Yesterday, I finished reading Philip Pullman’s “The Golden Compass,” originally published in the U.K. as “Northern Lights” and the first book in the “His Dark Materials” series. Irish John recommended I read it and I’m very impressed with it. I read the entire book in one evening and part of the following morning.

The story presents a world where humans have daemons that take the shape of animals related to the human’s character. The daemons are variable in type until the child reaches puberty, after which they become fixed in form. The protagonist is a teenage girl raised as an orphan who goes through lots of adventures.

I’ve already reserved the second volume of the series at the public library.