katiesmom

1. Bibliography
Pullman, Philip. 1995. The Golden Compass. New York: Random House. ISBN 0-679-89310-5
2. Plot summary
As far as Lyra knows, she and her daemon Pantalaimon have always lived at Jordan College. In a world of professors and clerics, who have no time or inclination to pay attention to the activities of a young girl, Lyra runs wild through the college and surrounding town. Her playmates are the boys of the local working class people and the gyptians, fiercely loyal water-dwelling people who know more about Lyra than she knows about herself. Lyra’s days pass by much the same until children begin to disappear; first from the town and then the college. The gyptians are determined to go north to find and rescue the children who they believe have been stolen for obscene experiments. And, when Lyra’s friend Roger, who works in the kitchen at Jordan College, disappears, Lyra is determined to go with them. The gyptians refuse Lyra’s request to accompany them, fearful of subjecting her to the dangerous trip until they discover Lyra has been given an alethiometer, a devise that, if read correctly, can tell the future; and as Lyra is the only one who can read the devise, they reluctantly agree to take her north. So, north Lyra goes with the gyptians accompanied by her daemon Pantalaimon to face whatever danger she must in order to find, and save, her friend Roger.
3. Critical analysis
The plot of The Golden Compass is so believable that if not for the daemons that accompany each human character the reader might think they are reading an engaging mystery. Children are disappearing and the Master of Jordan College has attempted to murder Lyra’s uncle, Lord Asriel. Centered around Lyra and her developing understanding of why the local children are disappearing, the plot flows from Lyra’s safe if unstructured life at Jordan College, to her escape from those who would use her for their evil purposes, to reaching the north and her final realization of what has been happening to the children, and the part she has played in everything. Pullman’s descriptions of Lyra’s world make the reader believe in this alternate universe’s existence. From his description of Jordan College “It had never been planned; it had grown piecemeal, with past and present overlapping at every spot, and the final effect was one of jumbled and squalid grandeur” (Pullman, 33), to a glimpse into the parallel universe Lord Asriel is determined to reach, “the Aurora blazed all of a sudden into brilliant life. Like the long finger of blinding power that plays between two terminals, except that this was a thousand miles high and ten thousand miles long: dipping, soaring, undulating, glowing, a cataract of glory” (Pullman, 392), Pullman makes the world of The Golden Compass come to life. The characters in The Golden Compass are revealed through the narrator, conversation, and actions of the characters. Young adults will identify with Lyra as she grows from a grubby, carefree child to a purposeful heroine; struggling to save her friends and make the adults surrounding her listen and take her seriously. Although The Golden Compass takes place in an alternate universe the themes of family, the power of religion to control people’s lives, and even the controlling factors of social and gender roles of individuals are reflected in the speech and lifestyles of the characters. Women are mostly second class citizens, “(Lyra) had never seen the Retiring Room before; only Scholars and their guests were allowed in here, and never females. Even the maid-servants didn’t clean in here. That was the Butler’s job alone” (Pullman, 4) and the universal truths of good conquering evil and the saving grace of love are explored if not completely resolved. The fantasy world of The Golden Compass is a place of daemons, alethiometers, and Gobblers; words we are perhaps familiar with but not in the way Pullman means. The alethiometer tells the future if read properly, daemons are the visible souls of their human companions, and gobblers are the evil humans, intent on separating children from their daemons in order to harness an unbelievable power. Pullman takes the reader on a journey through this world and we go with him; believing in the world he has created every step of the way.
4. Review excerpts
Booklist: Gr. 7-12. In the first of a planned trilogy, Pullman has created a wholly developed universe, which is, as he states, much like our own but different in many ways–a world in which humans are paired with animal “daemons” that seem like alter egos, only with personalities of their own. The story begins at Jordan College in Oxford, where young Lyra Belacqua and her daemon, Pantalaimon, are being reared and educated by the Scholars. Although a lackluster student, Lyra possesses an inordinate curiosity and sense of adventure, which lead her into forbidden territory on the night her uncle, Lord Asriel, visits. He’s there to solicit funds for a return journey to the distant arctic wastes, where he has observed and photographed strange goings-on, including a mysterious phenomenon called Dust that streams from the sky and a dim outline of a city suspended in the Aurora, or Northern Lights, that he suspects is part of an alternate universe. After he leaves, Lyra finds herself placed in the charge of the mysterious Mrs. Coulter and in possession of a rare compass like device that can answer questions if she learns how to read it. Already shocked by the disappearance of her best friend, Lyra discovers Mrs. Coulter’s connection with the dreaded children-stealing Gobblers and runs away, joining a group of gyptians bound for the North to rescue missing children. Lyra has also learned that her uncle is being held prisoner in the North, guarded by formidable armored bears. Filled with fast-paced action, the plot involves a secret scientific facility, where children are being severed from their daemons; warring factions; witch clans; an outcast armored bear, who bonds with Lyra; and more. It becomes evident that the future of the world and its inhabitants is in the hands of the ever-more-resilient and dedicated Lyra. A totally involving, intricately plotted fantasy that will leave readers clamoring for the sequels.
Midwest Book Review: It takes some time to absorb Pullman’s setting: a quasi-fantasy where humans work with chameleon-type small demon familiars, and where a wild palace child finds herself involved in a dangerous mystery of missing children and a calling to head north. When older YAs have absorbed this fantasy setting, the real thrill begins in enjoying a complex tale in which a girl’s personal battles reach into larger issues affecting the world.
5. Connections
Have children fashion their own alethiometer or make a map of Lyra’s journey from Jordan College to the north.

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