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Post by ProdigalAlan on Oct 1, 2015 14:25:11 GMT
To a large extent I agree. Northern Lights is not a subtle book, but Pullman isn't really a subtle writer, there's nothing subtle about Ruby in the Smoke or I was a Rat. On the other hand the story of the church abducting children, transporting them to another country and subjecting them to horrific abuse is a true story and needs to be told over and over again.
Where the books do become interesting is with the introduction of Will. The idea of the relationship between someone who cannot tell the truth and someone who will not lie is a fascinating one and one that is resolved very well indeed. Similarly the substitute parent figures of Ma Coster and Lee Scorsebee are used as good contrast to the indifference of Lyra's birth parents. That works very well.
The idea that you can see a person's soul and that you travel with your own death are very well presented.
So there's a lot of good concepts going on and the books are stimulating and have a lot more depth than the Narnia Chronicles. It can't be denied, however, the Pullman does fall into the CS Lewis trap of delivering some of the messages with all the subtlety of a brick in the ear and that far to many of his characters are like the two dimensional character grotesques that Lewis uses.
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Post by Kye on Oct 1, 2015 16:19:34 GMT
Personally, I liked the first book a lot, found the second one less engaging and couldn't even finish the last, which I found terribly oppressive and depressing.
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Post by raspberrybullets on Oct 8, 2015 9:56:03 GMT
It's so interesting because I adore the third book. I really enjoyed the first as a really magical book, but it was the third that made me feel so good about life. I find it incredibly uplifting.
As for Narnia - I also had no idea about any christian connection. I read TLTWATW and whatever the one is where they take the ship to the end of the world. I liked the first, the second not so much so never was interested in reading more.
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Post by Kye on Oct 8, 2015 11:10:13 GMT
It's so cool how the same book can evoke such different reactions in different people! But I guess it makes sense.
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Post by juju on Oct 22, 2015 23:39:48 GMT
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Post by Moose on Oct 22, 2015 23:54:01 GMT
The Daily Mail ran that one several years ago and they are usually very late to the party
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Post by juju on Oct 23, 2015 7:32:47 GMT
No, that was a different one. There's been several over the years, this was a recent one in China. It's a rare phenomenon but I can't remember the name.
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Post by JoeP on Oct 23, 2015 8:03:42 GMT
but I can't remember the name. Even though it's in the article you linked? It's supposedly a mirage effect called Fata Morgana. That chinese video must have been taken with a very long zoom lens.
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Post by juju on Oct 23, 2015 9:01:03 GMT
but I can't remember the name. Even though it's in the article you linked? I was in bed on my mobile and that would have taken an amount of effort not commensurate with my levels of energy and interest at that point. In other words, I couldn't be arsed.
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