Tag: Parallel Universes

Philip Pullman – La Belle Sauvage | Review

Title: La Belle Sauvage

Author: Philip Pullman

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 551

Rating: 3.5*/5

 

Philip Pullman - La Belle Sauvage

Philip Pullman – La Belle Sauvage

 

I think it’s pretty safe to say I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I guess I’ve been waiting for this book ever since I was a kid because the His Dark Materials trilogy is my favourite trilogy of all time. This book is the first book in an accompanying trilogy called The Book of Dust which runs alongside the His Dark Materials books, and I’m still not too sure what to make of it.

To be honest, I was kind of expecting not to love it, purely because it’s natural to be a little ambivalent when a new installment of a series you like is released. It happened with the new Star Wars movie. But really, I think my issue here is that there just wasn’t much adventure. I think Northern Lights (also called The Golden Compass) worked well because at its heart, it’s an adventure novel. This one is many things, but calling it an adventure novel would be a push – especially for the first three hundred pages, where pretty much nothing happens.

La Belle Sauvage felt more like The Silmarillion than The Lord of the Rings, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. If you want to learn more about how the church works in Pullman’s world or if you’re interested in the research being done into the various meanings of the symbols on the alethiometer, this is your book. If you’re hoping for armored bears and parallel universes, you’ll be disappointed. Unfortunately, that was kind of what I was hoping for.

 

Philip Pullman

Philip Pullman

 

One way that I’ve been making sense of it is by thinking about how many times I’ve re-read Northern Lights. I just can’t imagine myself ever re-reading this one, although I am at least glad that I ticked it off. I’ll probably read the rest of the books in this new trilogy, but I won’t be in a rush to get them. It’s a shame, but I think a lot of that is down to me as a reader. It didn’t help that one of my favourite characters of all-time was a baby, either. I don’t like babies, and babies don’t do anything interesting.

Overall, it was fine, but I can’t help but feel like the series should have been left alone where it was. Personally, I would’ve preferred a new standalone series or more books in the Sally Lockhart series, but equally I appreciate that the demand was there for more books in Lyra’s world. And to this book’s credit, it still does a great job of world-building, it’s just that I would have liked the action to have left Oxford. Even in Northern Lights,  when there’s no jumping between worlds, we still see a huge amount of the place. Here, it starts to feel kind of claustrophobic, as if all of this stuff is happening and we’re stuck at home, reading about it on the internet.

I think that if I didn’t have a vested interest in this series because of the previous trilogy, I would have DNFd this. As it is, I stuck with it – and it did get a little better. But it just didn’t feel fun.

 

Philip Pullman Quote

Philip Pullman Quote

 

Click here to buy La Belle Sauvage.


Terry Pratchett, Ian Stewart & Jack Cohen – The Science of Discworld II: The Globe | Review

Title: The Science of Discworld II: The Globe

Author: Terry Pratchett, Ian Stewart & Jack Cohen

Type: Fiction and Non-Fiction (Hybrid)

Page Count/Review Word Count: 368

Rating: 7/10

 

The Science of Discworld II: The Globe

The Science of Discworld II: The Globe

 

A theory goes that there are infinite parallel universes which branch off every millisecond – in one, you wore your red top today, and in one, you went with blue. In one, you missed the bus, and in one, you caught it. In one universe, I start with the science, and in one universe, I start with the Discworld.

At the heart of the book is yet another beautifully crafted Discworld story written with usual finesse by Sir Terry Pratchett, in which the wizards of Unseen University inadvertently pay a visit to Roundworld, a planet that’s not dissimilar from our Earth. Alright, I’m not going to lie, it is Earth.

 

The Discworld

The Discworld

 

Anyway, during these chapters, the wizards attempt to thwart the evil elves by means of Shakespeare, which is all I’m willing to say without giving away too many spoilers. Besides, that’s only half the novel – the story of the wizards only consumes the oddly-numbered pages. Strange of Pratchett, to want to be odd.

But throughout the book, the adventuring wizards are replaced by science writers Ian Stewart and Jack Cohen, who explain the real-life science behind most of the novel, in a way that compliments the story perfectly whilst still teasing the brain to the point of self-flagellation.

 

Terry Pratchett on the difference between erotic and kinky...

Terry Pratchett on the difference between erotic and kinky…

 

But that’s hardly a problem – okay, perhaps the book’s not for everyone, but for thinkers, science fans and general lovers of the Discworld, it’s interesting to discover what makes the Discworld, and subsequently its creation, the planet Earth, really tick.

Stylistically-wise, the only way I can characterise Stewart and Cohen’s writing is as ‘like the (presumably amusingly named) spawn of Richard Dawkins and Stephen Hawking, in partnership with the resurrection of Douglas Adams‘. Quite an accolade, but they deserve it – not only is it content rich and full of facts that will blow your mind, it’s also comparatively easy-to-read and stands up well beside the might of Pratchett.

The Globe is definitely recommended, as long as you don’t mind a fairly long, technical read.

 

Terry Pratchett

Terry Pratchett

 

Click here to buy The Science of Discworld II: The Globe.