The Philip Pullman endorsed His Dark Materials guide book, The Definitive Guide to Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, by American scholar Laurie Frost, is due to be fully released in the UK and Ireland this June by Scholastic.
It was previously available from Fell Press and since last November from Scholastic but only as an exclusive to the UK book chain Waterstone’s, but from June forwards all readers in the UK and Ireland will be able to get their hands on their very own copy of the book. American readers can still buy the Fell Press edition and there should hopefully be a revised edition on the way.
The latest edition will come with a number of revisions by the author, along with a fresh new binding. Initially it will be released only in hard back, with ribbons and tail-bands and a particularly eye-catching cover design (which you can see on the right). Philip Pullman is reported to be impressed by the new edition. The following will feature on the back cover of the book:
“The extraordinary world of Philip Pullman’s bestselling trilogy is explored in all the detail any fan of the books will ever need. With in-depth, chapter-referenced sections on characters, places, creatures, sciences, languages, and much more, this brilliant work by Laurie Frost has become the official – and definitive – reference guide to Pullman’s books.”
Please note, contrary to what we wrote earlier this week, the new edition will not be released in the USA this June. Apologies if we misled anybody!
After the success in Japan, the Golden Compass movie is on course to set a record as the first film in history to gross $300 million abroad while failing to reach $100 million in North America.
Why did the film do so poorly in the US compared to the rest of the world? While some would be quick to blame Christian activist groups, Adam Dawtrey reporting on Variety thinks the New Line publicity team should acknowledge some of the blame. While New Line promoted and benefited from the film domestically, the international rights had already been sold to a range of indies (independent companies) to offset production costs. Dawtrey proposes the success discrepancy is a case of poor marketing by New Line compared with that of the international indies. Read his whole article here.
Although it’s too late for New Line, it’s good news for fans hoping to see the rest of the trilogy at the cinema. While the success may not be spectacular, the special effects Oscar and the movie’s international reception make a respectable case to Warner Brothers (who have acquired New Line) that there’s money to be made from the sequels. Such is the view of Golden Compass producer Deborah Forte, who vows “I will make The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. I believe there are enough people who see what a viable and successful franchise we have.”
This contest is now closed. Thank you for all your entries.
BridgetotheStars is giving you the opportunity to win one of four copies of the Golden Compass Shuffle Puzzle book which we have to give away courtesy of the lovely Lisa Edwards at Scholastic Publishing. The book, by Laura Milne, contains numerous shuffle puzzles which can provide you with endless fun. To be in with a chance of winning, simply answer the following question:
In which country has the movie adaptation of ‘The Golden Compass’ just taken US$ 10 million in its opening weekend?
Email your answer along with your name and full address to bridgetothestarscontest@gmail.com to enter the contest.
The contest will close at midnight GMT next Friday (March 14th).
Animation Magazine reports that The Golden Compass earned $10m in the Japanese box office in its opening weekend. While its domestic release was disappointing, the film continues to perform strongly in overseas markets. Read more.
The Toronto Star reports that while the Halton Catholic District School Board is keeping The Golden Compass off its shelves, the neighbouring Peel-Dufferin Catholic District School Board will return the entire trilogy to its libraries but with a cautionary notes indicating that the story “in no way represent the reality of the Roman Catholic Church.” The Peel-Dufferin review board consisted of parents, students, and teachers who decided that the books should indeed be available to students. The Halton school board on the other hand ordered its principals not to distribute a Scholastic book catalog in which His Dark Materials was available. In the province of Ontario, these publicly administered Catholic schools are funded with taxpayers’ money. Read more.
The Philip Pullman endorsed His Dark Materials guide book, The Definitive Guide to Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, by American scholar Laurie Frost, is due to be fully released in the UK and Ireland this June by Scholastic.