La Belle Sauvage

by Philip Pullman

Hardcover, 496 pages

Published Sept. 18, 2018 by Knopf Books for Young Readers.

ISBN:: 978-1-9848-3057-9

(11 reviews)

Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything but is not much noticed himself. And so perhaps it was inevitable that he would become a spy....

Malcolm's father runs an inn called the Trout, on the banks of the river Thames, and all of Oxford passes through its doors. Malcolm and his daemon, Asta, routinely overhear news and gossip, and the occasional scandal, but during a winter of unceasing rain, Malcolm catches wind of something new: intrigue.

He finds a secret message inquiring about a dangerous substance called Dust--and the spy it was intended for finds him.

When she asks Malcolm to keep his eyes open, Malcom sees suspicious characters everywhere: the explorer Lord Asriel, clearly on the run; enforcement agents from the Magisterium; a gyptian named Coram with warnings just for Malcolm; and a beautiful woman with an evil monkey for a daemon. All are asking …

Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything but is not much noticed himself. And so perhaps it was inevitable that he would become a spy....

He finds a secret message inquiring about a dangerous substance called Dust--and the spy it was intended for finds him.

Lyra is the kind of person who draws people in like magnets. And Malcolm will brave any danger, and make shocking sacrifices, to bring her safely through the storm.

This description comes from the publisher. La Belle Sauvage is the first volume of the Book of Dust trilogy, which takes place in the world of the His Dark Materials trilogy, the first of which is The Golden Compass or Northern Lights.

5 editions

BillieCodes reviewed La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman (The Book of Dust)

Review of 'La Belle Sauvage' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I am going to preface this by saying that the His Dark Materials trilogy was one of my very favourites growing up, and the first I remember calling into the book store every time I was in town to check if a new one was out yet.

I entered this book with some sense of trepidation. Lyra was one of the first characters I really connected with and I was worried this would ruin it for me.

What it really did was make me realise how much of the previous series I had forgotten. when it came to reading this book I found that it was a lot more fantastical than any of the earlier books were in my memory. I think this is actually because I'm not remembering correctly looking back at the Wikipedia articles for the other books in the series they were all pretty strange.

Having said that this was a great book. I think this would work well as a stand-alone book, as well as the introduction to the series even if you haven't read the other books yet. Much like the other box is some strange but familiar world with realistic characters and believable backstories.

If there are more dust book's coming out, I will probably get them.

otrops reviewed Belle Sauvage : the Book of Dust Volume One by Philip Pullman

Review of 'Belle Sauvage : the Book of Dust Volume One' on 'Storygraph'

3 stars

What was remarkable about The Northern Lights—and to an extent all of the His Dark Materials trilogy—was the world that Pullman created. It was strange enough to be fascinating, but still human enough to be utterly compelling. As a reader, you could feel the pull and pain of a too-far-away daemon. It was extraordinary and a credit to Pullman’s craft.

Because we coming back to that world, Pullman has less work to do in gaining our empathy. It’s already a given.

Instead of world-building, what Pullman gives is is an adventure story. It’s an Odyssey in miniature, playing out on a flooded Thames instead of across the Mediterranean.

Malcolm and Alice face on threat after another as they are pursued down the Thames. It makes for compulsive reading. This is an adventure tale as adventuress are meant to be told.

There is one significant disappointment, though. I’ve always admired Pullman’s ability to create strong, believable characters. In La Belle Sauvage, Alice was a bit of a disappointment. While she started as what seemed to be a strong character, she eventually settles into a shrewish domestic foil for Malcolm’s heroic character. Malcolm evolves into an Odysseus-Petruchio while Alice slowly fades into the background. It made me miss the genuine partnership of Lyra and Will in His Dark Materials.

All in all, this is a classic, traditional adventure tale. Perhaps a bit too traditional to be entirely to my taste.