The Subtle Knife: His Dark Materials Trilogy, Book 2

I've read 'His Dark Materials' trilogy in print and bought the audiobooks so I could listen and knit at the same time. It's great to hear Pullman's narration and the voice actors playing the characters are really good.

Just one complaint: why the Americanisations? Pullman did not write 'sidewalk' and 'traffic circle', he wrote 'pavement' and 'roundabout'. A minor but very annoying point.

Having watched and enjoyed the movie 'The Golden Compass' I heard many friends who had read the original books and expressed how much better they were than the film. I didn't realise how right they were! Fantastically written and brilliantly read by Mr Pullman himself this audiobook was truly a joy. The actors were all of the highest standard and the whole thing left me enraptured from start to finish. Top notch.

This is the second book in Philip Pullmans 'His Dark Materials' trilogy. I was worried that this couldn't in any way compare with the first book 'Northern Lights' which i throughly enjoyed. How wrong was i, this had me enthralled even more so!
Once again Pullman and the rest of the cast manage to draw you into the adventure so that you could actually be a daemon yourself!
The story spans a new world with new & old friends and enemies for Lyra, you are taken on a rollercoaster of an adventure which manages to shake your emotions on all levels.
The only downfall i can see is that i only have the last book now left to listen to, once i've listened to that i'll miss Lyra and her friends as it's a priviledge to be allowed on such an adventure.

The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman (Unabridged)

Summary & Review by Frances Darwin (Age 10 ?)

In this story William Parry leaves his mother to try and find his father, but he does not know that in a few weeks he will meet Lyra Silvertongue. Lyra and Will, with the help of the witches will set out on a perilous journey which will be blighted by Mrs. Coulter and her dangerous allies. In a world parallel to Will?s, called Cittagazze, he finds Lyra and they start their adventures. In Cittagazze there is a man who is holding the Subtle Knife Bearer hostage. Will and Lyra have to fight their way through to save the knife bearer, but Will does not know that the knife is waiting to be held by him. Will does not know that this knife will save him and Lyra numerous times in the near future. Lyra and Will set out to find Will?s father but they meet many dangers along the way. Along the way Lee Scoresby and Dr. Grumman are in the middle of a raging battle and only Grumman survives. Grumman just so happens to be the man Will was looking for. Soon the angels persuade him to abandon Lyra to go and bring Lord Asriel exactly what he needs to overthrow the authority. Meanwhile Lyra has been captured and taken to Mrs. Coulter?s camp a little way ahead of them??

Review

The actors did very well with the emotions of the characters. The actress playing Lyra sounds a little younger than I imagined her.

The story was very well narrated by Philip Pullman.

Philip Pullman was very good at describing what was happening, all the action!

Some of the sound was slightly muffled but it did not stop me from enjoying the audio book.

This dramastrised book is a fantastic story to listen to in the cars with the kids. Hand on heart I can say that the children are completely engrossed in the story and piece and quiet as soon as the story starts. My kids now ask for the story and also stay in the car till the chapter ends, so they don't miss anything .

Audible on the iPhone is a god send and would recommend everyone to download the app and enjoy the story and quiet while you drive. 150% fabulous

The His Dark Materials trilogy is an outstanding achievement and I'm very glad it's come to Audible. Philip Pullman narrates extremely well and the casting of individual characters, Lyra in particular, is spot on. Even my boyfriend, who barely reads at all and wouldn't have stuck with my paperback copies, can't get enough of these audiobooks. The only thing I didn't like was the use of distracting Americanisms like 'traffic circle' for 'roundabout' that aren't in my original paperbacks. Taken all together, these three books represent my best purchase from Audible and I can't recommend them highly enough.

In this second installment Philip Pullman manages to answer a few questions from the The Northern Lights and also opens up new ones for The Amber Spyglass. He does so by expanding the worlds and revealing the extent of his imagination. And it's all tightly knit together by strong characters and a fun and engaging story.

Having taken a while to get used to the storytelling style of the previous book with Pullman as the narrator and other actors as the individual characters, I found I was now fully immersed and simply enjoyed the story with Pullman's reading as engaging as all the other actors.

Highly recommended.

I am a huge Phillip Pullman fan and would rate the 'his dark materials' trilogy as amongst the best books I have ever read. The audio book, which is read by Phillip Pullman himself (with a cast of wonderful actors as company), is every bit as magical and spell-binding as the reading experience. The sheer beguiling wonder of the story and it's characters (child heroine and hero most noteably) would suffice to satisfy alone, however the potent philosophical and theological commentary lift this story into another stratosphere - making it simultaneously accessible, entertaining, moving, thought provoking and educational....and never condescending. Phillip Pullman is an honest and courageous writer for children and does not shy away from painful and dark subject matter nor seek to comfort in any way other than to present an arguement for how we can seek to overcome our flaws and that it is this aspiration which should cause our hearts to sing.

I read these books a few years ago so thought I would give the first book a try on Audible, this is so well put together like a stage production, with different voice actors for the characters really helped to draw you into the story and didnt make you grimace when some narrators try to do funny accents or different genders. Any way first book got me hooked books 2 and 3 were swiftly purchased. Although I swear the voice actor for Will changes in the final book which was a bit offputting for a few chapters. Still highly recommended.

If you've listened to the Northern Lights and enjoyed it then you probably won't need this review because you'll be doing as I did and working through the three. Whilst not as long as the first, and possibly not featuring the same tension due to laying the ground work for what is it to come, this is still an essential listen.