A review by sonofatreus
The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman
4.0
Even though this book takes place entirely before His Dark Materials, I imagine it would still be best read after reading HDM. It does very little explaining how the world works (what's a daemon, what various technologies are, etc.), but this sort of thing is done in HDM. Instead, La Belle Sauvage takes most of this for granted. Nevertheless, there is still some new world building (there are fairies and river gods/spirits!). We see some characters that appear in HDM, including Lyra, Lord Asriel, and Mrs. Coulter. We get further demonstration and explanation of the alethiometer(s). These all make La Bella Sauvage read like a nice companion to HDM.
But, at the end of the day, this is the first of a new (planned) trilogy. The new world building described above does a good job bridging between already established characters and stories while still creating room for new characters and new stories to expand. I was worried heading in that this book might have too much nostalgia for the original series, or too many 'clever' nods. I am happy to have been wrong on this matter. The new characters are wonderful (I love Malcom almost as much as Lyra from before; Alice certainly more than Will). The story felt natural and worth telling. Having finished, I now feel like I have a fuller understanding both of Lyra's own life and the world she inhabits.
But, at the end of the day, this is the first of a new (planned) trilogy. The new world building described above does a good job bridging between already established characters and stories while still creating room for new characters and new stories to expand. I was worried heading in that this book might have too much nostalgia for the original series, or too many 'clever' nods. I am happy to have been wrong on this matter. The new characters are wonderful (I love Malcom almost as much as Lyra from before; Alice certainly more than Will). The story felt natural and worth telling. Having finished, I now feel like I have a fuller understanding both of Lyra's own life and the world she inhabits.