The Amber Spyglass
by Philip Pullman
★ Top 25 book of 1999 · #23 on Best Books of 1999
The closing chapter of the His Dark Materials trilogy sends Lyra and Will into grave peril as they venture to a gloomy realm no living person has entered. With allies like an armored bear, Lord Asriel's rebellion rages and the fate of the living and the dead rests on two children.
Best for: Readers who want an epic, high-stakes fantasy finale with armored bears and angels
The Amber Spyglass is #23 on BookWard's Best Books of 1999, out of 52 1999 books that cleared our data bar.
What The Amber Spyglass is about
The closing volume of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, published in 1999, finds Lyra and Will in serious peril and relying on unusual allies. Iorek Byrnison, the armored bear, stands beside them, along with a pair of tiny Gallivespian spies.
Their path leads into a gray, dim world that no living person has ever entered. Elsewhere, Dr. Mary Malone constructs the Amber Spyglass and finds an assassin on her trail, while Lord Asriel leads a rebellion backed by a troop of shining angels. As war spreads, Dust drains out of the sky. Everything rests on two children and the truth of one simple story.
The mood is epic and thoughtful, touched with sadness. Readers who have followed the earlier books will find questions about rebellion, love, sacrifice, and what lies beyond death waiting here.
The Amber Spyglass on the Best Books of 1999
The Amber Spyglass came out in 1999. Of the 52 books first published in 1999 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #23 on our Best Books of 1999 list.
Why it made the list: 381 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.9 out of 5 (111 ratings). The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 1999 list
- Hannibal Thomas Harris, #21
- Code Charles Petzold, #22
- The Birchbark House Louise Erdrich, #24
See all Best Books of 1999 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 1998 Best Books of 2000.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 196 want to read it, 5 are reading it now and 180 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 3.9 out of 5 from 111 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 69 | 55% |
| Reader love | 40 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 8 | 20% |
Questions about The Amber Spyglass
When was The Amber Spyglass published?
The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman was first published in 1999.
Was The Amber Spyglass one of the best books of 1999?
The Amber Spyglass is #23 on BookWard's Best Books of 1999, out of 52 1999 books that cleared our data bar. 381 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.9 out of 5 (111 ratings).
Why is The Amber Spyglass on the Best Books of 1999 list?
381 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.9 out of 5 (111 ratings).
More of the best books of 1999
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J. K. Rowling, #1
- The Perks of Being a Wallflower Stephen Chbosky, #2
- Wings of Fire A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, #3
- On Writing Stephen King, #4
- The Bad Beginning Lemony Snicket, #5
- The Coldest Winter Ever Sister Souljah, #6
See the full Best Books of 1999, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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