young lady growing up in the most prestigious college in Oxford, Jordan College. Her parents were killed in an airship accident, and her uncle, Lord Asriel is a famous scholar in Jordan College and an explorer. Lyra is taught sporadically by Master and other scholars in the college, and is growing up to be rebellious, fearless (and almost barbarous) child. But there is trouble afoot, in the guise of "Gobblers" who are kidnapping children across England, one of them being Roger, Lyra's best friend.

Lyra meets the charming Mrs. Coulter, who takes her up to London. Lyra is supposed to be Mrs. Coulter's assistant, and accompany her on her trip to North (where Lyra hopes she will meet Lord Asriel). But Lyra starts finding out hidden depths in Mrs. Coulter. When Mrs. Coulter finds out that Lyra was entrusted with an alethiometer (known as "golden compass", which is supposed to help you learn the "truth") by the Master of Jordan College, her reaction forces Lyra and her daemon to run away.

Lyra is taken by gyptians who have been following her from Oxford, and learns that gyptians are gathering their forces to rescue the children kidnapped by Gobblers (who Lyra knows by now are connected to Magisterium). She goes to North with gyptians to help rescue her friend Roger. On the way to North, she meets the queen of witches, Serafina Pekkala, an airship captain called Lee Scoresby and Iorek Byrnison, an armoured bear. She also starts learning to use alethiometer, although nobody knows how exactly it works.

Lyra helps the exiled Iorek Byrnison gain his rightful place among the armoured bears, and gains his help for their cause. They go to rescue children held in a station, guarded by Bolvangar armymen with fox daemons. While fighting Lyra learns that Lord Asriel may be in mortal danger, and goes ahead with her companions to save him.

In the movie, Dakota Blue Richards is very good as the rebellious, fearless, devious and curious (over-curious?) Lyra. The only thing is that her look of fear does not suit her properly (it looked to me more coy than afraid). Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel does look like a powerful man, as a scholar and explorer with political connections. Nicole Kidman as Mrs. Coulter is also perfectly cast, charming and dangerous at the same time.

From what I have read of the book, the movie is not so different. The mention of "Dust" (the cosmic uncharged particles which "connect" different universes) may be slightly reduced from the book. Lyra makes the "discoveries" on her own, or gets information (about her parents, about gobblers etc.) from other sources than in the book. She does start using the alethiometer perfectly almost magically, not start understanding it slowly. Yes, the Magisterium (the church, or what stands for church) is corrupt and power-hungry, but the anti-theocratic message for which the books are "renowned" seems to be much muted (or at least, it seemed to me). But at least, the changes made will not raise the hackles of the readers, as they don't take away much from the main storyline.

The universe does have zeppelins and ships working on "atomcrafts", with old-school buildings of Jordan College and majestic "London" vistas, and magnificent stretches of ice on the North pole. All these are beautifully created. But don't compare the movie to Lord of the Rings, at least not in battle scenes (Is it just me or did the Bolvangars look like computer animations?). As a fantasy tale, the movie is pretty good, easily understandable even if you haven't read the books.

Before I finish, there really are circles (or spheres) in every scene, right?

P.S. I saw the trailer of "Inkheart" before the movie. Didn't know this book was also coming out as a movie. Must move it up my list of to-be-reads.

Quote of The Day:

It's an alethiometer. It tells the truth. You are meant to have it.
- The Master of Jordan College

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- Also cross-posted on Desicritics

People of the book

BY ZACK SMITH

Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards) with Iorek, the armored polar bear, in The Golden Compass Photo courtesy of New Line Cinema

The Golden Compass is likely to be controversial, and not just due to the well-publicized boycott by the Catholic League. This adaptation of Philip Pullman's 1995 novel, the first in his trilogy His Dark Materials, is well-acted and features gorgeous set design yet often holds back on the story's darker elements, including the heartbreaking cliffhanger. For all its considerable achievements, writer/director Chris Weitz and his collaborators play it safe, not just with the religious aspects but with the story as a whole. The neutering of Pullman's most pointed atheistic and anticlerical themes raises the possibility that the book's most fervent fans may be the ones who get angry.

Full review here.