Book Descriptions
for La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Lyra, the heroine of Pullman’s “His Dark Materials” series, is a mere baby in this prequel to the epic fantasy trilogy. Eleven-year-old Malcolm, living near Oxford in his family’s tavern, encounters infant Lyra when she is taken in for care by the nuns of a nearby priory. At first intrigued by the little girl, Malcolm’s initial interest deepens into a strong desire to protect her from threats, including the Consistorial Court of Discipline (CCD) agents and sinister Gerard Bonneville and his hyena daemon. Enlisted to help the secret Oakley Street resistance group by Oxford researcher Hannah Relf, Malcolm is drawn into the world of alethiometers, Lord Asriel, witch clans, and intrigue. A devastating storm leads to a harrowing trip by canoe through the flooded countryside and streets of Oxford as Malcolm and Alice, a teenager who works in the tavern, try to deliver Lyra to safety while being pursued by both Bonneville and the CCD. Pullman introduces compelling new characters into his complex world, and raises probing questions of good and evil within a suspenseful plot. While it works as a stand-alone, this novel will be best appreciated by those who have already been indoctrinated into the world of daemons and Dust. (Ages 10-14)
CCBC Choices 2018. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2018. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • DON’T MISS THE EPIC FINALE TO THE BOOK OF DUST: THE ROSE FIELD, AVAILABLE NOW!
Return to the world of His Dark Materials with the first book of a landmark trilogy.
“People will love the first volume of Philip Pullman’s new trilogy with the same helpless vehemence that stole over them when The Golden Compass came out.”—Slate
“It’s a stunning achievement, this universe Pullman has created and continues to build on.”—The New York Times
Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything, and the things he sees trouble him deeply. Enforcement agents from the Magisterium appear in his family’s inn. The explorer Lord Asriel has a precious secret to hide. A gyptian named Coram warns him of a coming flood. A criminal and a beautiful woman, both with disturbing daemons, ask about the same thing—a child, just a baby, named Lyra.
Lyra is the kind of person who draws people in like magnets. Malcolm sees that she is at the center of a great and powerful storm. And he will brave any danger, and make shocking sacrifices, to see her safely home.
Look for the entire trilogy of THE BOOK OF DUST:
La Belle Sauvage • The Secret Commonwealth • The Rose Field
And Lyra’s adventures begin in HIS DARK MATERIALS:
The Golden Compass • The Subtle Knife • The Amber Spyglass
Return to the world of His Dark Materials with the first book of a landmark trilogy.
“People will love the first volume of Philip Pullman’s new trilogy with the same helpless vehemence that stole over them when The Golden Compass came out.”—Slate
“It’s a stunning achievement, this universe Pullman has created and continues to build on.”—The New York Times
Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything, and the things he sees trouble him deeply. Enforcement agents from the Magisterium appear in his family’s inn. The explorer Lord Asriel has a precious secret to hide. A gyptian named Coram warns him of a coming flood. A criminal and a beautiful woman, both with disturbing daemons, ask about the same thing—a child, just a baby, named Lyra.
Lyra is the kind of person who draws people in like magnets. Malcolm sees that she is at the center of a great and powerful storm. And he will brave any danger, and make shocking sacrifices, to see her safely home.
Look for the entire trilogy of THE BOOK OF DUST:
La Belle Sauvage • The Secret Commonwealth • The Rose Field
And Lyra’s adventures begin in HIS DARK MATERIALS:
The Golden Compass • The Subtle Knife • The Amber Spyglass
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.
