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His Dark Materials, Northern Lights by Philip Pullman - Review

   The first volume of the trilogy His Dark Materials, Northern Lights, by Philip Pullman is a young-adult fantasy novel that also covers extensive topics such as morality, power, religion, and the social hierarchy. Being set in the mid-90s and taking place in a parallel-universe is a major factor that enhances the story-line in the first book of the trilogy.

   Furthermore, Pullman has used several familiar places and ideas to leave an element to connect with in this fantasy driven story. A major example being the Oxford College that is introduced through Lyra’s adventures at the beginning of the book. Through this it is seen that Lyra has a deep connection to this area (Jordan College and Oxford College) as she calls this her home. However, as the story progresses there is a distance created between Lyra and her so-called home as she discovers more and more about the history and the future of the universe she is living in. 

   The story is a third person narrative allowing the reader to simultaneously keep track of all the characters most of the time. Moreover, this has caused the story to address several important topics and issues such as death, cruelty, and sacrifice and the level of morality behind each and every action. Pullman does this by introducing the characters just like any other storyline would, but reveals their characteristics and morals through the actions they make. To add on, sometimes, the actions Pullman describes as contradictory, don’t necessarily mean that the character is a villain or means any harm. For example, at the beginning of the story Lyra sees the Master of Jordan College trying to poison Lord Asriel. However, later on as the story builds, it is revealed that his intention was completely different from that of the other characters, like Mrs.Coulter. 

   Throughout the story Pullman reflects the narration back on what is being done and for what reason it is being done, as why the Gobblers kidnapped the children was always a big mystery until the very end of the story. When comparing everything with each other, one can say that Pullman is trying to differentiate between what the right thing to do and what the wrong thing to do by conveying different intentions behind similar actions. An example would be Lord Asriel and his nemesis. Both Mrs.Coulter and the Master of Jordan college tried to put a fullstop to Lord Asriel's ideas, actions, and inspirations. However, what is revealed towards the end of the book is that the intentions were the complete opposite of one another. 

   The Master of Jordan College had intended to poison Lord Asriel due to the fact that he thought his doings were wrong and it wasn’t for the best (which could still be true as the importance and relevance of Dust to the mortality of the people hasn’t completely been revealed yet). Whereas, Mrs.Coulter was trying to achieve the same thing as Lord Asriel except she wanted to get there first, so her intention was to slow down Lord Asriel by extending the time of his imprisonment. 

   However, looking at things from a different perspective, questions such as why the Master of Jordan tried to kill Lord Asriel in the first place was never officially revealed but can only be interpreted from the story. In addition, taking a step further into specific characters; Lord Asriel was someone who the author portrayed as a good person almost throughout the story. Through his brave actions of trying to save his daughter, his daemon being a fierce and bold character, and by sharing his adventures through the North. However, something to consider is the fact that he had killed Roger at the end of the story as a sacrifice to his adventure and findings. 

   Pullman never really revealed a negative side to Lord Asriel, as Lyra always believed in him, and later when she found out that he was her father it had completely changed the impression everyone had of Lord Asriel. 

   Mrs.Coulter, she was an ambitious and well-presented character in the story. It is shown that almost everyone looks up to her, and she has tremendous respect from almost everyone she meets. Pullman portrays the character Mrs.Coulter as someone who will go to any extent to get what she wants, however, Mrs.Coulter had a soft-spot for Lyra (similar to Lord Asriel, as he could have chosen Lyra instead of Roger as a sacrifice to his findings). The reason for this was then revealed because Lyra had found out that both Lord Asriel and Mrs.Coulter were her parents. 

   Taking a look at the bigger picture, it is also seen there are several others that are not related to Lyra that try to save and give shelter to her. For instance, the gyptians, especially the family whose boat was almost destroyed by Lyra and Roger. Even though she had tried to do something that would cost them their source of income, the same family still offered to rescue Lyra and bring her to the gyptians. There, the whole community had given all they had and believed Lyra in an effort to help and save her from dying. Later on in the story Farder Coram almost gives his life in order to save Lyra from Mrs.Coulter and the separation of her and her daemon, so does Lee Scoresby with his balloon carrying a weight he has never before. Keeping in mind Iorek the bear and Serafina Pekkala, who also fought for Lyra and her life. As the witch-consul Dr. Lanselius says “Without this child we shall die,” perhaps this quote has a major significance in why several people were trying to save Lyra at all costs. All in all, this young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman has addressed several extreme and complicated topics, as well as left the reader with several wonderings about why Lyra wants to save dust and the reason behind everyone trying to save Lyra’s life. This book is definitely recommended for others to read, as it addresses several different topics in a simple and fantasy-driven young-adult novel.