Northern Lights - Part Two: Bolvangar

Inhoud

Read by Philip Pullman and full cast. 3 cassettes complete and unabridged. Playing time 3 hours 49 minutes approx. Winner of the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian Award.
In the company of the gyptians, Lyra travels to the bleak splendour of the North, where armoured bears rule the ice and witch-queens fly through the frozen skies. Bearing a rare thruth-telling compass, she goes in search of Roger and the other lost children - to Bolvangar, the field of evil, where a team of scientists is conducting experiments too horrible to be spoken about.

Bespreking

Welcome to Lyra's magical world

In a world, not that different from ours, lives an 11-year-olf girl with the name of Lyra Belacqua. Like every human in that world she possesses a personal daemon that protects and guides her through life. As an orphan she was taken under the guidance of Lord Asriel, who did send her to Jordan College in Oxford for her education. But something is clearly amiss when she secretly witnesses a special gathering in which Lord Asriel plays a remarkable role. Although Lyra does not understand what they are talking about, she is overwhelmed by curiosity to find out more about the main topic of that meeting: the Dust. When later children start to disappear, Lyra starts to suspect that it might all be linked to the Dust.

Northern Lights is the first part of the His Dark Materials-trilogy and this becomes very obvious while reading the book. The story-line in itself is mainly the glue that holds together the introduction of the characters and the description of the remarkable universe they're living in. But in no way does this hinder the enjoyment of the book. Philip Pullman overwhelms the reader with such a fantastic narrative that it is hard to stop reading. It is a real treat to find yourself cut of from all daily troubles and to dive into the beautiful and unforgettable magic of Lyra Belacqua.

Not yet having read the second part of His Dark Materials, I am sure that in that part the story will get up to speed and the thrill of Lyra's quest will be even more enthralling. Needless to say that that book is already lying on my nightstand.