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)

Perfection.

I suggested to a client that we listen to an audio book instead of listening to random podcasts during our sessions. We were meeting for 9 hours a week, after all, so why not get INTO something? She suggested the His Dark Materials trilogy.

It was absolutely stunning. Is it a children's book? Adult? It doesn't matter. We got to listen to hours and hours of Philip Pullman's beautiful voice for days and days. I'd listen to the sports section of the newspaper if he were reading it. And I hate all sports.

Fantastic!

I loved this series years ago when I read it for the the first time. Hearing the Audible version brought it to life in ways I could have never imagined. Using a full cast made it so special.

good adventure and ending to the trilogy.

the series had great narration and story. It seemed to drag a little but a fitting end to the trilogy.

The Audible version enhanced the work

The reading brought up all the charm of the words from Phillip pullmans. Well, he's part of the reading, anyway.

I cried

I did not expect to cry, but the tears just kept flowing. I wish there were three more books in this series as Im just not ready to let Lyra and Will go.

Disappointing ending to a fantastic trilogy

This novel has more jumps and convenient happenstances than the other books in the series. I found a big arc in the middle of the story was not properly justified, and the end left me asking “why?”

Love it so much

The best book I have ever seen can wait till the next one comes out

an exceptional story that's had bad press

Forget the political reviews of this series as an atheist anthem. This is simply a wonderful story with rich characters, fantastic worlds and heartwarming themes about friendship and loyalty. The full cast reading is worth every penny-a must listen!

Mature

I enjoyed this book, but it was very long. The characters and the cast were excellent. Though I'm not a religious person, I felt disturbed about the anti-church storyline because it is disguised as a children's book. I feel that parents should listen first and decide how they feel about it. It is definitely not for young children.

Thrilling and heart breaking

This was the most eventful of the trilogy. It is because of this that I believe it is somewhat difficult to follow all of the characters and their adventures. It has an ending that is satifying and heart breaking yet leaves me interested in knowing where the characters go from here. I sincerely hope there will be more to come. I want to know how Mary and Will fair back in their world and what happens to Will's mother and how much she knew. There was also an unanswered question as to the person the main couple had already met that was going to help them adjust to their unexpected situation. It was an exciting thrilling adventure and I want more!!!