Chapter Seven - The Secret Commonwealth by Phillip Pullman

What a treat and a tonic to have this to read! A new book from Philip Pullman to brighten the winter gloom. This is the literary equivalent of one of those light therapy lamps for people afflicted with SAD. Medicinal paper. I've been ready for this for ages. It was great to have the first part of the Book of Dust and I thoroughly enjoyed it. That said, it was quite different to the His Dark Materials trilogy. The main difference being that Lyra is only a baby in La Belle Sauvage. In The Secret Commonwealth we take another jump in time. Here, we are some twenty years after the events of La Belle Sauvage and a decade after the end of His Dark Materials. I won't give away any more of the plot than you can pick up from the 'blurb' which says the following:

The second volume of Philip Pullman's The Book of Dust sees Lyra, now twenty years old, and her daemon Pantalaimon, forced to navigate their relationship in a way they could never have imagined, and drawn into the complex and dangerous factions of a world that they had no idea existed. Pulled along on his own journey too is Malcolm; once a boy with a boat and a mission to save a baby from the flood, now a man with a strong sense of duty and a desire to do what is right. Theirs is a world at once familiar and extraordinary, and they must travel far beyond the edges of Oxford, across Europe and into Asia, in search for what is lost - a city haunted by daemons, a secret at the heart of a desert, and the mystery of the elusive Dust.

I took my time reading this - really savoured every word of every chapter. I needed to make this last rather than rip through it at a rate of knots! The first thing to say about this is that it is a complete wonder to be back in the company of Lyra and Pantalaimon, although things are very different for them both. The beginning of the book is totally gripping and really draws you in to the story without you really noticing. That's something quite difficult to achieve, in my view, and Pullman does it so well. Remember that opening chapter of Northern Lights where Lyra and Pan first learn about Dust? This is equally captivating but in a more grown-up sense. And that is something you may have heard about this book - it's much more grown-up. Pullman himself says that this isn't a children's book. I guess his audience has grown up just as Lyra has. So, be warned that there is a fair bit of bad language, some violent scenes and adult themes. Nothing your average teen couldn't handle, mind. 

It's great to see some returning characters within the book and, especially, Farder Coram and Ma Costa. It's like meeting old friends again. Equally, there are some fantastic new creations to meet here. I really enjoyed the section where Lyra meets Princess Rosamund Cantacuzino whose Daemon left her for somebody else. She tells Lyra her sorrowful tale and it is quite captivating. In another part of the story, we find Lyra in Prague. She is met by a mysterious figure who takes her to meet a man who needs her help. The Furnace-Man. He exudes an unbearable heat and, when he speaks, tongues of fire escape from his mouth. He cries tears of flames. He needs Lyra to help him find his Daemon. This was my favourite section of the novel. Just brilliant.

Another aspect of the book a liked was the way it more explicitly touches on aspects of our lives in our world. There is a harrowing scene, for example, when a boat carrying refugees is struck by the ferry Lyra is aboard and begins to sink. Lyra describes with horror the sounds of screaming children and bodies being swept away. The refugee crisis might not be making headlines on a daily basis here these days but it does continue behind the headlines - I was only reading the other day about young refugees in the UK facing the prospect of growing up alone as they are not able to sponsor their parents or siblings to join them here.

And now, we have a long wait for book 3! At least we have all the other books to revisit in the meantime. Of course, there is also the excellent new BBC version of His Dark Materials. The first series was really rather good and gave much needed time to the story which the Nicole Kidman film just couldn't. If you haven't seen it then you really should watch it. The special effects are great but better still are the performances - particularly Dafne Keen as Lyra. I'm very much looking forward to the second series at the end of this year. I also gather that the adaptation of The Amber Spyglass will cross two series! Joy! 

For the next chapter in the never-ending book story, I felt it was necessary to come back to our world. But I'm not straying to far from Oxford - just following the Thames to the Old Swan Inn at Radcot. I'll be reading Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield.

Until then, here's that utterly stunning title sequence from His Dark Materials for you to enjoy all over again...