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)

I cried because the trilogy was over....

Wow! Philip Pullman is a genius. He has clearly such a knowledgeable, intellectual man, who also knows how to write to young and old audiences alike. This trilogy of books was excellent from beginning to end. I really really hated them to end.
And Philip is a fantastic narrator, as are all the other readers. I have nothing negative to say about this book or its readers!
I just keep hoping that Philip will put out another exciting book, as compelling as these 3 were.

Does what it's meant to do: enterntain.

I saw the movie based on the first book and decided to listed to the last two. It was hours of entertainment. Mr. Pullman's prose is captivating and the characters he brought to life leave you wishing you could actually get to know them some day. As for the religious content, yes it should be hard to listen for some people and I am sure very offensive for others. For me, it's just fiction and as such I take it, but I would never recommend it for a kid. A great book, but not for everyone.

first time and loved it.

I missed his dark materials growing up and this recording really brought it to life. wonderful narration deep heartfelt story. a definite.

Terrible ending

Oh god I loved the mullooofahs! If I could come back as one ! He is a tremendous writer but he seemed at the end to have forgotten his first job was to tell a good story and the rest, the theory and all that jazz, should be secondary-- but he got too carried away with it and thus gave his young characters quite a punitive fate which really works against the philosophy overall - which still doesn't discount the fact that it was a beautiful & vivid tale.

All time favorite

There will never be a series that has touched me more profoundly than His Dark Materials.

Great full cast. But music annoys.

It was a great cast. It’s always nice hearing different character. Especially across three books. But music during audio books always annoys me. It’s always louder than the narration. This book only had it at the beginning/end of chapters, but I still didn’t like it.

a great story, an okay performance

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Philip Pullman is a wonderful narrator, and I didn't even mind the full cast----it can be jarring in some cases, but it was mostly very well done here. I do, however, wish that they hadn't replaced the actor portraying Will Parry in the last installment (The Subtle Knife) with this new one. I much preferred his predecessor.

Also, it would help to have a full list of all the actors and the characters they portray. I've grown rather fond a few and I'd like to know who they are and whether they've narrated anything else.

Wonderful!

I have read this series 3 times now and love it dearly! This is not just a children's book - it has complex ideas and theories about religion, kindness, and hope.

Incrediblily intelligent and captivating read.

A fast paced thrill with finely developed and complicated characters that can be enjoyed by teens and adults alike.

Really sparks curious thinking.

Performance wise I appreciate that there isn't the awful music at each chapter in this book, I am not sure about the chance in who voices Will though.
As for the story portion, I still feel Lyra was a bit too over shadowed from her originally strong lead. I also feel it would be nice to know if the angel that was freed from the crystal was The Authority or whom, it just doesn't seem clear. Otherwise a great story.