BOOKs: His Dark Materials etc - Philip Pullman

Title: His Dark Materials
Author: Philip Pullman
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Laurel-Leaf books
Pages: trilogy, 3 paperbacks:

Northern Lights (The Golden Compass in USA!), pages: 351

The Subtle Knife, pages: 288

The Amber Spyglass, pages: 465

Language: English
Rating: 7/10

Summary: His Dark Materials is a trilogy of fantasy novels and follows the coming-of-age of two children from different worlds, Lyra and Will, as they wander through a series of parallel universes against a backdrop of epic events.

Extended summaries of each book + spoilerfree reviews
It's impossible to give a comprehensive summary without spoiling any of the surprising events and inventions in the books, so this might seem incoherent and incomplete, but I don't want to give anything essential away.

The first book -called The Golden Compass in the US, but originally titled Northern Lights- is about Lyra, a young girl who lives in an alternative world not unlike our own, but different mostly because people have compagnions in the shape of an animal, known as daemons. Lyra's animal spirit is not settled yet, his name is Pantalaimon and they have a strong bond. When Lyra learns about a scheme to seperate children from their daemons, she decides to find out more about the grown-ups who are so very obsessed with the innocent spirits of children.

The second book -The Subtle Knife- starts in our own known world with Will, a young boy who needs a place to hide and stumbles upon an entry into a parallel universe. Eventually he meets Lyra and they join forces to fight the people that hurt the children from Lyra's world.

In the final book -The Amber Spyglass- revelations are made about the why and how of the operation. It seems like whatever solution Lyra and Will come up with to stop the wrongdoings, it will change the future of all the universes for ever.

I'm not a fan of the fantasy-genre; it takes a lot of persuasion to make me try a book in this category. I was lured into trying His Dark Materials after reading about the religious perspective or rather the promise of an atheist point of view towards fantasy. At the time this was an issue that was very important to me and I was just finding out how many people actually share my non religious outlook on life.

Although I was a bit worried about people talking to animals -and more importantly those animals talking back- I was intruiged to find out what the fuss about these books was all about.
And despite my discomfort with the relationship between the characters and their daemons, I soon found myself lost in the complicated (alternative) world of Oxford and Lyra's mysterious family and friends.

I must admit I only got really into the story once violence was introduced. The way Philip Pullman describes a fight was pleasantly intense for what is intentionally a children's book. There is blood and disaster and death all around. Even in more heavily doses than the well known Harry Potter books. I loved it.

Now don't get me wrong: that violence has nothing to do with the atheist part of the books. Truth be told to me the only obvious link to (non) religion are the run ins Lyla has with the church in her world. It is clear that organisation is very much in control and in charge of the government. But to me that didn't seem very different from our own world. I think you can easily read the story without even giving that issue a second thought.
Obviously there are a lot of people who have different opinions about that. It was not until after I read the books and did some research for this review that I found out what deeper meaning might be hidden in the books. Supposedly there is an atheist agenda that is supported by this story. If you are curious to know more about this, just google 'Pullman'/'atheist'/'dark materials' and your eyes will be opened. (Notice my sarcasm. Oh please, notice the sarcasm)
Here I'll just copy part of a review that summs up why I eventually fell for these books.

"In a visual world it is all too easy to let others take over your imagination. You accept other peoples' visions as your own. It is convenient, easy, saves your effort but in effect makes your creative abilities go first numb and then dead. This is a book which may help re-awaken what you might have forgotten ever having. Or what you never had, brought up in front of a TV screen.
It would be a spoiler to give out any hints about the content - anyway, it is too complex to be summed up in a review in any but a ridiculous way. The important part is that Pullman creates a whole new world in his book, a world at an angle to ours and he gives you a chance to join him in the trip this book is, imagining the world he describes. If the book had nothing more to offer (and it is hardly the case) this alone would make it a perfect choice."

There you have it: if you are into fantasy, you should definitely get these books. If you are like me and are apprehensive of the genre, this might be the perfect introduction. You should give it a try. The only reason the 7/10 is not an 8 is because of my personal issue with the talking animals *g*.


Title: Once Upon A Time In The North
Author: Philip Pullman
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Random House
Pages: 100
Language: English
Rating: 7/10
Summary: Another glimpse into the world of His Dark Materials; it's 35 years before the trilogy, and young aeronaut Lee Scoresby arrives in the North, looking for work and adventure. When he learns about a corrupt corporation and a sleazy politician who are obstructing a schooner's Captain from claiming his own cargo, Lee throws himself recklessly onto the side of good, operating on instinct and fearlessness. He finds an ally in armored bear Iorek Byrnison.

Short spoilerfree review
This booklet is awesome for those who've read His Dark Materials and want to know more about how much loved characters Lee and Iorek met. It's a short story, but it comes with some great extras for fans of the original novels, such as newspaperclippings and letters between characters, that give extra background information.


Title: Lyra's Oxford
Author: Philip Pullman
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Random House
Pages: 50
Language: English
Rating: 7/10

Summary: A short story set a couple of years after trilogy His Dark Materials, accompanied by all sorts of goodies from that fascinating universe, like a fold-out map of the alternate-reality city of Oxford.
Lyra and Pantalaimon rescue a witch's daemon being pursued by a frenzied pack of birds. The daemon tells them he is seeking an alchemist. Lyra and Pan try to guide the daemon to the home of this man, but it is a journey fraught with more danger than they had at first anticipated.

Short spoilerfree review
This is not really a follow up to His Dark Materials, but more a stand alone story that happens afterwards. Not as informative as I had hoped; fun for those people who loved Lyra the most and want to know how she dealed after the events of the original novels. I liked the extras that came with this booklet and the story was exciting, but not particularly satisfying to me.

Quick reviews: Nilgün Yerli & Hugo Claus

Title: Weg Van Nederland
(Away from/Nuts about The Netherlands)
Author: Nilgün Yerli
Genre: Short Story
Publisher: B for Books
Pages: Hardcover, 62
Language: Dutch
Rating: 6,5/10

Summary: A couple of columns and a short story written especially for this series of tiny booklets that are published to introduce people to reading. Nilgün Yerli tells us what it’s like living in The Netherlands, while not being born there.

Review
I was not impressed by these short stories. They read like essays for a school-assignment. A highschool-assignment. I didn’t learn anything new and insightful. A failed attempt to make me care.


Title: Een Slaapwandeling (Sleepwalking)
Author: Hugo Claus
Genre: Short Story
Publisher: De Bijenkorf 2000
Pages: Paperback, 73
Language: Dutch
Rating: 8/10

Summary: Luc is sleepwalking through the long hallways of his deteriorating mind. (I know. I’m sorry. Taken from the backcover;)

Review
It’s a good thing the title already explains Luc’s state of mind, otherwise this story would be very confusing. Although it starts rather normal with small talk in the kitchen, where he tells his wife about his morning. Meeting an old friend triggers memories and those force Luc to wander around through the past and present trying to find answers to questions long forgotten. (See, what this story made me do?) Well written and enjoyable, even if the structure feels a little ‘done before’.

Title: De Zwaardvis (The Swordfish)
Author: Hugo Claus
Genre: Short Story
Publisher: De Bezige Bij 1989
Pages: Paperback, 95
Language: Dutch
Rating: 7,5/10

Summary: A young divorcee and her messed up kid, a small town teacher and a drunk handyman, who used to be a respected veterinarian. Four points of view on the events during one slow summerday in the country. Someone has commited a crime, but it’s not clear who the real victim is.

Review
A reread from the eighties, that had left me apprehensive of Hugo Claus’ writing. I have forgotten why; I thought it was because of his foul language, but to my surprise this book has nothing of the shocking sort. Not that filth isn’t something I could have handled, but I remember labeling him as some kind of disgusting writer. Maybe my opinion was based on an interview, maybe i was just in a bad mood when I read the book back then. Either way: it’s time to admit my mistake.
This is an intruiging story about misunderstanding and lust. What a lovely combination. Not one character comes away with their behavior. I was especially hit by the thoughts of little kid Maarten, who is severely indoctrinated by a religious teacher (not the one telling part of the story). The way he regards his mother after learning about sin is very disturbing. But most of the characters left me a little shaken. Human nature at its worst. Just as I suspect people to be.

B for Books: four quick reviews

Title: De Perfecte Partner (The Perfect Partner)
Author: Esther Verhoef
Genre: Short Story
Publisher: B for Books
Pages: Hardcover 46
Language: Dutch
Rating: 5/10

Summary: Claudia is obsessed by plastic surgery and more specifically famous surgeon Marc Wagner. He loves to operate on her. She thinks it's love.

Spoilerish review
Maybe I'm prejudiced against people who go for plastic surgery merely for aesthetic reasons, but I thought this was very cliche. I didn't like Claudia from the start, no matter if Dr. Wagner is made to be the bad guy here. The question whether he not only screwed with her body, but also her mind is not relevant. The fact that in the end she doubts what actually happened between them outside the operatingroom (did she imagine their relationship?) simply confirms my belief that she wasn't very stable to begin with.


Title: Stikvallei (Choke Valley)
Author: Frank Westerman
Genre: Short Story
Publisher: B for Books
Pages: Hardcover 59
Language: Dutch
Rating: 6/10

Summary: Fumes from a craterlake in the highlands of Cameroon kill hundreds of people and animals. Volcanologist Haraldur Sigurdsson wants to find out what happened. Was there a vulcanic eruption or did the government allow nuclear testing, as the rumour among the survivors suggests?

Spoilerfree review
The story starts as lesson in history and mentions more occasions of toxic fumes before trying to seperate facts from fiction. This educational tone in combination with the introduction of many characters made it hard to care for the cause. Despite the intriguing whispers about a conspiracy I wasn't drawn in. This event deserved a more in depth investigation.


Title: Eerder Thuis Dan Townes (Home Before Townes)
Author: P.F. Thomese
Genre: Short Stories
Publisher: B for Books
Pages: Hardcover 46
Language: Dutch
Rating: 7.5/10

Summary: Two stories about roadtrips with J. Kessels. In the first one the men end up in the seedy nightlife in Hamburg. The second story has them travelling to a small town somewhere in the Netherlands to an obscure concert by Bluessinger Townes.

Spoilerfree review
Written from the point of view of an unnamed author, who obviously has a manly crush on J. Kessels in all his grumpy glory. I'm not a fan of this unpredictable character. He's a man with no regard for his travelcompanion and wants things done his way. However: the adventures of the two men are amusing and -sadly- recognisable. They drift trough towns without directions, and end up meeting people they'd rather not have or -even better- dreamed about spending time with. Yeah, I've been there. It was just as (un)cool without the drinking and the smoking. I prefer my own sober experiences, even if I love P.F. Thomese's writing.

Interested in P.F. Thomese? I wrote a review of his book Shadow Child earlier.


Title: De Grammatica Van Een Niemand (The Grammar of a Nobody)
Author: Abdelkader Benali
Genre: Short Story
Publisher: B for Books
Pages: Hardcover 46
Language: Dutch
Rating: 7/10

Summary: The Writer (who refers to himself by his profession and is the Nobody in the title) travels back to the small town in Morocco where he was born. While he remembers his childhood and moving to the Netherlands, he gradually accepts who his is to his family and to himself.

Spoilerfree reviewThis seems like a personal story, but by using the third person point of view it feels rather detached. I guess that is exactly what the writer was going for, but I already had problems relating to his feelings and the style only pushed me farther away. But in the end I did get a good impression of what it must be like for a foreing person to have to adjust to an unknown society. Mission accomplished.

FYI: Abdelkader Benali first novel Wedding By The Sea has been internationally praised and is still available in lots of languages.