Philip Pullman's

The Shadow in the North: A Sally Lockhart Mystery
$7.99
`One morning in the spring of 1878 a steamship, the pride of the Anglo-Baltic shipping line, vanished in the Baltic Sea.' Sally Lockhart, financial advisor, now in her own business (we've met her in book one of the Sally Lockhart Mysteries), investigates the situation when one of her clients loses a pension investment due to the subsequent collapse of the shipping firm. What a concept, a financial advisor who diligently and personally investigates possible fraud concerning a client's money! This story like it's predecessor is overdone with modern conventionalism, particularly with regard to this 20th Century feminist heroine, who is still not really likeable. She disdains the romantic advances of her companion Fred, for no reason at all except her own selfishness. Again, there's a mindboggling panoply of Holmesian mystery revealed in Dickensian style. Maybe Pullman uses this effect to characterize Victorian London, but it takes modern readers on a tedious trudge through the story's enfoldment. Returning readers are glad to have further kinship with former favorite characters. New cast members of potential enduring interest are introduced. Too bad for them; an appallingly sad ending is perhaps meant to make the reader grab book three ASAP to gain some closure.

The Golden Compass, Deluxe 10th Anniversary Edition (His Dark Materials, Book 1)(Rough-cut)
$22.95
This book was excellent. Much better than I expected. I started reading it because I just had to see what the fuss was about. Actually I couldn't see the problem with this book at all. I didn't really classify it as a children's book after reading it, but only because I thought it was at a much higher reading level than other similar books such as Harry Potter or The Chronicles of Narnia. I thought the story was excellent, complex and interesting and the characters were extremely 3 dimensional. The movie was a wash out in comparison to the book.

The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials, Book 2)
$7.50
I liked this book for the most part. It's extremely imaginative. Not only did the author create worlds separate from our own, but he makes them seem entirely believable. My issue is the confusion. This story is so complex at times, I have no idea what is going on. I reread passages, and hope for the best. If I have a hard time understanding (and I consider myself an educated adult), what in the world does the targets audience think? Do they just skim over the passages that are trying to explain dust, or angels, or spectors (for example). I applaud Philip Pullman for what he is trying to accomplish with this story, but it just feels like to much.

Once Upon a Time in the North: His Dark Materials (David Fickling Books)
$12.99
Mr. Pullman keeps cranking out his tired old atheistic, anti-religious message. Anyone who has read George MacDonald's "At the Back of the North Wind" or "The Princess and the Goblin" which G.K. Chesterton attributes as the book "that had made a difference to my whole existence" can discern the difference between an innocent, wonder-filled adventure and Mr. Pullman's 'dark indeed' fantasy. In my humble opinion, I feel his books would be much more appropriate for cynical teen prodigies on the order of Holden Caulfield . At least Pullman is honest about his objectives, but I think parents should be made aware of just what those objectives are.