Daemon voices

Philip Pullman, the writer behind the His Dark Materials trilogy, gathers more than thirty essays composed over two decades. Together they examine how stories are made, from the seeds of his own books to the practical work of putting sentences on the page. The collection is a sustained look at storytelling as a subject in itself.

Pullman traces how his schooling, his religious upbringing, and his interest in science fed into his imagination. He also returns again and again to the classic works and storytellers who shaped his understanding of narrative, offering close, personal readings of them. The pieces draw on anecdote and comic observation, so the book reads as a conversation about fiction rather than a dry manual.

The essays add up to more than their separate parts, because each one approaches the same question from a different angle: what makes a story work, and why does it matter? Readers interested in the craft of writing, or in the thinking behind a major modern fantasy series, will find the collection rewarding.