The Amber Spyglass

I've been putting off writing this review. The Amber Spyglass was one of my absolute favorites growing up. I used to read random chapters when I didn't know what I wanted to read. I used to take it as just a fantastically written fantasy novel; after rereading the trilogy, I'm astounded by my slightly narrow views.

Goodreads info

We come back to Will and Lyra after the battle. Lyra is off with her mother, Mrs Coulter, living in a cave in the Himalayas somewhere. She is being kept in a drug-enduced sleep and keeps having dreams about Roger, the kitchen boy she used to play with back at Jordan and subsequently lead to his death. Will, still adjusting to meeting his father and then seeing him die before his eyes, is joined by two angels who urge him to go to Lord Asriel. However Will is just as stubborn as Lyra and refuses to follow them until he is back with Lyra.

These two insignificant children forge their own path, regardless of what everyone wants them to do. They disrupt the "proper" order of how things should happen by letting the dead out, getting separated from their dæmons, and changing the essence of the world through their roles as Adam and Eve.

Now that I'm older, the heavy biblical significance is much more noticable. I still love this book, but there is now a deeper meaning behind it. I still highly recommend it, however, please take the symbolism with a grain of salt.