“I've heard from a friend that this book is used to destroy Christianity, and that Philip Pullman is a satanist. Is this true? ”
“Am I completely blind to not grasp any religious mumbo jumbo it this book? Aside from there souls living on the outside of there bodies and calling them daemons. It was just a story to me, It did not corupt my children into thinking that god didnt exsist. Hello People can we say FICTION”
“mr. wiley, you have committed a fallacy. i can't believe you would say atheists cannot achieve wonder, mystery, beauty, and wistfulness that characterizes great fantasy. kind of a broad statement, don't you think?just for you, c.r. wiley, i've composed a list of famous atheist writers that have achieved just what you said is impossible for an atheist to achieve. this is not only my opinion, but the opinion of most intelligent people.douglas adams, kurt vonnegut, h.p. lovecraft, isaac asimov, iain m. banks, arthur c. clarke, george eliot, ken follett, william golding, philip larkin, george orwell, terry pratchett, and philip pullman.please do not spout off stupid bullshit ever again. and you might say george eliot or kurt vonnegut don't write fantasy, but their writing still grips you more than half of the crap in fantasy sections of bookstores.”
“I think those who find Pullman's work skillful and artfully constructed are right -- it is. What they're missing is the heart of fantasy. They're never experiences Tolkien's eucatastrophe -- which makes me sorry for them. They've confused odd and fanciful settings and charcters for the evocative vision Tolkien wonderfully develops in his essay, On Fairy Stories. Those who criticize Pullman in a polemical way -- because he's an atheist -- miss too much and actually say too little. Pullman has written a mystery/thriller -- and called it a fantasy. The point is not whether atheists can write -- clearly many can -- or whether they can be entertaining, witty, or say some worthwhile things. The questions is whether what they write can produce that aesthetic experience of wonder, mystery, beauty, and wistfulness that characterizes great fantasy and I think the answer is clearly no. Those who would quibble on this point either have no idea what fantasy can achieve, or do not understand the metaphysical emptiness of atheism. ”
“this book is the best out of all of them. mostly cause it dosnt change perspectives and settings really fast”
“I've tried repeatedly to add "The Golden Compass" to my list. I'm using ISBN 978-0-440-23813-3 to locate it. It shows up fine some places, but reverts to "Northern Lights" when I try to get to it to write a review. What's going on, and who knows how to fix it?”
“I watched the movie before reading the book - not a good idea i know! The movie seemed a little rushed so i decided to read the book next and it was worth it. I was much more satisfied with this ending than that of the movie, i can not wait to read the second instalment.”
“As to the comment about Pullman being a jaded, ranting atheist, so what if he is? Do you realize how many jaded, ranting Christians are out there? I hate how we can embrace evil people as long as they say they are preaching "God's word" and yet when an intelligent, thoughtful man tries to write a story with a different message he gets ridiculed by us. Pullman's message isn't "listen to me I'm right because I'm an atheist." His message is think before you believe. Don't blindly trust evil people because they say pretty things. These books are beautiful.”
“yea brandi and kat are totally right. the series was indeed a very badass one. the first book really kicked it off. it made me want to read the other two without a doubt. Pullman wrote brilliantly in this book and all the others. a great fantasy book really.”
“I agree completely with Kat. It was just a wonderful book. Why bother trying to analyze it to death? Now, I was able to vaguely see the connection to Christianity in the movie, especially after all the controversy but that doesn't change how much I thoroughly enjoyed the series. If you can take the books at face value, they're wonderful and engaging adventures. If you want to read them because of the controversy, I suggest having an open mind and remembering that kids won't be able to make the connection by ANY stretch of the imagination.”
