I’d like to get an idea of how many of us are at least most of the way through the novel and can be ready to participate in a forum sometime in the next week or so.  Please leave a comment with your status and, if you don’t mind, an idea of when the best time for you to be available for either a live chat or a call-in podcast might be (keep in mind that Mrs. Chili lives in the Eastern time zone and is lousy at math…).

I can’t wait!!!

There is a strong (and I mean STRONG) theme of integrity and honor in this novel.  I am finding myself writing sticky note after sticky note marking places where characters behave in ways that impress me as being honest and respectful and honorable.  Lord Faa, for example, and in nearly every dealing he has with anyone, is the epitome of integrity; he is honest and forthright, he listens to his people and genuinely considers their points of view (even if he rejects them in the end), and he understands, in a way that impresses me deeply, that one needn’t be deceitful to engage in politics.  I love the way he chides those who propose doing things (or not doing things) that go against Faa’s ethics (which, presumably, are the Gyptian’s ethics, too, as Faa is their acknowledged leader); he manages to stomp on the proposals in a way that is both firmly disapproving while still being loving and compassionate, and I really appreciate that.

So, too, do many of the other characters behave.  Sarafina Pekkala, Iorek Byrnison, and Lee Scoresby all exude an air of thoughtful, pragmatic honor; they understand things like alliances and commitment, they remember debts owed both to them and by them, and while they temper their decision-making with emotion (none of the characters is without compassion), they recognize at the same time that emotion cannot always be the overriding factor in a situation – they are willing to make heartbreaking choices simply because they are the right thing to do.

I think I’m struck by all this integrity because I’ve been feeling a bit adrift in the world lately and lamenting that good, honorable people are becoming a scarcity in the world.  I find myself fearing that the good people’s voices are being drowned out by the fanatics, the power-hungry, and the fearful, so seeing examples of characters who stand up for what’s right just because it’s right is encouraging to me.  Too bad it has to happen in the pages of a book…

So!  What are YOU noticing as you read?

It seems we’ve got a significant group going!  I’m jazzed by how many of you are willing (if not eager) to play along!  Please remember that if you’ve got a post you want put up as you read – if you’ve got a question or an observation that you don’t want to get lost in a comment thread, say, or if you have a connection to make to a text that you don’t want anyone to miss – email it to me at mrschili at comcast dot net and I’ll post it for you.

I’m about 100 pages in as I write this.  I’ve been reading, as I do when I’m examining a text closely, with a stack of Post-it flags next to me (in fact, I have several books whose leading edges are wider than their spines because all those sticky notes pile up.  Somewhere, I’ve got a picture of my working copy of Frankenstein showing how significantly wider it is at the pages than the spine…).  Here are some of the questions I’ve raised and a few of the observations I’ve made so far:

•  Who is our narrator?  I’m not going to call the narration “omniscient,” because I’m not getting the impression of “all knowing, all seeing” from the voice, but I have noticed, in several places, that our narrator has a very wide compassionate streak; look carefully at the scene involving Tony to see what I mean here.  I don’t find the narration at all intrusive; in fact, I have to turn on that sensor to really see what the narrator is doing (see my last observation about Pullman’s facility with the subtle).  What I do notice is that our narrator cares about the story, and that comes through in the voice of the novel.

•  The relationship between human and daemon is fascinating to me.  My understanding of it is that they are connected in a way that goes far beyond intimacy, yet they are distinctly separate beings with different perspectives (and, sometimes, morals).  I love that Pan scolds Lyra early on, and that Lyra tricks him into the adventure that opens the book because she knew that if she told him the truth he’d never go along with her plan.  Later, Pan sees important details that Lyra doesn’t – not only because he’s in a physical position to actually see such things, but because he’s got a different, more mature mindset than she does – and those pieces are critical to how both Lyra and the reader understand what’s going on.

•  The narrator does a wonderful job, even early on in the novel, of letting us know that pretty much everyone knows more about who Lyra is than she herself does.  There are several instances of tertiary characters making little slips that, once certain facts are revealed to Lyra (and the reader, who learns of them as she does), all fall into place.   Having read this novel before (and just recently, too), I find myself catching those little hints all over the place.

•  Pullman is a genius at conveying the subtle.  His description of the Master’s behavior, both before and after Lyra leaves, is gorgeous; the narrative made me feel for this character, even though (at least, in the first reading) I had no idea what he was so profoundly conflicted about.  So, too, does the description of Mrs. Coulter and her behavior move me.  I actually shudder at this woman, and the skillful way the prose gets across the idea of a simmering violence just below the surface is a wonder to me, even on a second reading.  I find myself on my guard whenever I read her sections, and the fact that I have a seething hatred for her daemon delights me.  Books that can make me care enough to expend real emotion are well worth the time it takes to read them.

So, how’s YOUR reading going?  What are YOU seeing?

We opened this blog many, many months ago with all good intentions of starting a reading group.  We had visions of smart people discussing interesting books, of giving one another insights and of learning from each other, and of live discussions on podcasts.  It was going to be great, we thought, so in a fit of optimism (that was clearly not supported by our collective amount of free time), we opened a blog and got ready to welcome greatness.

You know what they say about the road to Hell and good intentions, right?

Well, to hell with that!  Never being one to be particularly timid, I’ve decided that now is the time, and this is the book:

The His Dark Materials trilogy was recommended to me by a colleague of mine at the university where I teach writing.  I also teach high school English, you see, and I was casting about for appropriate novels for juniors and seniors that had a strong “coming of age” theme.  I have great respect for Adam’s literary judgment, and he had nothing but good things to say about Pullman’s novels; they’re challenging, he said, but they would make an amazing anchor for a high school class for the teacher who’s not intimidated by them.

I am so not intimidated.

Though my daughters already have the books, I went out that afternoon and bought a set for myself.  I am currently about a quarter of the way into the third installment of the story, but I’m willing to delay my gratification of finishing the series because I’m so eager to go back to look closely at the first book.  I’m sure that, for as much as I got out of it reading it on my own, I’ll be able to understand so much more if I read it with a community.

So, I’m putting this out there.  Care to do a little reading with me?  I’ll post questions and observations here periodically; we can have discussions in the comments.  If you wish to contribute a post, email it to me at mrschili at comcast dot net and I’ll put it up for you.

Ready?  Set?  Read!!

Alan of Success Warrior sent me an email the other day asking whether I was interested in starting a reading group with him.  He’s diving head first into college, and is finding that he actually likes this “English stuff” – this living in the grey areas of interpretation and analysis that his career in law enforcement rarely afforded him.

I was ALL OVER IT.  I was missing my old book club terribly and, even though I’m in it up to here with work and kids and, well, life, I jumped at the opportunity to get right into reading with a group again.

Alan’s looking into getting us set up for a pod cast, so we can do a call-in live discussion.  EVERYONE who wants to read is welcomed.  I say that when it comes to investigating something -books, movies, poetry, pretty much anything – the more the merrier.  I’m constantly delighted (though I’ve ceased to be amazed) by the fact that every time – EVERY TIME – I talk about a piece of literature with someone, I come away with something new to think about.  That totally geeks me out!.

So, what do you say?  Wanna join us?