The Subtle Knife - Philip Pullman

The second in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy takes a giant step into cross-world politics, while keeping the story easy enough for kids to follow. The lead character, Lyra Belacqua, is joined in her quest by Will Parry, a boy who, it seems, also has a destiny to fulfill. Meanwhile, the rest of the heroes from the first book split off on other quests, all of which will eventually lead to the same end point. Every now and then, you read a book which gives you a feeling of being involved, that something new and exciting is just around the corner. The Subtle Knife does just this. Some unanswered questions from the first book, Northern Lights, are ...  Read the complete review

The Subtle Knife is the second of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, a truly epic adventure embracing religion, science and classic adventure. The series is very much one story broken into three books, rather than a set of interlinked, but essentially stand-alone stories, such as those of Narnia, or to a lesser extent, Harry Potter; as such, you'd really want to read Northern Lights before moving on to this or the third book, The Amber Spyglass. My review of the first book outlines some of the basic concepts of the trilogy more fully than I will here. ~ A Recap ~ In Northern Lights, our protagonist Lyra, and her dæmon (a physical ...  Read the complete review

How do you even begin to write about a book like this? A book so unlike any you have read before, a book so absorbing, so original, so intelligent and so magnificently written? A book that makes you want to rush home from work just so that you can pick it up again and find out what happens next? It's not any easy thing to do, I can tell you. I am sure that many people have been put off trying the His Dark Materials series (of which this is the second instalment) because it has been unfairly labelled as children's fiction; let me assure you that this is a story that works on many levels and is just as good for adults as it is for children. It is the best ...  Read the complete review

THE SUBTLE KNIFE is quite simply one of the best children's books you will ever read - literature to blow your mind, engrossing as nothing you've come across before. It is also one of the most subversive and mind-poisoning works of fiction you will encounter - material that aims to abuse children's psyches and manipulate their thinking. I have never had to write such a difficult op in my dooyoo lifespan. For this book, purely as a work of literature, for children or adults, gets my unqualified admiration. The language is simply incredible, the immediacy of its descriptions astounding, and the pace of its storytelling unbelievable. It ...  Read the complete review

The second book in the famous 'His Dark Materials' trilogy is certainly darker than the preceding novel. In 'Northern Lights' wild-child and apparent orphan Lyra Belacqua had to struggle against the adults she knew to try to save children who were going missing, and explore the mystery of dust. Now, in 'The Subtle Knife', Lyra moves between three worlds, each of which contains dangerous enemies who view her life - and death? - as crucial in fulfilling an old prophecy. As her pursuers close in, can Lyra discover the truth about dust - and her destiny? Pullman's series has been compared favourably to J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of ...  Read the complete review