Northern Lights (Pullman novel): Difference between revisions

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{{short description|1995 novel by Philip Pullman}}

'''''Northern Lights''''' (published in the [[United States of America|US]] as '''''The Golden Compass''''') is the first novel in the ''[[His Dark Materials]]'' series, written by British novelist [[Philip Pullman]], and published in [[1995]].

{{redirect|The Golden Compass|the film based on the novel|The Golden Compass (film)|the Italian design award|Compasso d'Oro}}

{{EngvarB|date=July 2019}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}

{{Infobox book<!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Books -->

| name = Northern Lights

| image = Northern Lights (novel) cover.jpg

| caption = First edition

| author = [[Philip Pullman]]

| cover_artist = David Scutt and Pullman

| country = United Kingdom

| series = ''[[His Dark Materials]]''<ref name=isfdb-series>

{{isfdb series|3690|His Dark Materials}}. Retrieved 28 July 2012.</ref>

| genre = [[Juvenile fantasy|Children's fantasy novel]]

| publisher = [[Scholastic Point]]

| pub_date = 9 July 1995

| media_type = Print (hardback and paperback)

| pages = 399<!--WorldCat-->

| isbn = 0-590-54178-1

| oclc = 37806360

| congress = PZ7.P968 No 1995<ref name=LCC1>

[http://lccn.loc.gov/97180708 "Northern lights"]. Library of Congress Catalog Record (LCC). Retrieved 28 July 2012.</ref> <br>PZ7.P968 Go 1996<ref name=LCC2>

[http://lccn.loc.gov/95033397 "The golden compass"] (first US edition). LCC record. Retrieved 28 July 2012.</ref>

| preceded_by = [[La Belle Sauvage]]

| followed_by = [[The Subtle Knife]]

}}

'''''Northern Lights''''' (titled '''''The Golden Compass''''' in North America and some other countries) is a [[Young adult fiction|young-adult]] [[fantasy]] novel by [[Philip Pullman]], published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a [[parallel universes in fiction|parallel universe]], it follows the journey of [[Lyra Belacqua]] to the Arctic in search of her missing friend, Roger Parslow, and her imprisoned uncle, [[Lord Asriel]], who has been conducting experiments with a mysterious substance known as "[[Dust (His Dark Materials)|Dust]]".

''Northern Lights'' is the first book of the trilogy, ''[[His Dark Materials]]'' (1995 to 2000).<ref name="isfdb-series" /> [[Alfred A. Knopf]] published the first US edition April 1996, under the name ''The Golden Compass'',<ref name="isfdb-series" /><ref name="LCC2" /> under which title it was adapted as a [[The Golden Compass (film)|2007 feature film]] and as a [[The Golden Compass (video game)|companion video game]]. The book has also been adapted as the first part of [[His Dark Materials (TV series)|the 2019 TV series]] ''His Dark Materials''.

In real life, the resemblance of [[Lyra Belacqua|Lyra Belacqua's]] [[alethiometer]] to a large [[compass]] caused the US publishers of ''Northern Lights'' to retitle the book ''The Golden Compass''. In fact ''The Golden Compasses'' was an early proposal for the name of the trilogy (instead of ''His Dark Materials''), taken from Milton's ''Paradise Lost'', where it refers to the drawing instrument, rather than a navigation instrument.

Pullman won the 1995 [[Carnegie Medal (literary award)|Carnegie Medal]] from the [[Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals|Library Association]], recognising the year's outstanding British children's book.<ref name="medal1995" /> For the 70th anniversary of the Medal, it was named one of the top ten winning works by a panel, composing the ballot for a public election of the all-time favourite.<ref name="topten" /> ''Northern Lights'' won the public vote from that shortlist and was thus named the all-time "[[Carnegie of Carnegies]]" on 21 June 2007.<!-- CILIP does not publish a press release and its photo gallery for the event includes no captions! -->

{{spoiler}}

==Synopsis==

The story concerns a mission to recover a number of children that have been abducted by the [[General Oblation Board]] (or ''Gobblers''), an arm of the [[Magisterium]], and who are believed to be the object of experimentation to determine the nature and purpose of [[Dust (His Dark Materials)|Dust]]. Lyra becomes involved after her friend [[Roger Parslow]] goes missing. She joins the mission to the North, where she inadvertantly penetrates the security at the [[Bolvangar]] experimental complex in [[Lapland]].

==On Radio=Setting===

The [[Setting (narrative)|setting]] is a [[Parallel universes in fiction|world]] dominated by the Magisterium (commonly called "the Church"), an international [[theocracy]] which actively suppresses [[heresy]]. In this world, humans' souls naturally exist outside of their bodies in the form of [[Sentience|sentient]] "[[Dæmon (His Dark Materials)|dæmons]]" in animal form which accompany, aid, and comfort their humans. An important plot device is the [[Dust (His Dark Materials)#Alethiometers|alethiometer]], a truth-telling symbol reader. By setting the alethiometer's hands to point to symbols around a dial a skilled practitioner can pose questions, which are answered by the movement of a further hand.

A [[radio drama]] version of this story was broadcast on [[RTE]] ([[Ireland|Irish]] [[public radio]]) in [[2003]] and the entire trilogy was dramatised on [[BBC]] radio in the [[United Kingdom]].

===Plot===

Twelve-year-old [[Lyra Belacqua]] runs wild with her dæmon Pantalaimon around [[Jordan College, Oxford]], under the guardianship of the college's [[Master (college)|Master]]. One day, she witnesses the Master poison wine intended for [[Lord Asriel]]. She warns Asriel, whom she believes is her uncle, not to drink the wine, then spies on his lecture about [[Dust (His Dark Materials)|"Dust"]], mysterious [[elementary particle]]s attracted to adults more than to children. Asriel shows the college scholars images of a [[parallel universes in fiction|parallel universe]] seen through the [[aurora borealis|Northern Lights]] amidst a concentration of Dust. The scholars agree to fund his controversial research, which is considered heretical by the oppressive Church.

Lyra's best friend Roger goes missing, presumed kidnapped by child abductors known as the "Gobblers". [[Marisa Coulter|Mrs Coulter]] takes Lyra to her home in London, but before Lyra leaves Jordan, the Master entrusts her with an [[alethiometer]], a strange truth-telling device, which she quickly learns to use intuitively. After several weeks, Lyra discovers that Coulter is the head of the Gobblers, or "General Oblation Board", a secret Church-funded project. Horrified, Lyra flees into London and is found by the [[Gyptians]], canal-faring [[nomad]]s, many of whose children have also been abducted. They reveal to Lyra that Asriel and Coulter are her parents.

The Gyptians form an expedition to the Arctic with Lyra, where they believe the Gobblers are holding their children. They stop in [[Trollesund]], where Lyra meets [[Characters of His Dark Materials#Iorek Byrnison|Iorek Byrnison]], the dispossessed royal heir of the ''[[panserbjørne]]'' (armoured bears). Lyra uses her alethiometer to locate Iorek's missing armour; in return, he and his human [[aeronaut]] friend, [[Lee Scoresby]], join her group. She also learns that Lord Asriel has been exiled, guarded by the ''panserbjørne'' on [[Svalbard]]. Trollesund's witch [[Consul (representative)|consul]] tells the Gyptians of a prophecy about Lyra which she must not know, and that the witch clans are choosing sides for an upcoming war.

The search party continues towards Bolvangar, the Gobbler research station. Guided by the alethiometer, Lyra detours at a village and discovers an abandoned child who has been cut from his dæmon and who soon dies. She realises the Gobblers are experimenting on children by severing the bond between human and dæmon, a soul-splitting process called [[intercision]]. Lyra and her companions are attacked by [[bounty hunter]]s, and Lyra is captured and taken to Bolvangar, where she is briefly reunited with Roger before being sent to be separated from Pantalaimon. Just before this can occur, Coulter arrives and halts the intercision process. She tells Lyra that intercision prevents the onset of troubling adult emotions, though it has not yet been perfected.

Lyra activates Bolvangar's emergency alarm, sets the station on fire, and evacuates the children, where they are rescued by Scoresby, Iorek, the Gyptians, and the witch clan of [[Serafina Pekkala]], who battle the station attendants as Lyra, Roger, and Iorek flee in Scoresby's hot air balloon. Lyra directs the witches to tow the balloon towards Asriel in Svalbard, but she falls out and is taken by the ''panserbjørne'' to the castle of their usurping king, [[Iofur Raknison]]. She tricks Iofur into fighting Iorek, who arrives with Roger to rescue Lyra. Iorek kills Iofur and regains his place as the rightful king.

Lyra, Iorek, and Roger continue onwards to Svalbard, where Asriel has continued his Dust research in exile. He tells Lyra all he knows of Dust: that it has spawned parallel universes, it is somehow connected to death and misery, and that the Church believes it is the physical basis of [[Original sin|sin]]. Lord Asriel travels with Roger through the snow, Lyra and Iorek follow using the tracks of Asriel's sled. Asriel ascends a mountain with Roger as Lyra and Iorek and his squadron of bears battle the witches that are allied with Asriel. Mrs Coulter and the Tartars arrive in a military airship and attack the bears. During the battle, Mrs Coulter follows Lyra to the top of the mountain, where Lord Asriel and Mrs Coulter embrace at the peak of the mountain where Asriel has set up his equipment. Suddenly, Lord Asriel severs Roger from his dæmon, killing Roger but releasing an enormous amount of energy that tears a hole in the Northern Lights into a parallel universe, through which he walks. Devastated, Lyra and Pantalaimon also pass through the opening in the sky.

==Characters==

<!-- Please remember that character information duplicates 1. on main HDM page 2. On HDM character list page 3. On individual character page and 4. This page. Entries in this list should be VERY BRIEF, with fuller exposition elsewhere.! -->

{{main|List of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust characters}}

All humans in ''Northern Lights'', as well as witches, have a dæmon (pronounced "demon"), which is the physical manifestation of a person's "inner being", soul, or spirit. It takes the form of a creature (such as a moth, bird, dog, monkey, or snake) and is usually the opposite sex to its human counterpart. The dæmons of children have the ability to change form from one creature to another. However, near the end of a child's puberty, their dæmon "settles" into a permanent form, which reflects the person's personality. When a person dies, the dæmon dies too. Armoured bears, cliff ghasts and other creatures do not have dæmons. An armoured bear's armour is his soul.

*'''[[Lyra Belacqua]]''' and '''[[Pantalaimon]]''': The principal characters. Lyra is described as having blue eyes and blond hair, along with being short for her age and quite thin. She is also brave, curious, and crafty. Her dæmon is Pantalaimon, nicknamed Pan. Because Lyra is still a child, Pan is still capable of changing into any shape he wishes ''(often a brown moth, a wildcat, a white ermine, or a mouse)''.

*'''[[Roger Parslow]]''': Lyra's friend, an orphan who works at Jordan College. When he is kidnapped and taken north, Lyra pursues him in hopes of rescuing him, meeting up with him again at Bolvangar.

*'''[[Lord Asriel]]''': Ostensibly Lyra's uncle, he is actually her father. His dæmon is Stelmaria, a snow leopard.

*'''[[Marisa Coulter]]''': An agent of the Magisterium, who does not hesitate to manipulate the Church. She is intelligent and beautiful, but also ruthless and callous. She is actually Lyra's mother and is unexpectedly kind to her. Her dæmon is a golden monkey who, unusually, is not named.

*'''[[Iorek Byrnison]]''': Rightful king of the [[panserbjørne]], armoured bears with [[sentience#Science fiction|human-level intelligence]], Iorek has been tricked out of his armour and reduced to a [[slavery|slave]] of the human village Trollesund. After Lyra helps him recover his armour, he becomes very protective of her and joins the expedition to find the children seized by Gobblers.

*'''[[Iofur Raknison]]''': A panserbjørn who has usurped Iorek Byrnison's authority as king.

*'''[[Serafina Pekkala]]''': A witch who closely follows Lyra on her travels. She is aware of Lyra's destiny. Serafina's dæmon is Kaisa, a snow goose, who is capable of physically moving separately from Serafina over long distances, a quality that only witches' dæmons possess innately.

*'''[[Lee Scoresby]]''': A Texan aeronaut who transports Lyra in his balloon. He and Iorek Byrnison are good friends and Lee comes to see Lyra as a surrogate daughter. His dæmon is Hester, an arctic snow hare.

*'''[[List of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust characters#Ma Costa|Ma Costa]]''': A Gyptian woman whose son, Billy Costa has been abducted by the "Gobblers". She rescues Lyra from Mrs Coulter and takes her to John Faa.

*'''[[List of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust characters#John Faa|John Faa]]''': The King of all Gyptian people. He travels with Lyra to the North with his companion [[Farder Coram]].

==Title==

{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; font-size:90%; width:280px;"

|-

| <p>[[File:Europe a Prophecy, copy D, object 1 (Bentley 1, Erdman i, Keynes i) British Museum.jpg|130px]] [[File:God-Architect.jpg|130px]]</p><p>Left: God wielding the golden compasses, by [[William Blake]]. Right: Jesus as [[geometer]] in a 13th-century [[medieval]] [[illuminated manuscript]] of unknown authorship.</p>

|}

During [[pre-publication]] of the novel, the prospective trilogy was known in Britain as ''The Golden Compasses'', an allusion to God's poetic delineation of the world. The term is from a line in [[John Milton|Milton]]'s ''[[Paradise Lost]]'',<ref name="btts">{{cite web|url= http://www.bridgetothestars.net/index.php?p=FAQ#1 |title=Frequently Asked Questions – Why is the trilogy called His Dark Materials? Why are there two different titles for the first book?|access-date=20 August 2007 |publisher=BridgeToTheStars.net}}</ref> where it denotes the [[compass (drafting)|drafting compass]] God used to establish and set a circular boundary of all creation:

<blockquote><poem>

Then staid the fervid wheels, and in his hand

'''He took the golden compasses, prepared'''

'''In God's eternal store, to circumscribe'''

'''This universe, and all created things''':

One foot he centred, and the other turned

Round through the vast profundity obscure

</poem>

— Book 7, lines 224–229</blockquote>

In the US, publisher Knopf had been calling the first book ''The Golden Compass'' (singular), which it mistakenly understood as a reference to Lyra's [[aletheia|alethiometer]] (depicted on the front cover shown at the head of this article), because of the device's resemblance to a [[compass|navigational compass]]. By the time Pullman had replaced ''The Golden Compasses'' with ''His Dark Materials'' as the name of the trilogy, the US publisher had become so attached to the original title that it insisted on publishing the first book as ''The Golden Compass'' rather than as ''Northern Lights'', the title used in Britain and Australia.<ref name="btts" />

==Critical reception==

===Awards===

Pullman won both the annual [[Carnegie Medal (literary award)|Carnegie Medal]] for British children's books<ref name="medal1995" /> and the annual [[Guardian Children's Fiction Prize]] for ''Northern Lights'', an award which authors can only win once in their lifetime.<ref name="relaunch" /> Six books have won both awards in 45 years through 2011.{{efn|name = GCFP}}

In the US, ''The Golden Compass'' was named <!-- the unique? -->''Booklist'' Editors Choice&nbsp;– Top of the List, ''Publishers Weekly'' Book of the Year, a ''Horn Book'' Fanfare Honor Book, and a ''Bulletin'' Blue Ribbon Book in 1996.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.librarything.com/bookaward/BCCB+Blue+Ribbon+Book|title=BCCB Blue Ribbon Book {{!}} Book awards {{!}} LibraryThing|website=www.librarything.com|access-date=30 January 2019}}</ref>

===Religion===

{{see also|Philip Pullman#Perspective on religion|l1=Religious perspective of Pullman's trilogy|His Dark Materials#Christian opposition|l2=His Dark Materials - Reactions from Christians}}

Some critics have asserted that the trilogy and the movie portray organised churches and religion negatively,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.catholicleague.org/golden-compass-agenda-unmasked/|title=Golden Compass: Agenda Unmasked|date=22 October 2007}}</ref><ref>[http://lacrossetribune.com/courierlifenews/news/local/bishop-listecki-golden-compass-points-to-evil/article_1a8369ac-35b7-5094-ae12-43c94adeea52.html La Crosse Tribune – Bishop Listecki: 'Golden Compass' points to evil].</ref> while others – notably Dr [[Rowan Williams]], formerly [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] – have argued that Pullman's works should be included in religious-education courses.<ref>{{cite news | last = Petre | first = Jonathan | title = Williams backs Pullman | work = [[The Daily Telegraph]] | date = 10 March 2004 | url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3335958/Williams-backs-Pullman.html | access-date =2 February 2010 }}</ref> Journalist [[Peter Hitchens]] views the series ''His Dark Materials'' as a direct rebuttal of ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia]]'' by [[C. S. Lewis]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Hitchens|first=Peter|url= http://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/18th-january-2003/18/a-labour-of-loathing |title=A labour of loathing |work= The Spectator|date=18 January 2003|access-date= 21 September 2006}}</ref> Literary critic [[Alan Jacobs (academic)|Alan Jacobs]] of [[Wheaton College (Illinois)|Wheaton College in Illinois]] suggested that Pullman had recast the Narnia series, replacing a [[theist]] [[world-view]] with a [[Jean-Jacques Rousseau|Rousseauist]] one.<ref>{{cite web

|url= http://mhadigital.org/index.php?post_id=274993

|title= Audition&nbsp;– Program 10 (On Philip Pullman)

|date= 6 November 2007

|access-date= 13 November 2007

|publisher= Mars Hill Audio

|archive-date= 10 November 2014

|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141110054408/http://mhadigital.org/index.php?post_id=274993

|url-status= usurped

}}

With MP3 audio recording.</ref>

== Adaptations ==

[[New Line Cinema]] released a [[feature film|feature-film]] adaptation of the novel named [[The Golden Compass (film)|''The Golden Compass'']] in December 2007. [[Chris Weitz]] adapted the novel and also directed the film. [[Dakota Blue Richards]], in her film debut, played Lyra. The cast included [[Nicole Kidman]], [[Daniel Craig]], [[Eva Green]], [[Ian McKellen]], [[Sam Elliott]], [[Derek Jacobi]], and [[Christopher Lee]].

In 1996 [[Natasha Richardson]] narrated an [[audiobook]] version of ''Northern Lights''. The trilogy, ''His Dark Materials'', was abridged in a dramatisation by BBC Worldwide, published on 1 January 2003. It was also adapted unabridged and released by [[BBC Audiobooks]], narrated by Philip Pullman. The cast includes: [[Jo Wyatt|Joanna Wyatt]] as Lyra, [[Alison Dowling]] as Mrs Coulter, [[Seán Barrett (actor)|Seán Barrett]] as Lord Asriel and Iorek Byrnison, and [[Stephen Thorne]] as the Master and Farder Coram. An audiobook version narrated by Pullman and featuring a full cast was released in 1999.<ref>{{Cite web |title=THE GOLDEN COMPASS by Philip Pullman Read by a Full Cast {{!}} Audiobook Review |url=http://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/2597/the-golden-compass-by-philip-pullman-read-by-a-full-cast/ |access-date=2023-05-28 |website=AudioFile Magazine |language=en}}</ref>

The [[Royal National Theatre|National Theatre]] in London staged a [[His Dark Materials (play)|two-part adaptation]] of the trilogy in 2003–2004.

[[Sega]] released a [[The Golden Compass (video game)|video game of the movie adaptation]] of the book, titled ''The Golden Compass'' and developed by [[Shiny Entertainment]], on 4 December 2007. Players assume the role of Lyra as she travels through the frozen wastes of the North in an attempt to rescue her friend kidnapped by a mysterious organisation known as the Gobblers. Travelling with her are an armoured polar bear and her dæmon Pantalaimon (Pan). Together, they must use a truth-telling alethiometer and other items to explore the land and fight their way through confrontations to help Lyra's friend. ''The Golden Compass'' features a mix of fighting and puzzle-solving with three characters.<ref name="The Golden Compass Game">{{cite web|url= https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/01/08/the-golden-compass-review|author= Ryan Clements|title= The Golden Compass Review: Not as magical as you might hope|date= 7 January 2008|access-date= 13 September 2019|publisher= IGN Entertainment}} Review of the video game.</ref>

On 3 November 2019, [[BBC One]] began broadcast of their [[His Dark Materials (TV series)|TV adaptation of ''His Dark Materials'']]. This first series mainly covers events from ''Northern Lights''. It premiered on HBO on 4 November 2019 in the United States. The series was produced by [[Bad Wolf (production company)|Bad Wolf]] and [[New Line Cinema]]<ref>{{cite web|url= https://variety.com/2015/tv/global/bbc-orders-philip-pullmans-his-dark-materials-1201632207/|title= BBC Greenlights TV Series Based on Philip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials'|first= Leo|last= Barraclough|date= 3 November 2015|work= Variety}}</ref> and directed by [[Tom Hooper]]. Cast members included [[Dafne Keen]], [[James McAvoy]], [[Ruth Wilson]], [[Lin-Manuel Miranda]], [[Ian Gelder]], and [[Ruta Gedmintas]].

==See also==

*[[1995 in{{Portal|Children's literature]] |Fantasy }}

*[http://www.bridgetothestars.net ''[[His Dark Materials fan site]]''

* [[List of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust characters|List of ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust'' characters]]

* [[Races and creatures in His Dark Materials|Races and creatures in ''His Dark Materials'']]

* [[Locations in His Dark Materials|Locations in ''His Dark Materials'']]

==Notes==

{{notelist |25em |notes=

{{efn|name=GCFP |1=

Alternatively, [[Carnegie Medal (literary award)#Winners of multiple awards|six authors]] have won the Carnegie Medal for their [[Guardian Prize]]-winning books. [[Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals|Professional librarians]] confer the Carnegie and select the winner from all British children's books. ''[[The Guardian]]'' newspaper's prize winner is selected by British children's writers, "peers" of the author who has not yet won it, for one children's (age 7+) or young-adult fiction book. The nationality of winning authors and publishers has varied.

}}

}}

==References==

{{Reflist |25em |refs=

<ref name=medal1995>

[http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/archive-title.php?id=63 Carnegie Winner 1995] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224113538/http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/livingarchive/title.php?id=63 |date=24 December 2013 }}. Living Archive: Celebrating the Carnegie and Greenaway Winners. [[CILIP]]. Retrieved 28 February 2018.</ref>

<ref name=topten>

[http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/celebration/top_tens.php?action=list "70 Years Celebration: Anniversary Top Tens"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161027022418/http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/celebration/top_tens.php?action=list |date=27 October 2016 }}. The CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Children's Book Awards. [[CILIP]]. Retrieved 9 July 2012.</ref>

<ref name=relaunch>

[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/mar/12/guardianchildrensfictionprize2001.guardianchildrensfictionprize "Guardian children's fiction prize relaunched: Entry details and list of past winners"]. ''The Guardian'' 12 March 2001. Retrieved 31 July 2012.</ref>

}}

===Citations===

*{{cite book | last=Lenz | first=Millicent | year=2005 | title=His Dark Materials Illuminated: Critical Essays on Phillip Pullman's Trilogy | publisher=Wayne State University Press | isbn=0-8143-3207-2}}

==Further reading==

* {{cite book |last=Sampson |first=Cory |chapter=Pullman and imperialism: navigating the geographic imagination in ''The Golden Compass'' |title=[[Children's Literature and Imaginative Geography]] |editor-last=Hudson |editor-first=Aïda |publisher=[[Wilfrid Laurier University Press]] |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-7711-2325-9}}

==External links==

* {{WorldCat |oclc=416128676 |name=The Golden Compass }} —immediately, first US edition

*[http://www.stagework.org.uk/webdav/servlet/XRM?Page/@id=6012&Document/@id=257 Philip Pullman reads a manuscript extract (audio)]

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20190816102915/http://hisdarkmaterials.com/ Philip Pullman: His Dark Materials], dedicated website at publisher Random House

* {{IMDb title|qid=Q637021|title=The Golden Compass}}

* {{ISFDB name |2692 |Philip Pullman}}

* [http://www.philip-pullman.com/ Philip Pullman] Author's website

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041025184819/http://www.scholastic.co.uk/zone/book_philip-pullman.htm Scholastic: ''His Dark Materials''] UK publisher's website

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/hisdarkmaterials/characters.shtml BBC Radio 4's ''His Dark Materials'' site inc. Dictionary of His Dark Materials and web Q&A with Philip Pullman]

{{s-start}}

{{s-ach|awards}}

{{succession box|title=[[Carnegie Medal (literary award)|Carnegie Medal recipient]]|before=''[[Whispers in the Graveyard]]''|after=''[[Junk (novel)|Junk]]''|years=1995}}

{{s-end}}

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