The Book of Dust, Vol. 1: La Belle Sauvage

Narrator Sheen’s sonorous, dramatic reading immediately pulls listeners back into the mysterious world of Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy. Set 10 years before The Golden Compass begins, this series launch focuses on 11-year-old Malcolm Polstead, the son of the innkeepers at the Trout Tavern and Inn. Malcolm is a curious, insightful, kind-hearted boy who helps out at the Priory of St. Rosamond, where the sisters are caring for Lyra, a newly arrived infant who is far from home and has captured the attention of several suspicious characters. Alongside the disagreeable Alice, a lanky 15-year-old who also works at the tavern and the priory, and their magical animal companions,Malcolm embarks on a turbulent, terrifying race down the raging Thames in his beloved canoe, La Belle Sauvage, to deliver Lyra to her parents. Talented Welsh actor Sheen masterfully conveys every bit of the drama, suspense, and emotion of Malcolm’s adventure, right to the very end as Malcolm and Alice arrive at their destination “filthy, exhausted, bloody.” The audio edition will leave listeners counting the days until the next installment. Ages 14–up. A Knopf hardcover. (Oct.)