HIS DARK MATERIALS ~ Northern Lights ~ Chapter 1
Before early this year I did not even know HDM existed. Interestingly within the span of ten days or so several people (from b77 and RL friends) mentioned it to me and since I take these kind of 'prompts' quite serious I headed to the bookshop and bought it in February (as a BD present to myself). As I always do, I scanned the opening chapter and in this case I really had to pull myself by the hair to stop reading right there and then and get myself to the cashier. I think I finished all three volumes in the span of less than a month – which to me is staggering and I'm looking tremendously forward now to a more in-depth read and a discussion with you guys
The opening paragraph had me hooked immediately (and I would absolutely love it if someone here that has a German or French copy would quote it here also for comparison)
Immediately I found myself plunged into a medieval-ish 'feel' world with a difference:
Quote: Lyra and her dæmon moved through the darkening Hall, taking care to keep to one side, out of sight of the kitchen. The three great tables that ran the length of the Hall were laid already, the silver and the glass catching what little light there was, and the long benches were pulled out ready for the guests. Portraits of former Masters hung high up in the gloom along the walls. Lyra reached the dais and looked back at the open kitchen door and, seeing no one, stepped up beside the high table. The places here were laid with gold, not silver, and the fourteen seats were not oak benches but mahogany chairs with velvet cushions.
"Lyra and her dæmon… " I went ........ WOW! ......
Dæmon for me immediately meant 'spirit' and it was clear to me from the first that Pullman must be referring to it from that aspect, perhaps also meaning 'consciousness' or 'soul' and the concept of this being externalised grabbed me totally. And then there is of course immediate suspense, all created within that opening paragraph. You know something is cooking and as the chapter unfolds this sense is carried forward to get bigger and bigger.
I absolutely loved the way Pullman has created the setting, Lyra's world, the way he weaves in elements of our reality with nearly new ones. Examples of that would be the mention of Aërodock, anbaric lights, naphta lamps and screen projecting lantern.
Naphtha (slightly different spelling) is an obsolete term for petroleum, or rather – going by the dictionary: Any of several highly volatile, flammable liquid mixtures of hydrocarbons distilled from petroleum, coal tar, and natural gas and used as fuel, as solvents, and in making various chemicals
.. and later the mention of "rumours that the Tartars have invaded Muscovy… It all goes hand-in-hand with the mention of the vintage Tokay of 1898 that we find ourselves in a parallel world. Unconnected to ours at this point in time and I thought that would remain so yet of course Pullman was only just beginning to weave his tale.
The 'mystery' behind the concept of dæmons also unravelled quickly for me and gave a very interesting insight into the characters.
Lyra's dæmon is "currently in the shape of a moth" and from that I immediately concluded that Lyra must be a child. Just like a child's spirit/soul/consciousness grows and forms until its character is (somewhat) determined so does the dæmon change. Adults dæmons don't change and to see that servants dæmons are dogs, superior dogs for superior servants – how fitting. Lord Asriel's (what a wonderful character description of him in the chapter that just makes your skin crawl) dæmon is a snow leopard and the Master's dæmon is a raven. Even were the character descriptions ommited (which they are in regard to the Master) simply through the concept of dæmons one gets an immediate grasp as to the characters make-up.
Reaching the end of the first chapter it was impossible to put down the book (the first time around) and it's almost painful to do so now. I think from the many fantasy/sci-fi -type stories I've read this entire opening chapter is just awesome and with no parallel. From the first sentence I was utterly captivated, possibly also because I saw a lot of myself in Lyra, that wonderfully wilful, stubborn, curious girl with a heart of gold that goes against all rules and even against her 'inner voice', Pantaleimon, her dæmon. Having a persons consciousness/soul externalised in the form of an animal (we're all animals at heart) that bears the persons characteristics, being able to interact – I was totally hooked on that concept alone. Add to that the somewhat familiar yet different world, a pinch of magic and 'sci-fi', I knew I would not get anything much done until I was through with the book.
_______________
Resident witchâ„¢