La Belle Sauvage
It has been 17 years of waiting for the next book to arrive. 17 years since the concluding book in the His Dark Materials trilogy was published, and finally, 17 years later, readers around the world are delighted to find the first of Pullman’s brand-new trilogy published and perfected.
I had rushed to buy my own copy of La Belle Sauvage, and, within a matter of pages, I was pleased to see the world of Lyra Belacqua once again opened to me, with each page telling the story of Lyra, 11 years before, as only a six-month-old baby, and from the eyes of a young innkeeper’s boy; Malcolm Polstead. This new protagonist’s view is vastly different to the eyes of Lyra that readers of His Dark Materials had become so used to, however he retains the burning curiosity and unknowing bravery that Lyra is most renowned for.
During the wait for this new trilogy, there had been various doubts about Philip Pullman’s ability to recreate and tell the story of this world of daemons as well as before, questioning whether a masterpiece like the trilogy that brought him to fame would be rivalled again. However, much to my, and other readers, relief, it has been revealed that the 17 years wait was worth it. Pullman has managed to once again beautifully weave together the story of a realm, keeping Lyra Belacqua’s world alive for another breath-taking trilogy in which I have no doubt he will be able to match the eloquence of the trilogy, His Dark Materials.
By Mia Cooper-Ueki, Dunraven school
