Always with the reading
So I finished the third book in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials and I am not altogether happy.
***SPOILERS AHOY!***
I am not now, nor have I ever been, nor will I ever be a person of the Judeo-Christian persuasion, but it seems to me that the whole killing God thing was kind of ... ugh. I mean, was that supposed to be the point of the whole thing? Killing God? Lord Asriel's battle with The Authority, and all that? Because really, it was less than dramatic. The scene in which God ACTUALLY dies reads like it was shoehorned in at the last minute, and it seems to me that if you're going to go to all the trouble of killing God, you ought to make a big deal out of it. Kill God BIG, or don't kill God at all, sez I. And if killing God WASN'T the point of the whole exercise, then why bother? The book/series was plenty compelling without that bit, you know?
I dunno, y'all. It left me wanting.
I didn't hate it, though. I still like the second book best, the third book second best, and the first book third best. The boy is reading the first book now, and he's enjoying it. I think the religious stuff will go right over his head, us being godless pagans and all.
Whatever.
I think I like the Sally Lockhart books better.
***END SPOILERS!***
I recently read Steve Almond's Candyfreak and liked it okay, but I did not love it. I don't know WHY I didn't love it, exactly. It was a little angsty for my taste, maybe. It did inspire me to pick up a Five Star Hazelnut Bar along with my usual Caramel the next time I'm out high-end candy shopping, though.
Last night I started Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck and I finished it today (it's a quick read) and I LOVED it. She's about my mom's age, apparently, but I related to what she was saying SO MUCH because hello, I HATE MY NECK TOO! I may loan this book to my mom, in fact, because I think she'd really enjoy it, but I'll have to tell her not to read the last chapter. It would just bum her out.
Today I went nuts buying magazines. I'm not sure what happened, really. The Badger children and I were out running errands, and they both needed new wall calendars, and Barnes & Noble had them for 50% off, and I ended up buying Craft: 05 (which was $15 OH MY GOD) and the January/February issue of Blueprint (the last one, I think?). And then at the sucky supermarket I bought the January issue of Real Simple even though I really sort of hate Real Simple.
And also I just subscribed to Interweave Crochet.
I know, right?
Now that I've finished the Ephron I need another book to read, and while Pullman's The Shadow in the North (the second Sally Lockhart book) is calling to me, what with sitting RIGHT THERE on my reading stand under my reading lamp next to my reading chair and all, I'm leaning more toward Dai Sijie's Mr. Muo's Travelling Couch.
In other news, yea verily, the girl hath vomited forth most copiously and retired to her bed early this eve, which bodes not well for her going back to school on Tuesday, forsooth.
Which would really suck because that's when I had planned to go buy Five Star Bars.
Damn kids.
***SPOILERS AHOY!***
I am not now, nor have I ever been, nor will I ever be a person of the Judeo-Christian persuasion, but it seems to me that the whole killing God thing was kind of ... ugh. I mean, was that supposed to be the point of the whole thing? Killing God? Lord Asriel's battle with The Authority, and all that? Because really, it was less than dramatic. The scene in which God ACTUALLY dies reads like it was shoehorned in at the last minute, and it seems to me that if you're going to go to all the trouble of killing God, you ought to make a big deal out of it. Kill God BIG, or don't kill God at all, sez I. And if killing God WASN'T the point of the whole exercise, then why bother? The book/series was plenty compelling without that bit, you know?
I dunno, y'all. It left me wanting.
I didn't hate it, though. I still like the second book best, the third book second best, and the first book third best. The boy is reading the first book now, and he's enjoying it. I think the religious stuff will go right over his head, us being godless pagans and all.
Whatever.
I think I like the Sally Lockhart books better.
***END SPOILERS!***
I recently read Steve Almond's Candyfreak and liked it okay, but I did not love it. I don't know WHY I didn't love it, exactly. It was a little angsty for my taste, maybe. It did inspire me to pick up a Five Star Hazelnut Bar along with my usual Caramel the next time I'm out high-end candy shopping, though.
Last night I started Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck and I finished it today (it's a quick read) and I LOVED it. She's about my mom's age, apparently, but I related to what she was saying SO MUCH because hello, I HATE MY NECK TOO! I may loan this book to my mom, in fact, because I think she'd really enjoy it, but I'll have to tell her not to read the last chapter. It would just bum her out.
Today I went nuts buying magazines. I'm not sure what happened, really. The Badger children and I were out running errands, and they both needed new wall calendars, and Barnes & Noble had them for 50% off, and I ended up buying Craft: 05 (which was $15 OH MY GOD) and the January/February issue of Blueprint (the last one, I think?). And then at the sucky supermarket I bought the January issue of Real Simple even though I really sort of hate Real Simple.
And also I just subscribed to Interweave Crochet.
I know, right?
Now that I've finished the Ephron I need another book to read, and while Pullman's The Shadow in the North (the second Sally Lockhart book) is calling to me, what with sitting RIGHT THERE on my reading stand under my reading lamp next to my reading chair and all, I'm leaning more toward Dai Sijie's Mr. Muo's Travelling Couch.
In other news, yea verily, the girl hath vomited forth most copiously and retired to her bed early this eve, which bodes not well for her going back to school on Tuesday, forsooth.
Which would really suck because that's when I had planned to go buy Five Star Bars.
Damn kids.
Labels: DH just subscribed us to both Craft and Make, now we will have to Craft and Make stuff
posted by Badger at 8:08 PM
18 Comments:
If you were disappointed with that trilogy, you might try finding Oolon Colluphid's bestsellers.
-J.
My persona interpretation of HDM is that any being or group trying to dictate lives by promoting its own agenda on how the world (or worlds) should be run aren't good. In that perspective, Asriel isn't any more in the right than the followers of the Authority. I think the low key death of God in the book is supposed to be a commentary on how there was so much fanatasism on such a brakable and temporary idea/being. Moving from that interpretation, the altheometer is the source of undisputed truth in the book, and the only completely trustworthy source in the narrative as it's predictions were not influenced by someone's particular culture or belief system. I'm not saying this is THE way to read it, it's just an interpretation, but I saw the books as being about ideas at odds with reality.
I Feel Bad About My Neck is even funnier - except for the last chapter, natch - when you listen to Nora read it on CD. She is soooo dry. Which is ironic considering the obsession with moisturizer....
i love the his dark materials series, but the third one is my least favorite.
i'm reading through the sally lockhart series right now, and i'm on the third one. i'm getting pretty frustrated, and i want to get to the end RIGHT NOW so i know what happens.
the first two were awesome, though. if i were you, i'd go ahead and read the next sally lockhart book.
Hmm... I can understand why you might feel the whole Authority's death part was tacked on. Perhaps because it had virtually no effect on anything which happened?
If that's the case, then I think you might be wrong. Personally, I feel that that fact is very important to the whole message.
Neither side was effected at all by this death, because that meant that the actual God had little to do with the fighting. For Asriel and crew, Metatron was the one to get rid of, and for Metatron and crew, their objective was just to get rid of those opposing their power (Asriel, Lyra, and Will for the most part).
The Authority didn't factor in!
Metatron had been ruling for ages in the Authority's stead, due to the Authority's age. Even if the Authority died, it wouldn't really change this. Metatron would continue torule in the Authority's name.
And that's what it's all about, the corrupted rulers who claim to be under God, when they are really just ruling for their own personal gain. That is what Pullman is against, not God himself (Mind you, I'm not accusing anybody of saying that here).
Well, I suppose that is the end of what I have to say here. I don't mean for this to turn into a debate, but rather to add my two cents.
- EFO
You might hate Real Simple, but the editor of the magazine loves your "Make Your Own Damn Dinner" blog. She has a link to it on her blog;Adventures in Chaos.
Yeah, I see what y'all are saying about the whole Authority thing, and I think I interpreted it in a similar fashion when I actually read it; it's only in retrospect that I feel a little "meh" on the whole thing.
Maybe I'm just crabby.
The editor of Real Simple links to my food blog?! AWKWARD. In that case I should clarify that my reasons for hating RS are MOSTLY due to style/technical issues rather than editorial issues. Editorially speaking, it's not a bad magazine. From a style standpoint, it looks like a font library threw up on it. Or maybe they've fixed that. I dunno, I haven't read this issue yet.
No Christmas break is complete without someone throwing up. Good job on getting one in there in time.
I love Nora Ephron's blog. her story of the trip to Vegas and the subsequent destruction that ensued is a must read.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nora-ephron/my-weekend-in-vegas_b_31800.html
I bet the girl will feel well enough to go to school on Tuesday. At least, I hope so.
this line alone makes reading your blog worth it (not that it isn't anyway, I am just saying...): "Kill God BIG, or don't kill God at all, sez I." CLASSIC Badger, and perfect.
Agree with you about RS and its look. It needs polish.
Peeking in thru Poppy and her links post... I have wanted to read the Pullman series and keep putting it off. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, religious in any way at all so it kind of appeals to me from that aspect to see what he deals with and how in the stories. Spoilers were ok, since I kind of knew what it's about anyway and just makes me want to read it even more. I think you just sold a set of books, lol. Time for a trip to Borders.
Sheesh, I add an extra link to you, and the first thing that happens is one of my readers comes over here and decides to buy a trilogy that sucks moldy bowling balls.
I agree with you about the death of whatever that is that Pullman is confusing with God. Seemed awfully lame and anti-climactic for a systematic attack on organized religion. More fireworks were definitely called for.
But if you are looking for a really GREAT trilogy, get the Bartimaous trilogy by Jonathon Stroud. Fabulous--and there is humor, which Pullman conspicuously lacks.
Never mind Pullman.
You bought a SUBSCRIPTION to INTERWEAVE CROCHET????
One more stunt like that and you're going to have join the Official World of Craft Bloggers.
You think THAT's awkward? Wait until you see Pullman's face on Judgment Day.
-J.
I just finished the second book and he does mention the whole war on god thing towards the end, in one quick sentence.
Someone had emailed me a link about the kiddos killing god in the books and warning me not to read...but seeing as I don't have those pesky beliefs to contend with, I considered myself exempt.
There's really someone named metatron? A little transformerish to me.
Poppy's right though, no sense of humor in these.
a response to your title: "Always with the commenting"
Couldn't finish the first Pullman (I'm dealing with depression, yo, and I already read the end. Not the sort of thing to read when you're depressed ALREADY.) But the interesting thing is that some Christians (the ones that aren't emailing you about the Snopes thing-y) think that when Pullman kills of God he's killing off the idea of a God that wasn't really God. Like a fake God. That Pullman is an angry atheist because God didn't live up to what God should be. Hmm, the link is here somewhere...that SL, always talking about books she HASN'T read--like that guy in Metropolitan who only read book reviews. (If you care, here's her blog: http://www.donnafreitas.com/) and here's the link to her Boston Globe article: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2007/11/25/god_in_the_dust/?page=1
ALSO, I ADORE the Nora Ephron Neck book. Last year (two years ago, sorry) at Thanksgiving, my sister and I ate it quickly. Oh, how I adore Nora. She has a blog?? Must find it...
Oh that SL, ever the librarian...
looks like the boston globe article link didn't transfer.
here's your google search:
donna frietas boston globe golden compass
(See how much I avoid the HTML?)
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