Welcome to Litsy!

This was so much better than I remembered! I've decided I must've been overly distracted on my last reading because most of this felt brand new to me. I adore Malcolm and Alice. And Lyra and Pan. I'm excited to start The Rose Field at last, but it'll probably be the weekend before I can. It's cool and rainy here and I would much rather be reading than working...

Book of Dust #3 is coming out in October and my pre-order is set. (It's not in the Litsy database yet, so I tagged The Secret Commonwealth.)

I really enjoyed this but it just stops at the end! Argh! I need book 3 now! 😨😨😨

This was ok, I‘ve realised I‘m not a fan of Philip Pullman but Michael Sheen doing the audiobook for this and the previous book is so good!

3.75/5

I enjoyed being back in Lyra's world but it's Michael Sheen's top-notch narration that really made this book for me. His voice(s) effortlessly carried me through the pacing problems and distinguished the (at times interchangeable) minor characters.
Of course, being vol 2 of a trilogy it *stops* rather than concludes. I need closure!

I thoroughly enjoyed Pullman's second installment of his Book of Dust trilogy and am really looking forward to its completion. We return to follow the journey of early-20s Lyra Silvertongue and Pan through some intense tribulations and exciting adventures. Makes me want to travel even more, and I've become heavily invested in the characters as well. Excellent way to move into the new year!

I was delighted to find his newer trilogy in the works and am excited to find out what happens here! I've really enjoyed Pullman's world and the way he writes. It makes me think but it's also easy to digest.

The #Secret Commonwealth is Volume 2 of The Book of Dust. The follow-up series to His Dark Materials. Grist to be back with Lyra. Strongly recommended.

#DivineDecember

@Eggs @AlwaysBeenALoverOfBooks

HOLD ON

thought I had while falling asleep last night:

His Dark Materials was always about the Trouble With Susan from the child's perspective about how growing up is good and necessary, of course, but the second (and presumably third if it ever comes out) books in the book of dust is also about it, but from an adult's perspective. Not just any adult, but a young, college age, adult at right that age Lewis hated, that can't get into Narnia.

“Once the people have become doubtful about the truth of anything, all kinds of things will be open to us.”

I know it‘s a highly intentional parallel to the current state of the world, but still shuddering at this line from one of the villains midway through this book. I‘m liking it even as I recognize the criticisms from many reviews, not to mention finding it to be pretty heartbreaking.

The Secret Commonwealth, the second book in the excellent Book of Dust series.

#Secret #BeginsWith

Book 2 in this series. This one does take place after the events of ‘His Dark Materials‘. I only got a couple minutes into it yesterday between finishing ‘Girl in the Spider‘s Web‘ and Man Cub getting done with tennis practice.

#doublespin for Feb complete! This book was a bit of a beast but easy and engaging enough to get through fairly quickly... looking forward to reading the conclusion! I found parts of this absolutely heartbreaking 😭😭

This book continues around a good 20 years (I think) as volume 1 called La Belle Sauvage. Lyra id around 20yrs and at college. It is a long book and a lot happens. She and her deamon are having relationship problems and go their separate ways. Malcolm is also in this book as he was the young boy that helped her escape as a baby. I think I would need to read it again to help to truly understand it all! #books

No, no, no! How did this happen? I hated it! After a slow start that I thought it was hitting its stride but everything got worse instead. The pacing is all over the place, the characters are flat, lacking so much of Pullman's usual complexity, and the plot is both dull and disjointed. By the end I felt like the whole integrity of the fictional world had become blurry and incoherent. There is a very real danger that I won't read the 3rd.

Cliffhanger!
Another fun read with Lyra, Malcum and Pan

Pantalaimon, the dæmon of Lyra Belacqua, now called Lyra Silvertongue, lay along the window sill of Lyra's little study bedroom in St Sophia's College in a state as far from thought as he could get.

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

Oh Lyra, oh Pan. Adventure and anguish and Pullman shows what it it means to be human. Can‘t wait for the next volume so may end up retreading all of the Dark Materials.

I love these books so so much. Really interesting story, beautiful ending.

#bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks
Square 18 ✔️

A weak pick again; this took forever to get started, although it was good when it finally did. It takes a hot moment to get used to Lyra as an adult (albeit young), and Pullman has never been subtle with his social critique. I'm looking forward to reading some reviews though. Oh, and I sliced off the very top of my thumb this morning and had to go to the urgent care. It's all bandaged now.

A new café opened in the (socially distancable) garden of a fancy restaurant nearby (that's still closed). The coffee was so-so, the ricotta honey toast was fantastic. The garden was lovely. I'm on vacation this week so I may go back before the week is over.

Serpentine novella to be published! https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/jul/09/philip-pullman-his-dark-materials-...

"'You mean the Tarot?'
'No, I do not. That is an egregious modern fraud designed to extract money from gullible romantics.'"
I swear, Pullman just writes books for a chance to be salty
I THINK he's also salty about Immanuel Kant in this one, but I'm not sure and my philosophy background might be leading me astray. I'll read analyses once I'm done.
Reading, coffee and sun happened! My stomach did not approve, despite precautions, but worth it.

Welsh miners AND a reference to Sweden, oh my (trivia: there is a silver mine in Sala, although in our universe it closed all mining activities in the 60s and is mainly a tourist destination now )

Coffee Works is open!!! Yes, that warranted three exclamation points. They're not serving food, and only 4 out of 12 outdoor seatings are available, so I had to stop by sbux and loiter for a stupid amount of time to get a seat but I got it! I haven't read this effectively in months! And I need to, because the library will eventually reopen and want their book back.

Ordinary books: young woman being inexplicably attracted to old men. The Secret Commonwealth: Lyra enjoys the company of old men because there's no risk of her being attracted to them.

This book was a struggle for me. I love Lyra from all the books growing up. This takes place when she is 20. But her actions seem forced and unneeded. Also it was super long but not a ton happens.

Started listening to the latest book in The Book of Dust Trilogy.

This one is read by Michael Sheen 😍

Ladies and gentlemen, Philip Pullman.
Roof reading
Not really getting anywhere, but at least there was a title drop.

Did my first curbside pickup today from my favorite independent bookstore, @readersworldholland! This is a pic of my new book on their actual curb.🤣 🌷🌷🌷

Maybe 20 minutes of reading on the roof because of wind. Like, the tofurkey flew off my sandwich and eastward over north Seattle. I was worried about my teacup being knocked over by the wind.

I wasn‘t ready for the melancholy of this. The characters have definitely grown up, with grown up problems, that I can‘t say too much about without giving to much away. I love Pullman, and I love Lyra, but this wasn‘t what I expected. And I don‘t know if that makes the book better or worse. I don‘t know if that makes sense, but I‘m conflicted, and I need the third book NOW!

#ReadingEurope2020 #England

I used a National Book Token and got see lovely book! The naked cover is lovely and sparkly, plus the words on the spine are cool! #tbr

Not as good as the last, the characters have all grown up but the language still seems very much stuck in young adult mode. Good story though so I'll have to read the next.

It was ok.

I loved this. Some people have claimed it‘s just a setup story and full of tropes, but I just adored it and Malcom and Alice and the resilient and trusty La Belle Sauvage. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#hisdarkmaterials #bookofdust #litsylistens #bookofdust

I don't want to say anything about the plot of this second book in the Book of Dust trilogy because I don't want to give even the tiniest of spoilers. This second trilogy in the His Dark Materials universe is, in fact, dark. Dark, dark, dark. I had an underlying feeling of discomfort throughout the whole book, even while I couldn't put it down.

Squeezing in a few pages while kid is at music lessons. I don‘t think I‘ll finish it before it‘s due back! 😫

I barely read anything during the last few months of 2019. I couldn't focus, largely in part to persistent anxiety, but we had a death in the family, too, that made me listless and inattentive. I slowly made my way through this book though and finished it today. I would've liked a little more at the end to wrap up one plot point without any ambiguity so the wait for the third volume would be easier. Still, I enjoyed being swept away.

Wandered into a local bookshop and found this had just been released. Looking forward to reading all 600+ pages.

Reading in bed this morning trying to finish up my current book and then will do some cleaning and try to finish my last audiobook for the year (The Miraculous by Jess Redman). The dogs are helping keep me snuggled and warm. #dogsoflitsy

Cozy Monday morning with my book and pups. Over halfway through this book and loving it! Only plan today is the dreaded dentist appointment but should be the last of my work for a while - getting my crown put in and a few cavities taken care of. #dogsoflitsy #24b42020

Finished my first book for #24b42020 so I‘m moving onto Secret Commonwealth and Stage Dreams next - technically already 100 pages into Secret Commonwealth but wanted to finish Gender Queer before I got too much farther.

I like Pullman. I do. But I was disappointed in this book. “Good” characters all seem to intrinsically like and dislike the same things. It‘s like the author putting his finger on the scale to insure readers think the right way. Also there is a start of a romantic relationship between Lyra, who is 20 and Malcolm, who is 31 and was her teacher. It‘s soo gross. Every time it came up my skin crawled.

Well then Lyra goes east, as does Malcolm. We have as well now rose oil which has interesting properties. But the Isis inspired men from the mountains don‘t like it. As for the Magisterium, there‘s more intrigue going on there. We have breadcrumbs for the third part here. Is it any good though? I read it and enjoyed it, but didn‘t devour it. There‘s detail to get through, I maybe need to look at the other books before some things fall into place.

Wowzers!!!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3038182025?book_show_action=false&from_rev...

**art found on Google**

Struggling to get through the magician king so giving that a break to read this.

Long (but when's the final book out?)