The Golden Compass

Locations
Call Number: Y Fiction / Pullman, Philip, Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip
On Shelf At: Downtown Library, Pittsfield Branch, Traverwood Branch, Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown Kids Books 4-week checkout	Y Fiction / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown Kids Books 4-week checkout	Y Fiction / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown Kids Books 4-week checkout	Y Fiction / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown Kids Books 4-week checkout	Y Fiction / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	Due 05-22-2024
Pittsfield Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Pittsfield Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	Due 05-08-2024
Traverwood Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Traverwood Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	Due 05-10-2024
Westgate Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Kids Books 4-week checkout	Kids Book / Fiction / Fantasy & Myth / Pullman, Philip	4-week checkout	Due 05-10-2024

Originally published as: Northern lights.
Accompanied by her daemon, Lyra Belacqua sets out to prevent her best friend and other kidnapped children from becoming the subject of gruesome experiments in the Far North.

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Polar Bears!!! submitted by waffoo2 on June 24, 2011, 2:28am I absolutely LOVE this book!! It's nearly impossible to put down once you start it. It's a beautiful story I remember trying to read this book in kindergarten but most of it didn't make sense to me, but I could read and pronounce everything correctly. I've read this book too many times to count and I know I will keep re-reading it in the future!!!

<3 <3 <3 submitted by meganandrews555 on July 4, 2011, 8:31am I love this book. It has an amazing story line that is impossible to put now. This book is full of action. I could reread how this book a million times.

Nice submitted by sandylib123 on July 9, 2011, 10:00pm Awesome

good submitted by sauerr on August 2, 2011, 10:02am it is a good read. I still think that harry potter was better

Good submitted by 0liviap0pp on August 13, 2011, 9:11am This was a good book, but I got scared when I read this book when I was younger.

Fantastic submitted by jdev13 on June 22, 2012, 10:44am This book is excellent. Pullman spins a brilliant tale of a world that is eerily similar to ours, and his language and writing are gorgeous. Lyra is a character that you truly want to root for, and I absolutely fell in love with this book. Everyone should read it; it's enjoyable for readers of all ages. And if you like it, I also recommend the sequels!

Good submitted by HY Qiu on July 22, 2012, 11:39am Great book. However, the plot is confusing the first time you read through the book.

The golden compass submitted by Jacy on June 16, 2013, 8:24pm It may take a few readings to properly understand The golden compass

good read out loud for middle school submitted by sarai koster-mockeridge on July 25, 2015, 2:19pm My middle school aged child are reading this together, and the story is very compelling for her, but I'm glad that I'm there to explain some of the vocabulary and concepts.

Great book submitted by steveiew on June 27, 2018, 1:19pm Lyra is a 'normal' child who has the run of Oxford. She dreams for adventure, and sure enough it finds her! Bears, deamons, and battle await as Lyra travels north. Fun read for all ages

Great! submitted by alicimez on June 28, 2018, 8:45pm Loved reading this as a kid and equally loved reading it with my 7-year-old. It's imaginative, and the world of Philip Pullman is just different enough from ours to make it enchanting.

Amazing submitted by zmclaugh on July 27, 2018, 7:54pm Such a good world with so much going on. An instant classic. Definitely read this.

Golden Compass submitted by lstorc on July 3, 2019, 6:46pm The Golden Compass is a page-turner. Its enjoyable for those of different ages. Lyra makes for a good role model to grow with.

One of the best books i’ve ever read submitted by EstherMaya on August 31, 2019, 10:27pm This book was truly amazing. I couldn’t put it down. I read this entire series with interest and it spins a fascinating story about dust. It had enough mystery to keep you drawn in although it was often frustrating how little we know about dust. But that was tolerable and more than worth it for such a amazing series. Also the scene where Iorek Brynison (Excuse my spelling) became king was amazing.

Would Not Read Again submitted by tanyalenko on July 26, 2020, 4:31pm This book failed to grip my attention from the first page. By the end, I was only mildly interested. It was definitely over hyped, and I don't understand why so many people say they loved it when it was mind-numbingly boring.
Lyra was a decent character, and I wanted her to succeed. however, the plot seemed to be trying too hard with all the changing loyalties, and by the end I didn't even know what I wanted Lyra to succeed at.
The daemons were not well explained, and I found it hard to understand why Lyra ever referred to other people's daemons as beautiful, etc. If her daemon could shape shift, then he could be every bit as beautiful, and even look the same as other people's daemons.
There was little conscious suspense buildup, and that annoyed me. I think it came across as lack of effort on the author's part. Writing is an art, and every chapter ending and page flip should be strategically used to show the gravity of a situation, or the impact of new information. When we learned about Lyra's father, It seemed to have the same effect as if someone had announced the weather forecast for the day.
All in all, I would not recommend it, and not read it again.

ordinary submitted by VanCancue on August 9, 2020, 12:40pm I agree with the above review.. Not my cup of tea but excellently adapted by the HBO TV series. As much as I could get through the first two books with a moderate pace the final story pace was so slow it took me weeks to get through.

This story seemed to intertwine fantasy, sci-fi, spiritual, and political concepts. I was under the impression this was a fantasy fiction however the spiritual and political aspects were too religiously inclined for a fantastical view. But it was interesting how well these aspects were intertwined.
Despite being an avid fantasy fiction reader the way Lyra extrapolated lengthy detailed stories from the alethiometer made no sense despite cosmic like connection to dust.....

The character Lyra though attempting to be righteous (except when fibbing away to glory and call it story telling) and considerate was erratic and irksome. Both mother and daughter were portrayed similarly with wavering loyalties as is my opinion of this series. Really did not like the portrayal of the lead females in this book.

Despite all this the story is great but tedious.

Compelling story submitted by ckay15 on August 18, 2020, 11:48pm I read this for the first time as a young adult rather than as a child and I found it the most interesting "children's" story ever. I even went back to listen to the audiobook later.

Loved it submitted by Janet ledford on December 24, 2020, 2:07pm I have re-read this whole series a number of times. Of course some people won't like it , won't be their cup of tea. That's the way the world works! :) Give it a try!

Amazing submitted by kjshaffer on July 11, 2021, 5:39pm It was a great book. I especially thought that Lyra was a well-writen character

The Golden Compass submitted by nemiller on July 16, 2021, 8:16pm I was the perfect age when this book first came out, and it quickly became one of my favorite books. I re-read the series as a young adult, and more recently as a less-young adult, and I've found something different in it each time, but I always love it.

(I would not recommend watching the recent mini-series though! Especially don't watch the mini-series before reading the books - all the gradually-revealed mysteries of the books are revealed as exposition in the first two episodes.)

The Golden Compass submitted by kassafrass on July 21, 2021, 3:32pm A little slow moving in the first half, but after that it really picks up in intensity and exciting plot developments later on! Several enjoyable characters and creative concepts.

Best series submitted by Nu on August 23, 2022, 7:16pm SO good