Originally published as: Northern lights. Prequel: Once upon a time in the North. Sequel: The subtle knife.
Contents:
Part one : Oxford. The decanter of Tokay -- The idea of north -- Lyra's Jordan -- The alethiometer -- The cocktail party -- The throwing nets -- John Faa -- Frustration -- The spies -- Part two : Bolvangar. The Consul and the bear -- Armor -- The lost boy -- Fencing -- Bolvangar lights -- The daemon cages -- The silver guillotine -- The witches -- Part three : Svalbard. Fog and ice -- Captivity -- Mortal combat -- Lord Asriel's welcome -- Betrayal -- The bridge to the stars. Part one: Oxford -- Part two: Bolvangar -- Part three: Svalbard.
Summary:
The Golden Compass forms the first part of a story in three volumes. The first volume is set in a world like ours, but different in many ways. The second volume is set partly in the world we know. The third moves between many worlds. In The Golden Compass, readers meet for the first time 11-year-old Lyra Belacqua, a precocious orphan growing up within the precincts of Jordan College in Oxford, England. It quickly becomes clear that Lyra's Oxford is not precisely like our own -- nor is her world. In Lyra's world, everyone has a personal dæmon, a lifelong animal familiar. This is a world in which science, theology and magic are closely intertwined. These ideas are of little concern to Lyra, who at the outset of the story, spends most of her time with her friend Roger, a kitchen boy. Together, they share a carefree existence scampering across the roofs of the college, racing through the streets of Oxford, or waging war with the other children in town. But that life changes forever when Lyra and her dæmon, Pantalaimon, prevent an assassination attempt on her uncle, the powerful Lord Asriel, and then overhear a secret discussion about a mysterious entity known as Dust. It is at this time that children mysteriously began to disappear. Children, and only the children, are vanishing at the hands of what become known as the "Gobblers." Who the Gobblers are and what they want is unknown, but soon, children from far and wide are disappearing with out a trace, even Lyra's good friend, Roger. - Publisher 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.
Series:
His dark materials ; bk. 1 Pullman, Philip, 1946- His dark materials ; bk. 1.
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