From the Bookshelf of Crazy Challenge Connection…
Find A Copy At
Group Discussions About This Book
No group discussions for this book yet.
What Members Thought
I'm doing a challenge to read more books from varied years and this one had been on my list to read forever - and I'm so glad that my challenge "forced" me to finally pick it up! A real fantasy gem that entirely appeals to me. You've got a plucky and stubborn young heroine set in an alternate Victorian England (plus other places) - it's basically Victorian England except that all humans have "daemons", which are like animal familiars. And magic and science are both as real as the other.
This boo ...more
This boo ...more
I'm slightly apprehensive about reviewing this book because it was completely different from what I expected after I heard a lot of things about it.
The difficult thing with a novel written as a travelogue is that it depends on whether you enjoyed the entire journey.
I didn't. I enjoyed the demons, Oxford, the Gyptians, Lee and the witches, but not much else. I also didn't get Lyra's reactions at some points, and I certainly didn't enjoy the way the problem with Lyras' parents was resolved in the ...more
The difficult thing with a novel written as a travelogue is that it depends on whether you enjoyed the entire journey.
I didn't. I enjoyed the demons, Oxford, the Gyptians, Lee and the witches, but not much else. I also didn't get Lyra's reactions at some points, and I certainly didn't enjoy the way the problem with Lyras' parents was resolved in the ...more
What an action packed adventure! Lyra is the daughter of two highly ambitious and ruthless parents who are consumed with the mystery of "dust". Believing that she is an orphan watched over by her uncle and scholars, Lyra discovers the truth as her mother seeks to control her while kidnapping children and separating them from their daemons which usually kills both of them. Spawning efforts to rescue the children she makes many friends, all of whom she leaves behind when she follows her father int
...more
What I really liked about this book was Lyra, the female barely-teenage protagonist. She's grown up in Oxford, and is drawn far away, into circles of people and creatures very different from what she's known. Watching the plot unfold meant seeing how Lyra would deal with each of the difficult situations she encountered, and she never failed in her forthrightness and resourcefulness, combined with an endearing naivete. I was also fascinated by the concept of humans each having their own daemons (
...more
I'm not into fantasy, but I thoroughly enjoyed this story and look forward to reading the second book
...more
Hard to get into.
I can't believe I hadn't read this yet. Definitely entertaining. I loved the polar bear Iorek Byrnison and the concept of the alethiometer.
Looking forward to the next one. ...more
Looking forward to the next one. ...more
Mar 01, 2010
April D
marked it as to-read
May 04, 2010
Madge
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
middle-grade-children,
fantasy
May 08, 2011
Rachel
marked it as to-read
Feb 14, 2014
Connie N.
marked it as to-read
Nov 14, 2014
Delitealex
marked it as to-read
Dec 20, 2015
Amy ~Lover of Books~
marked it as to-read
