The Telegraph recently profiled author Philip Pullman, detailing some of his life after Exeter College, Oxford and how His Dark Materials came to be. “He once considered abandoning The Amber Spyglass when the stationer who had been selling him the notepads he had used for years – narrow-lined, two holes – said the range had been replaced with a four-hole variety.” Read more.
The sketch also mentions, “he is writing a prequel to the trilogy which is expected in 2009,” which may indicate how The Book of Dust is progressing and what it might contain.
I suppose it’s more than likely that the mention of “a prequel to the trilogy” is either a reference to Once Upon a Time in the North with a wrong publication year or a misunderstanding otherwise. Recent statements about The Book of Dust by Pullman have, as far as I remember and I’ve understood, refered to (vaguely or not) Lyra as a/the main character and “Lyra’s Oxford” to be some sort of a bridge towards that storyline.
What a pity. The style and substance is mediocre and could well have been ‘unwritten’!
I pity the saps who watch the film and get drawn into the books.