The Amber Spyglass
A novel by Philip Pullman

The Amber Spyglass, the audacious conclusion to Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, is not a book I expect to see prominently displayed on the library shelves of the Catholic school I attended growing up. To begin with, the fate of the universe ultimately depends on whether or not two thirteen-year-olds get it on. The literal death of God is actively sought by a number of characters, and is presented as a desirable outcome. The Church is repressive and corrupt, with the priesthood coming off particularly badly. And then, of course, there are the homosexual angels.

If ever a book was written with the potential to piss off fundamentalists everywhere, The Amber Spyglass is it. With its relentlessly anti-Church (any church!) worldview, the subject matter will undoubtedly disconcert some readers. But even if you disagree with Pullman's conclusions, it's hard to deny the book's power. Despite its flaws, and it certainly does have them, The Amber Spyglass is a rich and involving novel that will move and entertain adults as much as the teenagers for whom it is ostensibly written.

Events of the previous two novels in the trilogy culminate in this book, in which human and angelic forces rise up against the Authority, led by Lord Asriel and abetted by Asriel's one-time consort, Mrs. Coulter. Central to the battle's outcome are the actions of their young daughter, Lyra, and Lyra's friend Will, who comes from what's basically a parallel universe. Lyra and Will, for various reasons related to things that took place in the first two books, must journey to the world of the dead -- and then beyond. Lyra carries the alethiometer, a sort of compass that always tells the truth to people who know how to read it, while Will bears the Subtle Knife, a knife so sharp it can cut through the veil between worlds. They're accompanied by Lyra's daemon, sort of a visible manifestation of her soul (Will has a daemon, too, but he can't see her until late in the book); and they encounter, among others, majestic armored warrior bears, friendly witches, and my favorites, two itsy-bitsy spies who follow them around on large dragonflies. Meanwhile, Dr. Mary Malone, a scientist from Will's world, stumbles into yet another world, this one peopled by strange wheeled creatures called the Mulefa. She is studying the phenomenon of Dust, a magical substance that is necessary to all life but is draining from all the worlds at an alarming rate.

Danger is all around; an assassin is after Mary, and there are several people for whom the death of Will or Lyra -- or both -- would not necessarily be bad news, and the Subtle Knife itself, as the Bear King Iorek points out, "has intentions of its own." And even if Will and Lyra manage to make it through their adventures unscathed, there's no guarantee that they'll be rewarded with the happiness they deserve.

The Amber Spyglass takes a while to get started, but when it finally kicks in, it's impossible to put down. It contains several absolutely heartwrenching scenes -- for instance, when Will and Lyra make their final sacrifice -- well, I was not bawling my head off. No, I certainly was not. Sniff. Stupid book. But at the same time, it offers exquisitely written moments of transcendent joy and beauty. For example, when someone leaves the world of the dead:

...[H]e found himself turning into the night, the starlight, the air... and then he was gone, leaving behind such a vivid little burst of happiness that Will was reminded of the bubbles in a glass of champagne.

Sigh. Lovely.

Good as it is, though, it's by no means perfect. The first hundred or so pages drag. The Mary/Mulefa plot, while interesting, serves no real purpose that I could see other than to provide Will and Lyra an Eden to retreat to. Mrs. Coulter, formerly evil and scary, suddenly undergoes a conversion that is just plain odd. Mary's would-be assassin is a pointless subplot in a book that already has more than enough going on. Finally, I thought Pullman pounded just a bit too hard on his theme, particularly at the very end.

But I'm willing to overlook a lot, if only because of Pullman's absolute refusal to condescend to his readers in any way. Sure, The Amber Spyglass is technically a Young Adult novel, but any thinking adult will find plenty to contemplate (and enjoy) here. Pullman's central thesis -- that we should forget about aspiring to a spiritual Kingdom of Heaven after we die and instead concentrate on building a physical "Republic of Heaven" here on Earth -- will resonate with a lot of readers and infuriate a lot more. But whether you like The Amber Spyglass or loathe it, you shouldn't ignore it. Magical, heartbreaking, ambitious, and thought-provoking, it's like nothing else out there for teenagers or adults.

RE-READ FACTOR: Sure, why not? Although The Golden Compass, the first book in the trilogy, is still the most fun.

STRONG CHICK FACTOR: Lyra is not above lying, cheating, and stealing to get herself out of a jam, but she's also courageous, fierce, and passionate. Mary Malone is a chick scientist -- gotta love that! And Mrs. Coulter, even in her watered-down incarnation here, is still quite formidable.

SEQUEL FACTOR: It seems unlikely, but Pullman has stated in interviews that he's not averse to revisiting Will and Lyra at some point, possibly in a prequel, so who knows?

-- Kate Nagy

The Amber Spyglass, published by Knopf, is currently available in hardback.

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