A review by deborahplace
The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
3.0
3.5 Stars
I don't know where to start. As we saw in The Subtle Knife, Pullman continues to make bold, polarizing decisons I don't think I like. The hardly mentioned or fleshed out villains (Metatron, the President, Father Gomez), the all of a sudden change of hearts (Mrs. Coulter, Lord Asriel, Bathalmos), Mary Malone's mostly tedious arc, the world of the dead story line... As part of the mythology and symbolism, I enjoyed these elements, but in the story itself, I really struggled or feel torn.
And the ending... That is where I am torn most of all. What a tragic, yet hopeful ending. I'm a sucker for things like this. But as I mentioned in my last review, I felt Will's presence to dominate Lyra's in many cases. I like Will and I understand his importance, but some times, I feel Pullman's authorial hand too much and it doesn't feel organic as I would like it to be. However, I love Pullman's direction. It's very conflicting.
What a journey it has been reading the entire trilogy in 2 weeks. I loved crying on public transit more times than I'd like to admit while reading these books. I'm nervous about The Book of Dust and The Commonwealth College (is that what's it's called??), but I already miss this.
I don't know where to start. As we saw in The Subtle Knife, Pullman continues to make bold, polarizing decisons I don't think I like. The hardly mentioned or fleshed out villains (Metatron, the President, Father Gomez), the all of a sudden change of hearts (Mrs. Coulter, Lord Asriel, Bathalmos), Mary Malone's mostly tedious arc, the world of the dead story line... As part of the mythology and symbolism, I enjoyed these elements, but in the story itself, I really struggled or feel torn.
And the ending... That is where I am torn most of all. What a tragic, yet hopeful ending. I'm a sucker for things like this. But as I mentioned in my last review, I felt Will's presence to dominate Lyra's in many cases. I like Will and I understand his importance, but some times, I feel Pullman's authorial hand too much and it doesn't feel organic as I would like it to be. However, I love Pullman's direction. It's very conflicting.
What a journey it has been reading the entire trilogy in 2 weeks. I loved crying on public transit more times than I'd like to admit while reading these books. I'm nervous about The Book of Dust and The Commonwealth College (is that what's it's called??), but I already miss this.