I'm midway through the third book now. IMHO, the books are a quick entertaining read with some interesting ideas, especially intriguing to me are twists on organized religion. The stories are definitely plot driven, and the characters are pretty transparent and simple -- but their actions do surprise you sometimes.
If I had to guess, I'd say these were aimed at people in their mid-to late teens. Although they fall in the fantasy genre, which I outgrew in favor of sci-fi, the ideas here are new and cool in a sci-fi kind of way.
The first and second books definitely leave you hanging; the three making up one continuing story. I guess I'll have to finish the third before I can say whether Pullman pulls his ideas into a cohesive point of view or if he just dangles them there as food for thought.
As I said these are quick and easy reads, and make good travelling books. YMMV.
Cutting edge reality programming would show
a dozen people locked up in a room with only
Web TVs and a Mr. Coffee.
Each week there could be quizes about
what's on the air and the web, and contestants
are eliminated one by one. Throw in an
XBill contest for good measure.
At the end, the winner wins a frontal lobotomy
so they can enjoy life just sitting in a rocking
chair watching dust collect.
Slashdot Mirror
Is L. Ron invading San Francisco?
I'm midway through the third book now. IMHO, the books are a quick entertaining read with some interesting ideas, especially intriguing to me are twists on organized religion. The stories are definitely plot driven, and the characters are pretty transparent and simple -- but their actions do surprise you sometimes.
If I had to guess, I'd say these were aimed at people in their mid-to late teens. Although they fall in the fantasy genre, which I outgrew in favor of sci-fi, the ideas here are new and cool in a sci-fi kind of way.
The first and second books definitely leave you hanging; the three making up one continuing story. I guess I'll have to finish the third before I can say whether Pullman pulls his ideas into a cohesive point of view or if he just dangles them there as food for thought.
As I said these are quick and easy reads, and make good travelling books. YMMV.
Cutting edge reality programming would show a dozen people locked up in a room with only Web TVs and a Mr. Coffee. Each week there could be quizes about what's on the air and the web, and contestants are eliminated one by one. Throw in an XBill contest for good measure. At the end, the winner wins a frontal lobotomy so they can enjoy life just sitting in a rocking chair watching dust collect.
which is a part of the Fermilab tutorial.
For a thorough popular discussion, see Leon Lederman's book, The God Particle.
For heavy duty body-hacking, see www.leary.com. [Do not try this at home.]