La Belle Sauvage: The Book of Dust Volume One

To me, this kind of feels like preparing us for the actual story in the next books, like building a conenction to Malcolm and knowing why he and Lyra are connected later. I found the whole journey a bit too long but all in all it was very sweet and I can't wait to read the next book :)

The other day I saw a cartoon in the New Yorker Magazine by Emily Flake about a creative writing class. The caption said: "So, in writing, there are six basic plots, and their sequels and derivative franchises." Not to forget their prequels which seem to become increasingly popular! Back in the day, I was deeply enchanted by His Dark Materials trilogy, and I am also excited to watch the brand new HBO/BBC series which looks very promising. Philip Pullman has created such an amazing parallel world; another "reality" seething with danger and adventure, with fairies, witches and all sorts of spirits. It's often highly philosophical. This prequel to the trilogy is a very classic and "very English" adventure story with many hair-raising events and situations. The villains are very very bad, and the good people sometimes leave doubts if their goodness is that thorough, which is adding to the spice. I often felt thrown back to Blyton's Adventure series where the food was usually given a lot of attention, although the children involved in this adventure hardly get anything but biscuits for their sustenance. It's also reminiscent of Eva Ibbotson and Arthur Ransome, and if you look at the cover of Swallows and Amazons (first published in 1930), it looks rather similar. In my eBook version, I was most surprised by the beautiful illustrations by Chris Wormell which my paperback copy doesn't have! They are the most delicate and intriguing wood engravings (or linocuts), also with a very classic retro feel to them. This modern classic, however, set right on the edge between childhood and adulthood, does not hold back. There are gruesome scenes, there is violence, even some sexual violence, and deaths. It basically means that the author takes his younger readers seriously rather than belittling them. Again, it's a fun read for everyone.