The Books Inspiring Me

Every writer has books that inspire their writing. As someone who has been seriously writing ever since I was fourteen, I can confirm that the books that inspire us change over time, as we grow into better writers and readers. Right now, these are the top four books inspiring my writing.

Dune by Frank Herbert

PC: Goodreads

I read Dune about five years ago, back in 2020. I was about a third of the way through when I knew this was a book I was going to need to read again at some point. There was just so much going on that it felt impossible to fully absorb in one read.

This book inspires me on so many levels. For one, I absolutely adore the world building. For those of you that aren’t familiar with the world of Dune, it’s a science-fiction story where there are no computers. All “thinking machines” are banned, because at one point in their distant past, humans went to war with machines. Instead of computers, there are people whose whole purpose in life is to do complex math on the spot when people need it. There’s an order of semi-magical women who have been manipulating bloodlines for the past 10,000 years to create a mystical being that could see the future. Of course, that mystical being is our main character, Paul Atreides.

My favorite parts about this story are the elements that are similar to Star Wars. Or … since Star Wars came after Dune, you could say that a lot of what I like about Star Wars comes from Dune. I just didn’t realize it until recently.

I like the themes of destiny, of the choices we make in the face of the inevitable and why those choices matter. I like what this story says about love, how it can strengthen us or destroy us if we let it.

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

PC: Goodreads

I read this book in 2023, and it blew my mind. First, I love Brandon Sanderson’s writing. His style is so simple, so easy to read, and it belies the true complexity of the tale he weaves. This 1000+ page tome looks intimidating, but I read it in less than a month and I’m a slow reader.

This is the only book I’ve ever written where a main character is depressed, and yet reading his scenes doesn’t feel depressing. I also don’t think I’ve ever read a book where a male author writes female characters so well. The women feel like real people, and their lives don’t revolve around the men in their lives.

And don’t get me started on the world building. Look, I love the typical Euro-centric Tolkien-esque fantasy, but it’s also very … typical. Yeah, dragons are cool, but Brandon Sanderson builds his own fantasy world. The world of Roshar has one massive continent, and it is plagued by these massive hurricane-like storms every season. The storms shape the lands, and the lands shape the people. There are no elves or dragons, there are Parshendi and chasm fiends.

The plot is also completely fantastic. I stared at a wall for ten minutes after finishing this book because I couldn’t believe how it had ended.

PC: Goodreads

Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card

I read this book back in 2022 after reading Ender’s Game, which is sort of book 1 in the series. The thing is … Speaker for the Dead is so different from Ender’s Game. Like … if all the characters had different names, it would be really hard to tell that they were from the same series. And it’s weird because it somehow works. I actually cried at the end of this book, because it was honestly just so beautiful.

What I loved most about this story was how we were given a situation––a gruesome murder––of these scientists who were working alongside these aliens, and the whole book, people are trying to figure out why the seemingly peaceful aliens would do such a horrible thing. At the end it turns out that it was all just misunderstanding. The gruesome murders were real, but they hadn’t exactly been intentional.

I loved how biology shaped the misunderstandings, and it’s helped me think a lot about the kind of aliens I want in my stories.

The Once and Future King by T.H. White

PC: Goodreads

I read this book in 2023, and I’m going to be honest, it was super weird. For about the first third of the book, I had no idea where it was going, and I genuinely kept looking at the Goodreads description of the book to make sure this was actually a collection of King Arthur stories. After the first third of the book was over, I realized it was weird in a good way, and yes, it’s a collection of King Arthur stories, very loosely based on Mallory’s Le Morte d’Arthur.

I ended up crying in this book, too. The first part of the book chronicles Arthur’s childhood. It’s silly, it’s quirky, and I literally laughed out loud at a few parts. I loved Merlin’s character throughout the book; he was so chaotic and odd, it was amazing. Later on, the book becomes much more serious, and it turns into a beautiful epic.

This book is about far more than King Arthur, his knights, and Round Table. It is about a man who struggles his entire life with the question of “might vs. right.” Everything he does is done with the intention of making England a place where the strong serve the good, instead of a place where strength is considered the ultimate good.

My favorite part was how, in the end, Arthur is an old man who is weary after long years of struggle, trying to make England not great, but good. Ultimately, he fails, but he fails trying to do the right thing, instead of succeeding in doing the wrong.

These are four books that deeply inspire me every day when I write. What are some of the books that inspire you?

Weekend Review #4

I spent the weekend in Fort Myers with my in-laws! It's been such a wonderful trip, and despite the heat, I always love coming to Florida to visit them in the summertime.

We spent a lot of time together, talking, laughing, eating delicious food my mother-in-law made, and giggling about my cute little sister-in-law. Her name is Yofi, she's four years old, and I actually helped pick her out as a baby. How lucky is that? I literally got to choose my sister-in-law!

Mother-in-law carrying Yofi
© Jessica McKendry

Yes, she's a dog, and it's the best!

Isn't she the cutest?

Anyway, we're home now, and getting back into the rhythm of things.

Project Updates

Original Project: Convergence

This week, I struggled the most with coming up with a prayer of mourning for one of my main characters. He is mourning the loss of his teacher, and he has spent an entire year grieving. I wanted him to say something beautiful, something almost poetic for the final prayer of mourning before returning to his duties as a warrior.

Let me tell you, I spent hours coming up with what he'd say, and then I spent another few hours coming up with a whole new language with different syntax and creating grammar rules for it. So I spent a lot of time being creative, but not a whole lot of time actually writing. Which was sort of annoying.

I think this might be the most elaborate form of procrastination I've yet to experience. Still, it was fun.

Fan Fic

I've written so much in Chapter 31 of my fan fic, but I keep erasing everything. It's been such a struggle figuring out how/where to start it. On Sunday, I may have actually figured it out, but we'll see. I may end up erasing it all again later this week.

Last Week's Goals

❌ 2,000 words in Convergence that I actually keep.

Unfortunately, I did not write 2,000 words in Convergence that I ended up keeping. I'm not entirely sure how many words I wrote, but I only kept 739 words. Ugh.

❌ 1,500 words in my Fan Fic that I actually keep.

This one was even worse. I only kept 175 words.

✔️ 2 chapters in Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson.

This was the only goal I actually met this week, and I ended up reading 3 chapters in Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson! I'm really enjoying this book so far, so I'm glad I was able to set aside some time to read it.

This Week's Goals

I thought I was being generous with myself last week, but it looks like I need to lower my expectations even more. Bleh.

This week, I want to:

1. Write 1,000 words in Convergence that I actually keep
2. Write 1,000 words in my Fan Fic that I actually keep
3. Read 2 chapters of Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

Jasper Update

We left Jasper with my parents over the weekend while we were in Florida. We always get worried about him when we travel, since he's technically been abandoned twice, so we don't like to leave him. But he was a very good boy for my parents! No accidents in their house, no getting into stuff he shouldn't, so overall, he gets a five star Good Boy rating for this weekend from me!

Is Jasper missing me?
PC: my mom

What a good boy!

Quote of the Week

Margaret Thatcher
PC: Wikipedia

“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.”

— Margaret Thatcher

What did you do over the weekend? What are your goals this week?

More From Chinatown, Hamilton, & a Rooftop Bar

New York City – Memorial Day Weekend (Saturday, Day 2 of 4) (Part 2)

* All names in this post have been altered for privacy.

Other posts in this series: Day 1, Day 2 (Part 1)

Saturday, May 24, 2025

“Alright, what do you guys feel like eating?" Dad asked excitedly.

"Dad, we're stuffed!" Lottie replied.

"We literally just ate," I said, frowning at him. "How are you still hungry? Eat the rest of these dumplings if you want food!" I pushed the remaining box of fifteen dumplings toward him.

"I'm not hungry, but we're in New York," he said with a grin. "If you're not eating or seeing shows, you're wasting time! And ... there's a great noodle place just a few blocks away, or another dumpling place that's just as good as Jin Mei, or ..."

I have to admit, I sort of tuned him out at that point. We finished our boba, then continued our tour of Chinatown under colorful banners splashed with red, past signs in both English and Chinese, through clouds of crisp musical notes played on a zither.

Chinatown
© Jessica McKendry

Dad led us through another bright and crowded street.

"Haircut! Ten minutes, ten dollars!" A woman outside a shop called into the river of people.

Dad's eyes snapped to the woman. "Oo, I need a haircut!" He exclaimed, then basically bolted into the barber shop.

Mom went inside with him, but it was a little crowded, so Lottie, Seth, Han, and I all waited outside under an awning. It began to drizzle, but it was peaceful and warm.

Han and I made small talk with Lottie and Seth while we waited, but it was a little awkward because neither of us knew Seth very well. She's been dating him for about a year, and he's a decent enough guy, but I think she could do better. Though, maybe that's just my Chronic Oldest Sister Syndrome acting up. Who's to say?

Dad came out of the barber shop almost exactly ten minutes after entering with a taper fade buzz cut and a big smile. "Just what I needed!”

Lottie nudged me and giggled. “He looks so Asian!”

My dad is half-Japanese, so he always looks Asian, but my sister was right. If his heritage wasn’t obvious before, it was obvious now, and it suited him!

After that, we made our way to OS NYC, a gaming café in Chinatown. Seth, Han, and I had never been there before, but Mom, Dad, and Lottie had gone the last time they were in NYC. They had stayed at the hotel next door.

I had never been to a gaming café before, but OS NYC was not what I expected. First, unlike most places in NYC, the café was huge. It had this dark, chic vibe, and stations with hundreds of computers, PlayStations, Nintendo Switches, Xboxs, and gaming consoles I couldn’t even name. The best part? It cost $25 a person for an all-day pass.

Dad rented two PlayStations, and for about three hours, we took turns playing Fortnite. Mom didn’t play; she had a bit of a headache. We didn't win a single game, but we still had fun and got a lot of XP. I didn’t play much Fortnite in the past, but they had a Star Wars-themed season all of May and part of June, so I obviously had to play.

Around 4:15 p.m., we took the subway back to the hotel to change our clothes and get ready for our next Broadway show, Hamilton. We got to the Richard Rodgers Theater around 6:30 p.m. and took our seats.

view from our seats
© Jessica McKendry

The show began at 7 p.m., and those first few staccato notes echoed through the theater in the dark. Aaron Burr walked on stage with such smooth confidence and said the opening line: "How does a bastard, orphan / Son of a whore and a Scotsman / Dropped in the middle of a forgotten spot / in the Caribbean by providence, / impoverished, in squalor / Grow up to be a hero and a scholar?"

My heart was racing.

I’ve seen Hamilton on Broadway twice before, so nothing about the show came as any sort of surprise. However, it never fails to transport me back through the ages, to the days of the American Revolution. This show feels like time travel.

Hamilton is one of my favorite shows that I’ve seen, second only to Hadestown. It isn’t one of Han’s favorites, though, and he started falling asleep in the first act. It didn’t help that we’d been very busy all day. I wouldn’t have cared too much if he didn’t snore like a roaring lion. I had to keep pinching him and nudging him to keep him awake, which was awful because it made it very difficult to concentrate on the entire first act. At the intermission, I made him buy a coffee. That helped a lot.

After the show, we went downstairs and met Thayne Jasperson, head of the Hamilton dance crew, and the only original Hamilton cast member left. Broadway World just published an article about him, and his decade-long career with Hamilton, which you can read here: Thayne Jasperson Celebrates a Decade With HAMILTON: Reflections From the Last Original Cast Member. Oh, and my parents are friends with him. Yeah, my parents might be a lot cooler than me. *Sigh.*

“Hi Kathy! Jesse!” Thayne said, greeting my parents. Then he looked over at the rest of us. “And it’s so nice to finally meet all of you! Come on, I want to take you guys backstage!”

We followed him behind the stage, through a very tiny corridor.

“Have I taken you guys on stage before?” Thayne asked my parents. “After we got lunch last time?”

“No, we were going to, but we never got around to it!” Dad replied.

“Well, come on then!” Thayne replied in a cheery voice.

And then we were walking on stage at the Richard Rodgers Theater.

on stage at the Richard Rodgers Theater
© Jessica McKendry

It was sort of shocking, because the stage looked much smaller than it does when viewing it from the audience!

Anyway, we talked to Thayne for a little bit, but he had rehearsals early the next morning and it was getting late, so he had to go. Still, he wouldn’t let us leave without getting a picture with him on stage! What an incredible experience!

left to right: Lottie, Seth, Dad, Thayne, Mom, me, Han
© Jessica McKendry

For dinner, we wandered to an Indian restaurant called Indigo. When we walked in, the waitress looked distressed.

“How many?” She asked politely.

“Six,” Dad replied.

The waitress looked around and sighed. “I’m sorry, we don’t have room.”

And sure enough, they did not. There was one two-person table open, and that was it.

“Ah okay,” Dad said, and started to turn around. “No worries!”

“We can move!” Called a voice from behind the waitress.

I glanced over at her. She was a middle-aged woman with dark hair and she was sitting at a six-person table with another woman. They were the only two people at the table.

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that!” Dad said. It isn’t hard to find good food in New York City, even later at night.

“It’s okay!” The woman insisted kindly, gathering her things and moving with her friend to the open two-person table.

We thanked them profusely, then the waitress got us settled at the six-person table. Don’t ever let anyone tell you New Yorkers can’t be nice.

The food was delicious. It was filling and spicy, warm and comforting, rich and buttery. They didn’t offer my favorite North Indian dish, paneer makhani, so I ordered a paneer tikka masala. It was very good, but in hindsight, I wish I had ordered their chicken biryani.

Over the scent of jasmine rice, garlic naan, and garam masala, we talked and laughed, discussing Hamilton and the artistic choices Lin-Manuel Miranda made in its creation.

We ended the night at Bar 54, the rooftop bar at our hotel, Hyatt Centric Times Square. There, we enjoyed nighttime views of the city from a comfortable booth as we sipped delicious drinks.

Stay tuned for Day 3 of this adventure next Friday!

You Can’t Force Art (No Matter How Hard You Try)

 For as long as I can remember, I have considered myself an artist. Ever since I was little, I’ve enjoyed painting and drawing, and more recently I’ve gotten into digital art. I’m not really a musician, but I play piano and violin––not well, mind you––and I’ve tried my hand at composing music. As a child, I took ballet, and my mom is a figure skating coach, so for a while I was a figure skater, too. I still do these things from time to time, but most of all, I’m a writer. That’s my calling, that’s what I’m best at. And it’s the art form that brings me the most joy and fulfillment.

The trouble with “being an artist,” though, is that it’s extremely difficult to actually make money off your art. There’s a reason we have the term starving artist and not starving businessmen. I’m sure there are starving businessmen out there, but there haven’t been enough of them throughout history to have a whole term for it, just saying. Sure, there are the artists who make it big like George Lucas, Stephen King, Yayoi Kusama, Leonardo DiCaprio, or Taylor Swift. But most of us live our lives like Vincent Van Gogh––struggling with mental health, worried about money, and just wanting to paint. Or write. Or whatever art you love best.

PC: AZ Quotes

If you want to make it as an artist, you need a breakthrough. A masterpiece. Something that really generates a following. And then you need another one. And another one. And another one. Over and over again, if you want to keep that following, if you want to keep making money. OR you need to create something so incredible (for example: Star Wars) that it becomes a part of history and culture all on its own.

But most of us have full-time jobs, or multiple part-time jobs, or kids, or other tasks that drain us of our creativity before we even have time to sit down and focus on our art. Then there’s this pressure––from family, friends, society, and even that inner voice of yours that tells you your art is only valuable if you can make money off it.

We need to stop thinking about art this way. It isn’t healthy, and this mindset is completely at odds with the mental state we need to be in to actually create. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s amazing if you can make money off your art. But the goal of creation should not be making money.

The fact is, you can’t force quality art.

Yes, there are people like James Patterson who find a pattern that works and use it over and over again to come out with a new book every month or so. I work at a library, and I literally see a book with his name on it on our new shelf at least once a month. Is this really art? This question is more philosophical, and it depends on how you define art, but my personal opinion is no. This formulaic mass production of content is entertainment, not actual art.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing inherently wrong with doing that, we just need to make sure we don’t lose our creative spark in the process.

I’m a writer. It would be really nice if I could make money off my writing. But I don’t write because I need money. I write because I love it. I write because it helps me deal with my chronic anxiety. My stories are places I can explore the depth of the human experience, and if other people enjoy it, that’s amazing. But if they don’t, it’s alright. I’m still just doing it for me.

PC: quotefancy

We should create because we have stories to tell. Images trapped in our brains that demand to be put on canvas. A sequence of motions that plays out every time we hear that one song. An unfinished melody that rings in our ears, and won’t leave us alone.

When I make art, I am transforming pieces of my soul into words. It isn’t something that can be turned into a pattern, it can’t be mass-produced and churned out whenever I need money. And regardless of whether my art is good or not, it’s unique, and it’s mine.

I guess my point is … make time for your art. Make time to be creative. And don’t base the value of your art on whether or not people will buy it. The value of art is in the process of creation. The value of your art lies in what it means to you.

I struggle with internalizing this on a weekly basis. But I wrote this to myself––and to my fellow starving artists––as a way to remember.

Weekend Review #3

Ahhh this weekend was crazy! Some of it was fun, but most of it was not.

On Friday, Han and I went to my parents' house for dinner to celebrate my dad getting his new job. That part was fun. I also was very happy to find out that my brother finally asked this girl he’s liked for a while to be his girlfriend! I’ve only met her once, and extremely briefly—I was in the middle of a Fortnite match, and I was trying not to die when she was leaving my parents’ house. I felt so bad!

Lottie was at a concert all night, but at some point she realized she'd lost her car keys, so I had to drive all the way out to her to deliver her spare car keys. I'm the oldest sibling, so of course I was grudgingly happy to do it, but I absolutely reserve the right to complain about it. Especially since I had to work Saturday morning.

Saturday was a bit crazy at the library. Our funding was cut recently, so we're down a person on Saturdays, and Saturday's are usually pretty busy. We managed, but it was a bit stressful! It also didn't help that I was exhausted from being up late Friday night.

On Sunday, Han and I went to Meijer when I was hungry, which was a huge mistake because I wanted to buy literally everything. We spent about two hours there, which was depressing because I really wanted to get writing done. Then I went back to my parents' house because we always do family dinner with them on Sunday evenings. Both my siblings live at home with them, so it's always nice to go and see everyone. 

Project Updates

Convergence

I didn't do any writing in Convergence this weekend, and I'm a little frustrated about that. There was a lot of other stuff going on, and not enough time. Currently, I have 393 words in my Second First Draft, which is absolutely pitiful. I think that's what I was at last week.

That means I didn't struggle with anything on Convergence this week.

Fan Fiction

I wrote 79 words in my fan fiction, but I also wrote 1,313 words in a short little fic that I posted for a challenge.

Goals This Week

Since I barely got any writing done last week, I'm going to try to make my goals very reasonable this week.

I'd like to write:

1. 2,000 words in Convergence that I actually keep
2. 1,500 words in my Fan Fic that I actually keep

And I'd like to read:

1. 2 chapters in Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

I think I'll be able to get more than two chapters in Oathbringer, but I'm being conservative in my goals this week.

Jasper Update

We had to take Jasper to the vet last week and we spent about $700 in medical bills. We have pet insurance for him, but we always have to pay first, and then the insurance reimburses us. He's 11 years old, he's got really bad arthritis, he's got Cushing's disease, and some degenerative spinal disease. His liver is too big, and his heart is too big––physically and metaphorically, which we already knew, he's the most loving dog in the world––and the vet put him on a ton of medication to see if it would help how often he's having accidents in the apartment, which didn't used to be a problem.

Still, he's all smiley and happy all the time, wiggling and wanting cuddles, gobbling down his food like crazy. Han accidentally dropped a frozen pizza roll on the ground, and Jasper basically inhaled it. He's a silly boy. I love him so much!

Quote of the Week

How was your weekend? What are your goals for this week?

Bagels, Dumplings & Boba

Memorial Day Weekend (Saturday, Day 2 of 4) (Pt. 1)

* All names have been altered for privacy.

You can find the other posts in this series here → Day 1.

Saturday, May 24, 2025

If you want to get breakfast in NYC without having to wait forever in a line, you have to get up at a decent hour. So despite going to bed after 2 AM the night before, I dragged myself out of bed around 9 AM, which should be considered a Herculean task on a weekend. What can I say? I'm a night owl.

Han was up before me, as usual, so he was ready to go by the time I woke up. After I got dressed, Han and I went downstairs to meet my parents who were waiting in the hotel lobby. Lottie and Seth weren't awake, so we left them behind to face the consequences.

In NYC, if you snooze, you lose.

Dad led the way through the city streets. It was a little chilly for late May, but it was still a beautiful morning. The ten-minute walk helped keep me warm as we wound our way through towering glass and steel, past bakeries and corner stores, until we reached our destination: Broad Nosh Bagels.

There are several locations scattered across Manhattan, and I'm going to be honest, I have no idea which one we visited. I only know that my dad vouches for it, and even though he's from the Midwest, spiritually he identifies as a New Yorker.

My best efforts aside, I had not awakened early enough to bypass the lines. We waited outside for about 20 minutes, and while that's not outrageous by NYC standards, Mom and I were shivering by the end of it due to the wind.

Of course, the wait was absolutely worth it.

I ordered a French toast bagel with strawberry cream cheese, and Mom got a bacon, egg, and cheese on an everything bagel. Han ordered the same sandwich as mom, but on a cinnamon raisin bagel, which I found puzzling. He said it was good, and though I trust him, I don't think I'll be trying that combination anytime soon. We also ordered two extra bagels, one for Lottie and one for Seth.

Dad judged us all for our "basic" bagel choices, though I don't remember what kind of bagel he got––only that it was something smugly superior (his opinion, not mine).

A lot of the best places in NYC have limited seating options, so we carried our bounty back to the hotel and met up with Lottie and Seth at my parents' suite, since it was the largest of our three rooms. We spread our breakfast like a mini feast on the coffee table, and Mom and I both traded half of our bagels. The French toast bagel was my favorite, but the bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich was also delicious. They cooked the bacon perfectly! I hate when bacon is super chewy, for the same reason I hate when salmon on a salmon bagel is too chewy––you take one bite, and it'll pull the whole piece out.

Sandwiches should not require strategy, just saying!

After bagels, we took the subway into Chinatown, where everything drips with the color red: lanterns, awnings, Chinese characters on menus and signs. You can hear Chinese music playing in the streets, and the melodic notes of Mandarin mixed with other voices speaking the harsher, more complex sounds of Cantonese. You can still smell the signature NYC scents here––car exhaust, marijuana, the sea––but layered between are scents of sweet pork, oyster sauce, chives, and Shaoxing wine.

This was my second time in Chinatown, my first had been back in January when we went with Geralt and Luna. I'll admit, it probably isn't the best place to go if you've never been to NYC before or if you aren't used to big cities. Chinatown is perfectly safe, it can just be al little overwhelming and all the storefront signs are in Chinese characters, so unless you have a destination picked out, it might be difficult to find what you're looking for.

Dad took us to a place called Jin Mei Dumpling, a tiny little cash-only hole in the wall with no seating, just a window where you walk up and order. We got ten pork buns, and thirty dumplings for $15 ($5 for 10 pork buns, and $5 for 15 dumplings). That fed all six of us, and we couldn't even finish. They were by far the best dumplings I've ever had––though, I'm American and have never been to China, so take that with a grain of MSG.

We ate our dumplings in a nearby park, enjoying every single bite and laughing as Dad shamed us for not being able to finish everything. At that point, we realized we'd made a grave mistake by ordering so much food without ordering anything to drink. We were so thirsty, and the soy sauce on the dumplings wasn't helping at all!

After we had eaten to the point where we all felt like we were going to explode, Dad took us to a boba place with pastel walls and dozens of drinks called Once More Zaipin that was a short walk away. I ordered a matcha tea without boba, because I don't really like the texture. They remind me of that scene in The Incredibles where Mr. Incredible gets caught in those weird expanding balls.

Nuh uh, not in my cup of tea!

BOOK REVIEW: His Dark Materials #1: The Golden Compass (aka Northern Lights) by Philip Pullman

Rating: ★★★★☆

Summary

Lyra is rushing to the cold, far North, where witch clans and armored bears rule. North, where the Gobblers take the children they steal--including her friend Roger. North, where her fearsome uncle Asriel is trying to build a bridge to a parallel world.

Can one small girl make a difference in such great and terrible endeavors? This is Lyra: a savage, a schemer, a liar, and as fierce and true a champion as Roger or Asriel could want--but what Lyra doesn't know is that to help one of them will be to betray the other. – Goodreads Summary

Lyra Belacqua is from Oxford–but not the Oxford we know. In this Oxford, and this entire world, every human has an animal companion, a daemon, that comes into being when they are born, and it is the physical manifestation of a human's soul.

Lyra loves Oxford, but she and her daemon, Pan, long for adventure. When her uncle, Lord Asriel, arrives talking about a strange substance called Dust, Lyra wishes more than anything to join him when he returns to the North, but he refuses to take her with him.

Strange things are happening in Oxford. Children are disappearing, taken by the mysterious Gobblers, and a beautiful, kind woman named Mrs. Coulter comes to take Lyra on as her assistant, giving her the chance to go on the adventures she has always longed for. However, Mrs. Coulter is not all that she seems,

Lyra's journey takes her North to find Roger, but what she discovers is far more terrible than anything she could possibly imagine. Armed only with her cunning and a strange device called an alethiometer that always tells her the truth, Lyra battles with armored bears, the oppressive church called the Magisterium, and possibly the most dangerous people of all … her parents.

My Review

I have been meaning to read this book for a very long time, and I am so happy I've finally gotten around to it. The story is told mainly from Lyra's perspective, which I think was a wonderful way to go about it because Lyra is a child and is still learning how her world works. As we see the narrative develop through her eyes, the reader is also learning about her world in a way that feels natural without any annoying info dumps.

I am also very impressed with Philip Pullman because there are very few male authors who write female characters as full, vibrant, and complex people. Often, female characters are written in supportive roles, or are relegated to being "plot devices" that move the male characters along on their journey. Pullman, in great and wonderful contrast, gives the female characters of this book not only a central role in the narrative, but he also gives them great power and makes them into real people.

Plot: ★★★★☆

The plot of The Golden Compass honestly kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire last half of the book. The first half is also very good, and none of it feels slow or boring, it's just a lot exposition which was fine!

Characters: ★★★★★

Okay I loved Lyra as a character, she was by far my favorite. I also really loved Lee Scoresby, Serafina Pekkala, and Marisa Coulter. However, I think Pullman's brilliance comes from the way he makes even the smallest side characters feel like real people with their own personalities. It felt like he developed all of them and knew who they were at their core, even though we, as the readers, didn't get to see it. This attention to detail just blew me away, which is insane because this book wasn't even very long.

Setting: ★★★★☆

The Golden Compass is set in a parallel version of Europe, similar to our Europe in the 19th or 20th century, but with some steampunk vibes and a bit of magic. In this parallel world, Texas is its own country, human souls exist outside of their bodies in animal form, there are witches, talking bears, and a church with seemingly unlimited power. There is no Christianity in this world, but they know the Biblical story of Genesis and this is a central story to the people and the church–the Magisterium.

Recommended To ...

The Golden Compass (or Northern Lights, as it is known in Europe) is often considered a YA novel, or Middle Grade, but it is perfectly suitable for fantasy-loving adults as well! It was easy to read, but it did not feel simple or "dumbed down" in any way.

Triggers

Non graphic death, non graphic death of children, non graphic kidnapping, small instance of parental-figure abuse toward a child.