HIS DARK MATERIALS: The Golden Compass

'Arguably the best juvenile fantasy novel for the past 20 years'. Pullman uses fantasy to tell the universal truth about the experience of growing up. This is hailed as the most magnificent fantasy series since Lord of the Rings. This first fantastic instalment propels readers along with horror and high adventure. The characters of Lord Asriel, Mrs Coutler and lorek Byrnison and the cold and beautiful Northern setting are captivating, and Lyra and Pantalaimon are among the gutsiest of adventurers. A war is brewing in Lyra's world between those who would keep people in ignorance and those willing to fight for freedom. She is thrust into the middle of the conflict when her uncle Lord Asriel comes to Oxford, fomenting rebellion, and when her best friend Roger suddenly disappears. Lyra learns that Roger was kidnapped by a shadowy organisation that is rumoured to experiment on children. To find him she will travel to the cold far North where armoured bears and witch clans rule, and where her Uncle is attempting to build a bridge to a parallel world. What Lyra mustn't know is that her actions will have consequences, not just in her world, but in the worlds beyond. US paperback import, remainder mark. 432pp.