The Amber Spyglass

His Dark Materials, Book 3

By: Philip Pullman

Narrated by: Philip Pullman, full cast

Length: 14 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Lyra and Will, the two ordinary children whose extraordinary adventures begin in The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife, are in unspeakable danger. With help from Iorek Byrnison the armored bear and two tiny Gallivespian spies, they must journey to a dank and gray-lit world where no living soul has ever gone.

All the while, Dr. Mary Malone builds a magnificent amber spyglass. An assassin hunts her down. And Lord Asriel, with troops of shining angels, fights his mighty rebellion, a battle of strange allies and shocking sacrifice.

As war rages and dust drains from the sky, the fate of the living, and the dead, finally comes to depend on two children and the simple truth of one simple story. The Amber Spyglass reveals that story, bringing Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials to an astonishing conclusion.

Listen to the rest of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials series.

©2000 Philip Pullman (P)2001 Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Absorbing...Like Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling, [Pullman] invents a world filled with strange divinations and wordplays." (Newsweek)
"A literary masterpiece...[that] caps the most magnificent fantasy series since The Lord of the Rings and puts Harry Potter to shame...A page-turning story that builds to a powerful finish." (Oregonian)
"As the rich tale unfolds, Pullman's voice, elegant with a hint of both whisper and rasp, thoroughly enthralls, sounding by turns forceful and tender. The talented, extensive cast gives a dynamic, nearly flawless performance." (Publishers Weekly)

Dark Materials Trilogy offers a compelling story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

The various readers/voices are absolutely wonderful, bringing the story to life with dramatic flair and heartfelt meaning. Hearing Philip Pullman read his own words is also extremely powerful. In some ways, only he could credibly relate the details of the astonishing worlds he created.

What does Philip Pullman and full cast bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The voices of each character are now etched in my mind, making the story very real and powerful. I can't imagine that I would have enjoyed it so much if I had just read the book myself.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was moved by the expression of love between Lyra and Will and their sacrifice in parting.

very very interesting

i love how the author bashes the catholic church i thought it was hilarious and such a great book this has become one of my favorite books of all time. I'm now starting on the Gargoyle all things in a book bound by love the first chapter grips you and can't stop reading

Music is distracting

The music was distracting and unnecessary. Iorek sounded dumb and slow instead of deep and wise like I imagined, but the rest was great. I especially liked Pan and Will.

The Amber Spyglass: His Dark Materials

I thoroughly enjoyed the character voices of the book. It made me feel as though I were watching a play!
However, there were several areas were it seemed to skip a few words???

Ah memories

When I first read this series I couldn't have been more than seven, but I inhaled it. It was so amazing, though I will admit, it wouldn't have been nearly as good without the wonderful full cast performance. Anyway, I reread this series recently and still loved it. I certainly got more out of it now than I did when I was younger, but I think it is amazing that this author can write books that appeal to readers of all ages. I'll admit that a few parts do drag a bit, but that's alright, and doesn't take away from the overall magic of the book.

Great story - so disappointed I finished it!

I loved this book. So well written and much to contemplate. Worth reading more than once

Entertaining and thought provoking.

I thought the story flowed well and had great character development. The voice actors were phenomenal.

Spectacular deconstruction of religion

Absolutely wonderful! This trilogy answered all of the questions from the previous books. The ending although sorrowful was necessary and spectacular. 😭

Better then I remember.

Listened to the trilogy many many times as a kid.
Loved them then, still love them now.

Great reader and cast

The multi cast was excellent. The character’s dialogue was very real. The story was unique and wonderful fantasy. Highly recommended!