The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials, Book 2) | Philip Pullman

The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials, Book 2) | Philip Pullman | Wonderful book, Wonderful Audio

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The Subtle Knife (...

	The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials, Book 2) Philip Pullman Laurel Leaf, 2003 - 304 pages average customer review:based on 635 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

WHAM! Here come the heavy hitters

And it is just so great to read a book and know, deep down, that it will be read again, and read to one's children and cherished. The first book opened the door and the second invited all the guests, so the third book is the party. But wow, what a richer, more nuanced world we have after the ~300 pages of The Subtle Knife. We find evil in children, Dust as dark matter and all of the lovely complexity that makes reading such a wonder and joy. And now we really know what Lord Asriel is up to, although Mrs. Coulter is still revealing surprises of her own. I should probably stop writing and start reading. One of the best fantasy series' ever, in the second rank under Tolkien and George R.R. Martin's Fire and Ice series.

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Wonderful book, Wonderful Audio

His Dark Materials series is wonderful. The characters the story, all of it is amazing. I had already read all of the books and decided to get the audio for a trip. I was surprised that the entire series in audio is with a full cast and is read by the author. All of the voices and narrative draw you in immediately. It feels like you are right there with the characters. I would highly recommend the books and the audio.

Much darker than first book - very enjoyable!!

While I miss my favorite battle hungry polar bear in book two...I got a whole dose of witches, knives, specters, hot air balloons and more :)

Really enjoying this series - I don't think I was expecting it to be as "dark and gloomy" as it was...And that's a positive!! Enjoying Lyra's journey, like the new character of Will (and all the twists and turns that brought the two of them together)...Can't wait to dig into book three!

Highly recommended!!

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Not comparable to other young people's fiction

While I might agree that Pullman is anti-authoritarian rather than anti-Catholic or anti-religious, it is the apparant amorality of the main characters that would prevent me from recommending this book to anyone other than an adult. Lyra and Will show little real understanding of the value of life, feelings of others and so on that can be found in the Harry Potter series or the Narnia Chronicles. If we could prove the existance of God, or an 'Authority', should our first response to our Creator be to destroy this entity? Given humanity's despoilation of this world, our endless wars and refusal to share resources does it follow that we are ready to be masters of all we preceive and should have no checks on ourselves? Pullman writes an engaging story but one that leaves me unable to truly care about characters who only on a superficial level care about others.

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Feels like a "middle book"

This is the middle volume of Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy. Lyra finds herself in a strange new world, and the witches and Lee Scorsby are making plans to find her. We meet Will, on the run from the law and searching for his father. Above everything is the subtle knife, highly sought after by both good and evil, and pivotal in the impending war.

While book 1 "The Golden Compass" ended up a thrilling, page-turning experience for me, I can't say the same thing about "The Subtle Knife." My biggest complaint is that it hits the same pitfalls as many middle installments do in recent cinematic trilogies - that is, it introduces new concepts and ideas, but saves their payoff for book 3 "The Amber Spyglass." The plot threads that do get resolution feel abrupt and unsatisfactory, and as a whole the novel fails to build any strong momentum and just ends in time for the obligatory cliffhanger where all hope is lost. Characters are seperated into various groups, and you spend the novel waiting for them to catch up with each other. Lord Asriel, the series' most intriguing character, only shows up briefly in a witch's account of what happened 'offscreen.'

I also don't like the way Lyra is portrayed now. I grew quite fond of her by the end of Golden Compass, but when we are introduced to her again from Will's perspective, she acts bratty, overconfident, and stuck-up. She grows back into the Lyra we love, but I never really formed that attachment again. This is more Will's book.

Finally, and this is my fault for forgetting Pullman's note at the beginning of Golden Compass, but I dislike how the alternate world they talk about in book 1 is actually "our" world. To go from the imaginative landscapes of book 1 to references to Coca-Cola and Burger King is quite jarring. Luckily Pullman keeps these references to a minimum, but as a whole I wish our reality hadn't been brought into things.

Overall "The Subtle Knife" is still a good read, but it's really just setting things up for "The Amber Spyglass." The war against the Authority is about to begin.

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