Both by Philip Pullman.
Books 2 & 3 of the 'His Dark Materials' trilogy.
Spoilers ahead. Be warned.
Well, I have to say it straight. I'm not impressed. When ever the story would begin to show promise, Pullman would go off the tacky scale again and I'd have to put the book down for a while and go do somethng else. The last half a novel in particular was difficult to chew through.
(By the way, they're making the first book into the next big CGI fest and thats where the above image came from.)
A lot of people really love these books so they must have some appeal somewhere but I felt cheated. I'd been told these were steampunk in genre but they're not. At least not in any sense of the word I understand. The first book reminded me of CS Lewis and the impression was only strengthened with the other two. Pullman kept on swerving off into pseudo spirituality until finally his story reached a half hearted promethean crescendo and sprouted wings. The only thing missing was a heavenly choir.
There was a lot of missing logic too. Things happened for no apparent reason. The principle charachers (who were set up as the next Adam and Eve) saved the world, but how? It is never explained just how understanding they were in love with each other would save the universe. Why them? And just how did 'the temptress' actually tempt them? She didn't do anything at all. None of it made sense.
Worst of all perhaps was the ending. What an anti climax! Just what was the narrative purpose of Lyra and Wills love if it was doomed from the get go? What kind of love is it that can 'save the universe' but can't bear the thought of probably only surviving ten years? I hate this kind of ending. Its nothing but the same sort of crude emotional manipulation you find in soap opera's. You struggle through three very long novels to get to the point where love is denied, and the girl chooses to go to university instead???
Wow. What an Earth shattering love...
I'll tell you what love really is. Its dying happy in your sick bed for the ten good years you had together rather than being single and lonely and 'well educated' for sixty years and then dying in your sick bed.
2/5
edited to add:
Here is a trailer to 'The Golden Compass', which is the US title of the first book. Judging from this, the film looks to be way more 'steam punk' in style than the book is and it looks awesome.
2 comments:
The trailer looks very different to the worlds I had imagined. Lyra's Oxford, in my mind, had a more "Edwardian" feel to it. the knife must be subtle (hence the name?) with no bright light as it slices between realaties.
As for the books I guess I can't have analyized as much as you. for me it was just a good read and a story.
My propensity for complaining has risen exponentially as I grew older, but in most cases I can be pretty forgiving. These books were too 'easy' for me though. Everything was too convenient and I couldn't suspend my disbelief because the internal logic of the story kept failing itself.
Also I never managed to connect with the charaters because all the time I was aware of the author's presence which rendered them as marionets.
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