BS: Philip Pullman's books

Subject: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 28 Sep 21 - 08:17 AM

I quoted Philip Pullman in a politics thread but I think his works need more than a brief mention. I read "His Dark Materials" years ago and watched "The Golden Compass" on film and the more recent Dark Materials TV series on the BBC. I enjoyed the books most and the TV series least but I find them all good.

More recently I have read the first of the "Book of Dust" series, La Belle Sauvage, which is a prequel to his earlier work and am now halfway through the second, The Secret Commonwealth, which is post Dark Materials.

Pullman is an odd and sometimes controversial author but, although I dislike allegory in general, I do find that his works do it ever so well. Looking up something earlier I found this article about him in "The American Scholar".

I found it very interesting and hope that if there are any other Pullman fans out there, they enjoy it too :-) Oddly enough, one of the quotes given in the article is the lead up to the quote I used in the politics thread!

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Jeri
Date: 28 Sep 21 - 11:53 AM

I haven't read the prequels. I liked the movie, then read the books and learned how much had been left out. I also enjoyed the TV series, and I'm looking forward to the next season.

I think one huge problem is that books alllow us to imagine what isn't written, but visual representations take that away. When they don't match up, it bothers us.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 28 Sep 21 - 12:21 PM

It's just the first volume of the Book of Dust that's a prequel, Jeri. The second is a sequel to Dark Materials. I don't think the third is out yet.

And, yes, I know just what you mean about them marrying up. I am a big Tolkein fan. The Lord of the Rings films were pretty close. The Hobbit films, while very entertaining, were far enough away from the book to annoy me!

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: keberoxu
Date: 28 Sep 21 - 08:44 PM

I don't know about anti-God;
Mr. Pullman is positively anti-Church and anti-Establishment.
Mystery and wonder, and things greater and more powerful than humanity,
get a lot of positive attention in this Pullman series.
Certainly he is no cynic -- he prefers questions, I believe, to hard and inflexible answers.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Jeri
Date: 28 Sep 21 - 10:38 PM

Keb, did someone other than you bring up "anti-God"?

The Dark Materials books are definitely anti-organized religion, and money-grabbing, power-wielding ways, and I agree that he revels in the Question, the mystery and the possibilities.

As for the more recent books Dave mentioned, Wikipedia says "Another trilogy, The Book of Dust, includes characters and events from the His Dark Materials. Pullman has said that the new series is neither sequel, nor prequel, but an "equel".[38] The first book, La Belle Sauvage, was published in October 2017 and the second book, The Secret Commonwealth, in October 2019." So there's another term: "equel".

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 29 Sep 21 - 03:09 AM

I would have thought an equel would be the Kindle version :-)

Yes,definitely anti-establishment. The thing I had not realised until I read the linked article was his lack of detailed descriptions. I guess that leans itself to the reader having to use their imagination more. Which is probably part of the reason I enjoy his books.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: keberoxu
Date: 29 Sep 21 - 11:39 AM

Jeri, my post did not respond to a post on this thread.
Rather, to the reputation that Philip Pullman has amongst critics and journalists who use misleading words for the sake of brevity.
They like to dismiss Pullman as "atheist" --
which I think is facile and not sufficiently subtle for this writer.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 29 Sep 21 - 01:11 PM

I must say, I have never heard anyone being dismissed for being an atheist!

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Jeri
Date: 29 Sep 21 - 02:00 PM

It's hard to discuss things people said that the never said. Good thing this thread's about something else.

Atheists who somehow write a book about people whose souls are on the outside? I doubt that "they" ever said what you think they said. Misunderstanding, maybe. The books deal with a subject that lends itself to defensive reactions (not necessarily you, but somebody), so maybe that's where the misunderstanding originated.

But I'm still looking forward to the next season of the TV show.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: YorkshireYankee
Date: 29 Sep 21 - 08:53 PM

Very interesting article, DtG. Thanks for sharing it.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 30 Sep 21 - 02:53 AM

You're welcome

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 20 Oct 21 - 06:44 AM

I have finished both books now. I enjoyed them but not as much as "His dark materials". Anybody want them? Postage only but I must warn you, they are weighty tomes!

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 20 Oct 21 - 05:57 PM

Sorry. They have been taken.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: keberoxu
Date: 20 Oct 21 - 09:15 PM

In these books about -- to focus on one continuing character --
the adventures of Lyra Silvertongue
or whatever name she goes by at the moment:

it has been interesting to see Pullman taking on
not just organized church/religion and such,
but the patriarchy, especially within those organizations.
It's getting to be a list of confrontations there:

the Ancient of Days,
the head of the Magisterium (male of course),
the kabbalistic being Metatron (also male) ...
and these latest Book of Dust installments are now
moving the action from western Europe
into the middle East and further into the Orient.

Not only dust, but desert oases.
A big change from waterfalls in the south of France,
which set one of the climactic scenes in His Dark Materials.

I'm really curious about the next chapter/episode/book,
although it seems we have to wait a while for it.

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 21 Oct 21 - 03:50 AM

A lot of the action in HDM was in the Arctic Circle so maybe a change of climate AND continent. Interesting to see the "Men from the Mountains" being religious fanatics who kill and destroy people and things of other faiths. I wonder who they are based on? :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Philip Pullman's books
From: Greenie
Date: 21 Oct 21 - 05:58 AM

I adore everything Philip Pullman has written, even his Sally Lockhart mysteries.

Recently, I was delighted to find that, as well as being a writer/thinker/philospher, he is also a fellow woodworker.

Here he describes the joy of buying wood:

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/sep/17/the-ground-is-unstable-but-there-are-pleasures-all-around-goodbye-to-the-joy-of-small-things

You'll need to scroll down a wee way for the Pullman bit.

Greenie