Golden rules!

I went to a Special Sneak Preview of The Golden Compass movie last night. It's a pretty great film adaptation of the novel, but really, it served as a welcome reminder of how freakin' awesome the whole "His Dark Materials" series is.

If you haven't heard of "His Dark Materials," please finish reading this paragraph, put down your mouse, shut down your computer and RUN-DO-NOT-WALK to your nearest bookstore and purchase all three books. It's a trilogy of "young adult" novels -- The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass -- by British author Phillip Pullman. I use the term "young adult" in quotes because, while it's geared to the same audience, it makes the Harry Potter series seem like "Go Dog Go."

Reading "His Dark Materials" will, quite literally, change your life. I won't give anything away, except to say that every page of the three-book series is mind-alteringly brilliant. The story is epic beyond belief (and even more epic than you think, once you get to the end), the characters, both good and evil, are richly textured, the philosophical implications mind-boggling.

The trilogy expanded my world-view and imagination to such an extent that, along with three other friends equally overwhelmed by the series, I bought plane tickets to London to see an unfortunately lame-wad stage adaptation at the National Theatre. The film version does the magic of the story much more justice.

I read an article about the film, which opens in wide release next week, that said they've only made the first film in the trilogy, and are waiting to see if it's a hit until they make the final two. So, if you believe in anything good in the world, go see, and fall in love with, this movie. Then read the books and have your life changed forever. (The movie's good, but the books are much better, of course.)

Note: I was not paid by either Scholastic or New Line to write this post, but am happy to accept payment.