{"id":1600,"date":"2017-07-03T12:15:20","date_gmt":"2017-07-03T12:15:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/?p=1600"},"modified":"2017-07-07T13:19:21","modified_gmt":"2017-07-07T13:19:21","slug":"the-latest-book-of-dust-updates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/the-latest-book-of-dust-updates\/","title":{"rendered":"The latest Book of Dust updates"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you&#8217;ve missed the news, there&#8217;s been quite a few updates on the first installment of The Book of Dust, including the title of the first book being revealed as <em>La Belle Sauvage<\/em>. We know that\u00c2\u00a0&#8220;some of the story is set during a massive flood&#8221; and that &#8220;Lyra is at the centre of the story&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>The hardback will be released on 19th October 2017, Pullman&#8217;s birthday. Following the release, Pullman will also be appearing at the at the Southbank Centre as part of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.southbankcentre.co.uk\/whats-on\/121155-philip-pullman-la-belle-sauvage-2017\">London Literature Festival<\/a> (20th October 2017). He&#8217;ll be revealing why he has come back to Lyra\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s world 22 years after the release of Northern Lights\/The Golden Compass. Tickets are \u00c2\u00a320-\u00c2\u00a345 and will be on sale soon.<\/p>\n<p>Don&#8217;t forget you can pre-order the book on Amazon UK <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/gp\/product\/0385604416?ie=UTF8\">here<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/gp\/product\/055351072X?ie=UTF8\">here (US cover)<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>You can read an extract from chapter 10 of\u00c2\u00a0<em>La Belle Sauvage<\/em> below the cut or on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/books\/2017\/may\/26\/before-his-dark-materials-how-lyras-story-began-exclusive-extract\">The Guardian&#8217;s website where it was released<\/a>. The extract is set shortly after Lyra&#8217;s birth, identifies our new hero, Malcolm Polstead, and reveals just who is La Belle Sauvage&#8230;.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>Eleven-year-old Malcolm lives with his parents at the Trout Inn near Oxford, across the river Thames from Godstow Priory, where the nuns are looking after a special guest. One night his father comes to Malcolm\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s bedroom.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Malcolm, you en\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t in bed yet\u00e2\u20ac\u201dgood. Come downstairs for a minute. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a gentleman wants a word with you.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Who is it?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Malcolm eagerly, jumping up and following his father out.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Keep your voice down. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll tell you who he is if he wants to.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"element element-rich-link element-rich-link--tag element--thumbnail element-rich-link--upgraded\" data-component=\"rich-link-tag\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-tag\">\n<div class=\"rich-link tone-news--item \"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Where is he?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153In the Terrace Room. Take him a glass of Tokay.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s that?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Hungarian wine. Come on, hurry up. Mind your manners and tell the truth.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I always do,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Malcolm automatically.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153News to me,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said his father. But he ruffled Malcolm\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hair before they entered the bar.<\/p>\n<p>The gentleman waiting gave him a start, though all he was doing was sitting still by the cold fireplace. Perhaps it was his d\u00c3\u00a6mon, a beautiful silvery spotted leopard, or perhaps it was his dark, saturnine expression; in any event, Malcolm felt daunted, and very young and small. His d\u00c3\u00a6mon, Asta, became a moth.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Good evening, sir,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Your Tokay what you ordered. Would you like me to make up the fire? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ever so cold in here.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Is your name Malcolm?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d The man\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s voice was harsh and deep.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Yes, sir. Malcolm Polstead.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m a friend of Dr. Relf,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said the man. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153My name is Asriel.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Oh. Er\u00e2\u20ac\u201dshe hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t told me about you,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Malcolm said.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Why did you say that?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Because if she had, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d know it was.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Asriel gave a short laugh.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I understand,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You want another reference? I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m the father of that baby in the priory.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Oh! You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re\u00c2\u00a0<em>Lord<\/em>\u00c2\u00a0Asriel!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s right. But how are you going to test the truth of\u00c2\u00a0<em>that<\/em>\u00c2\u00a0claim?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the baby\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s name?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Lyra.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153And what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s her d\u00c3\u00a6mon called?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Pantalaimon.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153All right,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Malcolm.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153All right now? You sure?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153No, I en\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t\u00c2\u00a0<em>sure<\/em>. But I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m more sure than I was.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Good. Can you tell me what happened earlier this evening?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm went through it as fully as he could remember.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153These men came from the Office of Child Protection, and they wanted to take her away. Take Lyra. But Sister Benedicta wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t let \u00e2\u20ac\u2122em.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153What did they look like?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm described their uniforms. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The one who took his cap off, he seemed like he was in charge. He was more polite than the others, more sort of smooth and smiling.<\/p>\n<p>But it was a real smile, not a fake one. I think I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d even\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve liked him if he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d come in here as a customer\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthat sort of thing. The other two were just dull and threatening. Most people would\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been dead scared, but Sister Benedicta wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. She faced \u00e2\u20ac\u2122em off all by herself.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>The man sipped his Tokay. His d\u00c3\u00a6mon lay with her head up and her front paws stretched out ahead of her, like the picture of the Sphinx in Malcolm\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s encyclopedia. The black-and-silver patterns on her back seemed to flicker and shimmer for a moment, and then Lord Asriel spoke suddenly.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Do you know why I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t been to see my daughter?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I thought you were busy. You probably had important things to do.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t been to see her because if I do, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be taken away from there and put in a much less congenial place. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be no Sister Benedicta to stand up for her there.<\/p>\n<p>But now they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re trying to take her anyway. . . .\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Excuse me, sir, but I told Dr. Relf about all this. Didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t she tell you?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Still not quite sure about me?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Well . . . no,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Malcolm.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t blame you. You going to go on visiting Dr. Relf?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Yes. Because she lends me books as well as listening to what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s happened.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Does she? Good for her. But tell me, the baby\u00e2\u20ac\u201dis she being well looked after?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Oh, yes. Sister Fenella, she loves her a lot. We all\u00e2\u20ac\u201dThey all do. She\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s very happy\u00e2\u20ac\u201dLyra, I mean. She talks to her d\u00c3\u00a6mon all the time, just jabber jabber jabber, and he jabbers back. Sister Fenella says they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re teaching each other to talk.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Does she eat properly? Does she laugh? Is she active and curious?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Oh, yeah. The nuns are really good to her.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153But now they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re being threatened. . . .\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Asriel got up and went to the window to look at the few lights from the priory across the river.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Seems like it, sir. I mean, Your Lordship.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153\u00e2\u20ac\u02dcSir\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 will do. You know them well, these nuns?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve known \u00e2\u20ac\u2122em all my life, sir.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153And they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d listen to you?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I suppose they would, yes.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Could you tell them I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m here and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to see my daughter?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153When?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Right now. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m being pursued. The High Court has ordered me not to go within fifty miles of her, and if I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m found here, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll take her away and put her somewhere else where they aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t so careful.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm was torn between saying, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Well, you ought not to risk it, then,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and simple admiration and understanding: of course the man would want to see his daughter, and it was wicked to try to prevent him.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Well . . . ,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Malcolm thought, then said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think you could see her right now, sir. They go to bed ever so early. I wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be surprised if they were all fast asleep.<\/p>\n<p>In the morning they get up ever so early too. Maybe\u00e2\u20ac\u201d\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t got that long. Which room have they made into a nursery?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Round the other side, sir, facing the orchard.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Which floor?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153All their bedrooms are on the ground floor, and hers is too.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153And you know which one?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Yes, I do, but\u00e2\u20ac\u201d\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153You could show me, then. Come on.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>There was no refusing this man. Malcolm led him out of the Terrace Room and along the corridor, and out onto the terrace before his father could see them. He closed the door very quietly behind them and found the garden brilliantly lit by the clearest full moon there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d been for months. It felt as if they were being lit by a floodlight.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Did you say there was someone pursuing you?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Malcolm quietly.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Yes. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s someone watching the bridge. Is there any other way across the river?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my canoe. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s down this way, sir. Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s get off the terrace before anyone sees us.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Lord Asriel went beside him across the grass and into the lean-to where the canoe was kept.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Ah, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a proper canoe,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Lord Asriel, as if he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d been expecting a toy.<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm felt a little affronted on behalf of\u00c2\u00a0<em>La Belle Sauvage<\/em>\u00c2\u00a0and said nothing as he turned her over and let her slip quietly down the grass and onto the water.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153First thing,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153is we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll go downstream a short way, so\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no one can see us from the bridge. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a way into the priory garden on that side. You get in first, sir.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Asriel did so, much more capably than Malcolm had anticipated, and his leopard d\u00c3\u00a6mon followed, with no more weight than a shadow. The canoe hardly moved at all, and Asriel sat down lightly and kept still as Malcolm got in after him.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153You been in a canoe before,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Malcolm whispered.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Yes. This is a good one.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Quiet, now . . .\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm pushed off and began to paddle, staying close to the bank under the trees and making no noise at all. If there was one thing he was good at, this was it. Once they were out of sight of the bridge, he turned the boat to starboard and made for the other shore.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m going to come up alongside a willow stump,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said very quietly. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The grass is thick there. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll tie her up and go back across the field, behind the hedge.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Lord Asriel was just as good at getting out as he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d been at getting in. Malcolm couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t imagine a better passenger. He tied the boat to a stout willow branch growing from the stump, and a few seconds later they were moving along the edge of the meadow, under the shade of the hedge.<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm found the gap he knew about and forced his way through the brambles.<\/p>\n<p>It must have been harder for the man, being bigger, but he didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t say a word. They were in the priory orchard; the lines of plum trees and apple trees, of pear trees and damson trees, stood bare and neat and fast asleep under the moon.<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm led the way around the back of the priory and came to the side where the window of Lyra\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nursery would be, if it hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t been hidden by the new shutters. They did look remarkably solid.<\/p>\n<p>He counted once more to make sure it was the right one, and then tapped quietly on the shutter with a stone.<\/p>\n<p>Lord Asriel was standing close by. The moon was shining full on this side of the building, so they would both be clearly visible from some way off.<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm whispered, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to wake any of the other nuns, and I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to startle Sister Fenella because of her heart. We got to be careful.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m in your hands,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Lord Asriel.<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm tapped again a little harder.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sister Fenella,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he whispered.<\/p>\n<p>No response. He tapped a third time.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sister Fenella, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s me, Malcolm,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he whispered.<\/p>\n<p>What he was really worried about was Sister Benedicta, of course. He dreaded to think what would happen if he woke her, so he kept as quiet as he could while still trying to wake Sister Fenella, which was not easy.<\/p>\n<p>Asriel stood still, watching and saying nothing.<\/p>\n<p>Finally Malcolm heard a stirring inside the room. Lyra gave a little mew, and then it sounded as if Sister Fenella moved a chair or a small table. Her soft old voice murmured something, like a word or two of comfort to the baby.<\/p>\n<p>He tried again, just a little louder. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sister Fenella . . .\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>A little exclamation of shock.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s me, Malcolm,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said.<\/p>\n<p>A soft noise, like the movement of bare feet on the floor, and then the clock of the window catch.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sister Fenella\u00e2\u20ac\u201d\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Malcolm? What are you\u00c2\u00a0<em>doing<\/em>?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Like him, she was whispering. Her voice was frightened and thick with sleep. She hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t opened the shutter.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sister, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sorry, I really am,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said quickly. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153But Lyra\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s father\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s here, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s being pursued by\u00e2\u20ac\u201dby his enemies, and he really needs to see Lyra before\u00e2\u20ac\u201dbefore he goes on somewhere else. To\u00e2\u20ac\u201dto say goodbye,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Oh, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nonsense, Malcolm! You know we can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t let him\u00e2\u20ac\u201d\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sister, please! He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s really in earnest,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Malcolm said, finding that phrase from somewhere.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s impossible. You must go away now, Malcolm. This is a bad thing to ask. Go away before she wakes up. I daren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think what Sister Benedicta\u00e2\u20ac\u201d\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t dare think it either. But then he felt Lord Asriel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hand on his shoulder, and the man said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Let me speak to Sister Fenella. You go and keep watch, Malcolm.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Malcolm moved away to the corner of the building. From there he could see the bridge and most of the garden, and watched as Lord Asriel leaned towards the shutter and spoke quietly. It was a whisper; Malcolm could hear nothing at all. How long Asriel and Sister Fenella spoke he couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have guessed, but it was a long time, and he was shivering hard when he saw, to his amazement, the heavy shutter move slowly. Lord Asriel stood back to let it open, and then stepped in again, showing his open, weaponless hands, turning his head a little to let the moonlight fall clearly on his face.<\/p>\n<p>He whispered again. Then there was a minute\u00e2\u20ac\u201dtwo minutes, perhaps\u00e2\u20ac\u201din which nothing happened; and then Sister Fenella\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s thin arms held out the little bundle, and Asriel took it with infinite delicacy. His leopard d\u00c3\u00a6mon stood up to put her forepaws on his waist, and Asriel held the baby down so she could whisper to Lyra\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s d\u00c3\u00a6mon.<\/p>\n<p>How had he persuaded Sister Fenella? Malcolm could only wonder. He watched the man lift the baby again and walk along the grass between one bare flower bed and the next, holding the bundle high so he could whisper to her, rocking her gently, strolling along slowly in the brilliant moonlight. At one point he seemed to be showing the moon to Lyra, pointing up at it and holding her so she could see, or perhaps he was showing Lyra to the moon; at any rate he looked like a lord in his own domain, with nothing to fear and all the silvery night to enjoy.<\/p>\n<p>Up and down he strolled with his child. Malcolm thought of Sister Fenella waiting in fear\u00e2\u20ac\u201din case Lord Asriel didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t bring her back, in case his enemies attacked, in case Sister Benedicta suspected something was up. But there was no sound from the priory, no sound from the road, no sound from the man and his baby daughter in the moonlight.<\/p>\n<p>At one point the leopard d\u00c3\u00a6mon seemed to hear something. Her tail lashed once, her ears pricked, her head turned to face the bridge. Malcolm and Asta turned immediately, ears and eyes tightly focused on the bridge, every separate stone of which was clearly outlined in black and silver; but nothing moved, and there was no sound but the call of a hunting owl half a mile away.<\/p>\n<p>Presently the leopard d\u00c3\u00a6mon\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s statue-like stillness melted, and she moved away once more, lithe and silent. Malcolm realised that that was true of the man as well\u00e2\u20ac\u201dduring their journey over the river and through the meadow, into the orchard and up to the priory wall, he had not heard the slightest sound of footsteps. Asriel might as well have been a ghost, for all the sound he made.<\/p>\n<p>He was turning now at the end of the walk and making for Sister Fenella\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s window again. Malcolm watched the bridge, the garden, what he could see of the road, and saw nothing wrong; and when he turned, Asriel was handing the little bundle up through the window, whispering a word or two, and silently swinging the shutter closed.<\/p>\n<p>Then he beckoned, and Malcolm joined him. It was very difficult to make no noise at all, even on grass, and Malcolm watched to see how the man set his feet down: there was something leopardlike about it\u00e2\u20ac\u201dsomething to practise himself, anyway.<\/p>\n<p>Back through the orchard, back to the hedge, through the brambles, into the meadow, across to the willow stump\u00e2\u20ac\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then a stronger, yellower light than the moon stabbed the sky. Someone on the bridge had a searchlight, and Malcolm heard the sound of a gas engine.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153There they are,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Asriel quietly. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Leave me here, Malcolm.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153No! I got a better idea. Take my canoe and go down the river. Just get me back across to the other side first.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>The idea occurred to Malcolm in the same moment he said it.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153You sure?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153You can go downstream a long way. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll never think of that. Come on!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>He stepped in and untied the painter, holding the boat tight to the bank while Asriel got in too; then Malcolm paddled swiftly and as quietly as he could across to the inn garden, though the current wanted to whirl him out into the open water, where they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d be visible from the bridge.<\/p>\n<p>Asriel caught hold of the fixed line on the little jetty while Malcolm got out; then he let Malcolm hold the boat while he got in the right way round, took the paddle, and held out his hand to shake.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get her back to you,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said, and then he was gone, speeding with long, powerful strokes down the river on the swollen current, the leopard d\u00c3\u00a6mon like a great figurehead at the prow.\u00c2\u00a0<em>La Belle Sauvage<\/em>\u00c2\u00a0had never gone so fast, Malcolm thought.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you&#8217;ve missed the news, there&#8217;s been quite a few updates on the first installment of The Book of Dust, including the title of the first book being revealed as La Belle Sauvage. We know that\u00c2\u00a0&#8220;some of the story is &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/the-latest-book-of-dust-updates\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,73,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1600","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-of-dust","category-book-of-dust-1-la-belle-sauvage","category-philip-pullman"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1600","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1600"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1600\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1601,"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1600\/revisions\/1601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1600"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1600"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bridgetothestars.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1600"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}