Tag Archive: Philip Pullman


Of dæmons and dust

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January 23, 2021

The Book of Dust Volume 1 – ‘La Belle Sauvage’, was a prequel to Philip Pullman’s  ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy.  It told how, as a baby, Lyra Belacqua/Silvertongue was saved from the deadly agents of the Magisterium, an authoritarian church that has striking similarities to the Catholic Church.

‘The Secret Commonwealth’ not only follows on from the events of that novel but, since it jumps forward 20 years, it is also a sequel to the original trilogy.

Lyra is now a young adult, which may not necessarily be the case with the readers. Indeed, the website of Waterstones in the UK warns that, despite appearances to the contrary, this book is “Not suitable for younger readers”.

Philip Pullman has noticed that in recent public events his audience has consisted almost entirely of adults.  This is hardly surprising when you consider the whole saga began in 1995. If you first entered this fantasy world as a teenager, you would be in your 40s now. Continue reading →

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SOUL IN THE IRON

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November 8, 2013

THE IRON MAN by Ted Hughes, illustrated by Laura Carlin (Walker Books, 2010)

ironmanAt a recent British Library public discussion on Ideology in Children’s Literature, editor, and now independent publisher, David Finkling raised the question as to whether it is right to make a distinction between books for children and adults.

His point was that this largely arbitrary separation is often nothing more than a marketing tool which ignores the fact that many titles can and should be enjoyed by all ages.

This might not apply to Peppa Pig publications but is most certainly the case for Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy and Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, both of which were edited by Finkling.

Ted Hughes’ poetic creation The Iron Man has a message that isn’t confined to fledgling readers, nor has it anything in common with the Marvel comics’ superhero. Continue reading →

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HUNGER GAMES MOVIE HITS THE TARGET

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August 20, 2012

THE HUNGER GAMES directed by Gary Ross (USA, 2012)

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Evergreen

Katniss Evergreen takes aim.

As far as ‘young adult’ fantasy fiction is concerned, you only have to look at what a pig’s ear was made of the adaptation of Phillip Pullman’s Northern Lights for The Golden Compass to know that there’s never any guarantee that a great book will make a great movie.

So Suzanne Collins is probably pinching herself over the fact that director Gary Ross has brought her vision to the big screen with such style and assurance. Continue reading →

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JESUS CHRIST – MAN OR MESSIAH?

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August 24, 2011

The Good Man Jesus And The Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman

Philip Pullman hopes that his brief retelling of the life of Jesus Christ will encourage people to read, or re-read, the bible. It is not that he is interested in persuading sceptics to believe; more that he wants people to recognise the story’s power while also noting the inconsistencies and implausibility of many of the events documented.

How, for example could the scribes have known what happened in the wilderness. since the supposed son of God was alone at the time and as Pullman observes in the afterword: “Jesus does not tell stories about himself”.

In this short book, part of the Canongate ‘Myths’ series, Pullman imagines Jesus and Christ as two separate beings – “the man Jesus whom the Gospels talked about , and ……Christ, the Messiah, who featured more prominently in the Epistles”.

His point here is not to satirize or attack the biblical story but to speculate on how the original story came to be recorded. He shows how the ‘miracles’ were more likely to be the result of creative embellishment on the part of the writers  than accurate accounts of the actual events.

Continue reading →
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