His Dark Materials has been voted best children's book in 70 years: agree or disagree?

[compo]

I would have gone with The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe myself.

LOLOLOL at shed closing in
Like all the best writers he is undeniably barking

Don't think I've read HDM. Books I loved were all the Tolkien ones, the 'Katy' books, the Little Women books, The Dark is Rising, the 'Gemma' books, and ALL the Roald Dahl books. Ds1 is JUST getting into them - we're reading the BFG at bedtime, and he's read some of the simpler books himself - he loves Esio Trot, Fantastic Mr Fox, Matilda, The Twits.

have you got the Book People Roald Dahl CD set tortoise? Some ridiculously cheap price

I wonder what the film of HDM will be like

I voted for Tom's Midnight Garden pesonally. DD1 voted for The Family at One End Street. We both voted for Dogger on the Kate Greenaway shortlist. So glad it won - my fave picture book of all time (apart from The Tiger who came to Tea)

tortoiseSHELL, it consists of two dazzlingly original and profoundly disturbing novels followed by a heroic failure to resolve the different plot strands convincingly
Pullman is viewed as extremely antagonistic to Christianity btw, something that bothers him not a jot, quite correctly IMO
I am not sure when or if I will ever be able to re-read these books. They really are that powerful and overwhelming.

FIS there will be aspects of HDM that will not feature in the film I guarantee it

Really? I must try and read them in that case. Sound worth reading.

foxinsocks - oh yes, Dh got it from the Book Club at work - ds1 LOVES it!

In fact last night he put Matilda on, and when he heard who was reading it said 'Mum, I had NO idea that was a real name!!!' (the reader shares a christian name with dd!)

They ARE amazing, Torty, you are in for a treat. I'm just not sure they will be the stand out best from this period in say another 50 years time.

What happens to Tony is why I can't re-read dino. Actually I get all teary just thinking about it. It's the whole Oblation thing in microcosm

Agree

I adore the dark Materials trilogy. But I would not have enjoyed them as a child.

ds1 is 9. He loves the hobbit and LOTR but though we have tried to read him Pullman, it has not engaged him in the slightest..

The books are overwhelming. my dh loved them and was always trying to persuade me to read them. It wasn't until I was laid up for a fortnight with a terrible chest infection that I picked up the first out of desperation (I read enormously fast and had run out of books .

I still remember that week. It was better than drugs!! I was totally swept away and drawn in by the trilogy. I wept and was truly in a different place.

I remember it too. I could not stop reading. Interestingly, his other children's books are entertaining but entirely not in the HDM league IMO

i love these books my niece and nephew loved them and i can't wait to read them to my dd (it will be a while)

quite terrified of the films, bound to disappoint but at least it has Daniel Craig in them to distract if needed

The Amber Spyglass was disappointing but the first two are amazing. That moment (spoiler alert) when he loses his fingers and it's so awful but it turns out to be the sign of his destiny.

And the moment Lyra sees a severed child. Shiver of horror.

Is it just UK writers?
I would go for Ursula Le Guin or Kevin Crossley-Holland.
Thought Northern Lights was wonderful but after that it was downhill all the way to the talking elephants on wheels. And too much telling his readers what to think.
His earlier books are good though.

For all those who haven't read HDM - it's one of the few titles that I was really disappointed when coming to the end of and am always really jealous of those who have yet to read them.

???????
i thought this was one of the truly crap books i have read. not so crap that i didnt manage to finish it. but not good either.
and i definitly didnt think it was a kids book