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His Dark Materials: Once Upon a Time in the North, Gift Edition
A stunning new edition of this prequel episode from Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials universe that tells how aeronaut Lee Scoresby and the armored bear Iorek Byrnison first met. Now with full-color illustrations from Chris Wormell.
After winning his hot-air balloon in a poker game, Lee Scoresby and his dæmon, Hester, find themselves floating north. On landing, it’s not long before Scoresby is embroiled in a deadly plot involving an oil magnate, a corrupt mayoral candidate, and Lee’s longtime nemesis—a hired killer. Lee’s been in tight spots before, but getting out of this mess will require some sharp shooting and the help of an unlikely new ally—the massive, surly, armored bear Iorek Byrnison.
Newly illustrated in full color by renowned print-maker Chris Wormell, this edition is a wonderfully gift-worthy production.
After winning his hot-air balloon in a poker game, Lee Scoresby and his dæmon, Hester, find themselves floating north. On landing, it’s not long before Scoresby is embroiled in a deadly plot involving an oil magnate, a corrupt mayoral candidate, and Lee’s longtime nemesis—a hired killer. Lee’s been in tight spots before, but getting out of this mess will require some sharp shooting and the help of an unlikely new ally—the massive, surly, armored bear Iorek Byrnison.
Newly illustrated in full color by renowned print-maker Chris Wormell, this edition is a wonderfully gift-worthy production.
- GenresFantasyYoung Adult
176 pages, Hardcover
Published November 14, 2023
20 people are currently reading
145 people want to read
About the author
Philip Pullman
263 books25.8k followersSir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman is an English writer. His books include the fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials and The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ, a fictionalised biography of Jesus. In 2008, The Times named Pullman one of the "50 greatest British writers since 1945". In a 2004 BBC poll, he was named the eleventh most influential person in British culture. He was knighted in the 2019 New Year Honours for services to literature.
Northern Lights, the first volume in His Dark Materials, won the 1995 Carnegie Medal of the Library Association as the year's outstanding English-language children's book. For the Carnegie's 70th anniversary, it was named in the top ten by a panel tasked with compiling a shortlist for a public vote for an all-time favourite. It won that public vote and was named all-time "Carnegie of Carnegies" in June 2007. It was filmed under the book's US title, The Golden Compass. In 2003, His Dark Materials trilogy ranked third in the BBC's The Big Read, a poll of 200 top novels voted by the British public.
Northern Lights, the first volume in His Dark Materials, won the 1995 Carnegie Medal of the Library Association as the year's outstanding English-language children's book. For the Carnegie's 70th anniversary, it was named in the top ten by a panel tasked with compiling a shortlist for a public vote for an all-time favourite. It won that public vote and was named all-time "Carnegie of Carnegies" in June 2007. It was filmed under the book's US title, The Golden Compass. In 2003, His Dark Materials trilogy ranked third in the BBC's The Big Read, a poll of 200 top novels voted by the British public.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
March 15, 2025
14 March 2025
I liked it even more this time. Maybe the illustrations struck my fancy, maybe I was happy to visit the universe again after all this time, maybe I am just in a good mood. Whatever the reason, I did enjoy it very much. Plus I love Lee Scoresby as a character.
Library copy
I liked it even more this time. Maybe the illustrations struck my fancy, maybe I was happy to visit the universe again after all this time, maybe I am just in a good mood. Whatever the reason, I did enjoy it very much. Plus I love Lee Scoresby as a character.
Library copy
2023
June 14, 2024📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Books for Young Readers
September 11, 2023
This is such a fun and atmospheric novella featuring two of my favorite characters and one of my favorite settings from His Dark Materials.
I’ve read this story before, but this new gift edition is gorgeous and the illustrations really flesh out the
story. The whole book—cover to cover and everything in between—is beautiful, and evocative of the northern setting for Pullman’s stunningly crafted world.
The epistolary materials included are also a delightful enhancement to the story. Generally I don’t think gift versions are worth acquiring if you already own a copy of the book, but this one is an exception and worth getting whether the story is new to you or an old HDM favorite.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
I’ve read this story before, but this new gift edition is gorgeous and the illustrations really flesh out the
story. The whole book—cover to cover and everything in between—is beautiful, and evocative of the northern setting for Pullman’s stunningly crafted world.
The epistolary materials included are also a delightful enhancement to the story. Generally I don’t think gift versions are worth acquiring if you already own a copy of the book, but this one is an exception and worth getting whether the story is new to you or an old HDM favorite.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
December 22, 2023
(Full disclosure: I received a free e-ARC for review through Netgalley.)
Originally published in 2008, ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE NORTH is a prequel to the HIS DARK MATERIALS trilogy. The novella recounts how a twenty-four-year-old Lee Scoresby meets and befriends an equally young Iorek Byrnison. (When this story takes place, the future king of Svalbard's only piece of armor is a helmet.)
Freshly in possession of a balloon he won in a poker game, Lee lands on the small island of Novy Odense in search of work - and quickly stumbles right into the middle of a political scandal. Disgraced former Senator and current Mayoral candidate Ivan Poliakov is running on the wedge issue of purging Novy Odense of its Panserbjørne population. ("Vagrants [...] Scavengers, drunkards, many of them. Degraded specimens every one.", as one of his supporters rails.) But inciting bigotry is just a cover - for consolidating and privatizing power. Poliakov is a close ally of Larsen Manganese, and together they've conspired to strip a shipping merchant of his ship and cargo. Honorable to his core, Lee decides to help Captain van Breda escape with his vessel. Enter: Iorek Byrnison, who's no fan of the anti-bear Poliakov.
I think I originally listened to the audiobook of ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE NORTH, and enjoyed it more in that format. Some of the nautical descriptions went over my head, and I guess that's a little easier to take when someone's reading the descriptions to you. Also, young Lee is a little creepier (in a mildly lecherous way) than I remembered, so I docked the story one star for that.
That said: Hester and Iorek!!!!
This gift edition features illustrations by Chris Wormell, which are lovely and do add another dimension to the story. He also did the cover for Helen Macdonald's H FOR HAWK, and the artwork in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE NORTH has the same vibe.
(The original hardcover edition has much smaller, black and white engravings by John Lawrence, which are also nice. I received a pdf copy of this book for review, so I can't say how the physical copy compares in terms of tactile sensation. The original has a kind of cloth cover that feels expensive. I'm not really sure why the publisher decided to release a "gift" edition, since the original seems perfectly gift-able, but hey, I'm not complaining! More HDM is always a good thing imho.)
Originally published in 2008, ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE NORTH is a prequel to the HIS DARK MATERIALS trilogy. The novella recounts how a twenty-four-year-old Lee Scoresby meets and befriends an equally young Iorek Byrnison. (When this story takes place, the future king of Svalbard's only piece of armor is a helmet.)
Freshly in possession of a balloon he won in a poker game, Lee lands on the small island of Novy Odense in search of work - and quickly stumbles right into the middle of a political scandal. Disgraced former Senator and current Mayoral candidate Ivan Poliakov is running on the wedge issue of purging Novy Odense of its Panserbjørne population. ("Vagrants [...] Scavengers, drunkards, many of them. Degraded specimens every one.", as one of his supporters rails.) But inciting bigotry is just a cover - for consolidating and privatizing power. Poliakov is a close ally of Larsen Manganese, and together they've conspired to strip a shipping merchant of his ship and cargo. Honorable to his core, Lee decides to help Captain van Breda escape with his vessel. Enter: Iorek Byrnison, who's no fan of the anti-bear Poliakov.
I think I originally listened to the audiobook of ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE NORTH, and enjoyed it more in that format. Some of the nautical descriptions went over my head, and I guess that's a little easier to take when someone's reading the descriptions to you. Also, young Lee is a little creepier (in a mildly lecherous way) than I remembered, so I docked the story one star for that.
That said: Hester and Iorek!!!!
This gift edition features illustrations by Chris Wormell, which are lovely and do add another dimension to the story. He also did the cover for Helen Macdonald's H FOR HAWK, and the artwork in ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE NORTH has the same vibe.
(The original hardcover edition has much smaller, black and white engravings by John Lawrence, which are also nice. I received a pdf copy of this book for review, so I can't say how the physical copy compares in terms of tactile sensation. The original has a kind of cloth cover that feels expensive. I'm not really sure why the publisher decided to release a "gift" edition, since the original seems perfectly gift-able, but hey, I'm not complaining! More HDM is always a good thing imho.)
April 28, 2024
Beautifully illustrated, this novella (novelette? fairly long short story?) is a prequel to Pullman's His Dark Materials series. This is a classic western tale (well, northern, technically) featuring a stranger coming to town, a corrupt politician, an evil mining company, a good-hearted librarian, gunslingers, and, of course, a talking bear.
This is the story of the first meeting of Lee Scoresby and Iorek Byrnison. Lee arrives in a sleepy northern oil town, and gets introduced to the local political scene, where an offer is made to pay him to be hired muscle in the unfair treatment of a merchant captain. Instead, Lee decided to side with the captain, and earns the support of the armored bear Iorek Byrnison.
This was really fun because the pacing of most of His Dark Materials makes it difficult to give center stage to secondary characters like Scoresby and Byrnison, and even more difficult to spotlight a character like Scoresby's daemon, Hester, who is absolutely awesome here.
This features an intense gunfight with an extremely nasty villain, a good bit of worldbuilding, and some fun subplots. Really enjoyable as a fan of Pullman's other works, but stands on its own pretty well as long as you have an idea of the daemon concept.
This is the story of the first meeting of Lee Scoresby and Iorek Byrnison. Lee arrives in a sleepy northern oil town, and gets introduced to the local political scene, where an offer is made to pay him to be hired muscle in the unfair treatment of a merchant captain. Instead, Lee decided to side with the captain, and earns the support of the armored bear Iorek Byrnison.
This was really fun because the pacing of most of His Dark Materials makes it difficult to give center stage to secondary characters like Scoresby and Byrnison, and even more difficult to spotlight a character like Scoresby's daemon, Hester, who is absolutely awesome here.
This features an intense gunfight with an extremely nasty villain, a good bit of worldbuilding, and some fun subplots. Really enjoyable as a fan of Pullman's other works, but stands on its own pretty well as long as you have an idea of the daemon concept.
September 8, 2023
I am a long-time fan of His Dark Materials and this was not my first reading of Once Upon a Time in the North, but for me, this story holds up to an occasional re-reading. It is a great short introduction to the series if you have never read any of the books or a nice backstory for those who want to know more of Lee Scoresby (and Hester) and Iorek Byrnison. There is a sprinkling of steampunk, frontier adventure, aeronauts, and polar bears in this well-paced story.
The illustrations in this edition are in the spirit of the original (block prints, I believe). But they are colored and larger in size giving some visual kick without making it too childish. This looks like it would be a great [holiday] present for adults and pre-teens, for Philip Pullman fans who want to complete their collection as well as those new to this world of His Dark Materials.
I received advanced digital access to this book thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Random House Children's, Knopf Books for Young Readers) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.
The illustrations in this edition are in the spirit of the original (block prints, I believe). But they are colored and larger in size giving some visual kick without making it too childish. This looks like it would be a great [holiday] present for adults and pre-teens, for Philip Pullman fans who want to complete their collection as well as those new to this world of His Dark Materials.
I received advanced digital access to this book thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Random House Children's, Knopf Books for Young Readers) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.
November 16, 2023
Lee Scoresby lands his balloon on the Arctic island of Novy Odensk hoping to find work. Instead, he finds a town riven by a violent, propagandistic campaign for mayor, and slim pickings for work. He quickly involves himself in the workings of the race, making enemies and helping to right some wrongs.
This beloved character from Pullman’s His Dark Materials series has his origin story in this short story prequel. The bear Iorek Byrnison has his first appearance as well. Reissued from the 2008 edition with new illustrations, this is a handsome volume with gorgeous color artwork that seems like woodblock print. The illustrations include documents and newspaper articles, all in an early 20th century style.
Pullman’s signature literary language with understated humor and lots of steampunk type machinery will please fans of his other books. Heart-pounding adventure and the terror of separation with one’s dæmon makes this short volume hard to put down.
In terms of broad appeal, though, I think it would be hard for readers to figure out the dæmons for those who haven’t read Pullman’s other books.
This beloved character from Pullman’s His Dark Materials series has his origin story in this short story prequel. The bear Iorek Byrnison has his first appearance as well. Reissued from the 2008 edition with new illustrations, this is a handsome volume with gorgeous color artwork that seems like woodblock print. The illustrations include documents and newspaper articles, all in an early 20th century style.
Pullman’s signature literary language with understated humor and lots of steampunk type machinery will please fans of his other books. Heart-pounding adventure and the terror of separation with one’s dæmon makes this short volume hard to put down.
In terms of broad appeal, though, I think it would be hard for readers to figure out the dæmons for those who haven’t read Pullman’s other books.
December 30, 2024
This little spin off story from the Golden Compass universe was never really my favourite, even though it’s an entertaining little adventure that introduces us to the infamous Arctic aeronaut Lee Scorsby. With the illustrated gift edition, we don’t honestly get much more out of the story, as Chris Wormell’s illustrations are few and far between and don’t quite illuminate this tale as well as his other ventures. He does Oxford wonderfully, and I enjoyed his fully illustrated versions of the novels, but his woodwork style of illustration doesn’t fit the Arctic setting or western gunslinger motifs and I don’t feel like he got the feeling of any of the characters quite right. Maybe if there were more bears in the tale he would have come to terms with the story’s themes more fully, but Pullman’s character- and politics-driven plot is lost with the simplified style of the artwork. Of course, I’ll keep this volume for my collection, and maybe with a secondary read I’ll come to like it more, but for now I’m left just slightly dissatisfied.
October 22, 2023
This was another great story by Philip Pullman! The prequel to His Dark Materials follows Lee Scorseby (undoubtedly one of my favorite characters in the series) as we learn how he meets and becomes friends with Iorek Byrnison and wins his infamous hot air balloon in a poker game.
After traveling north, Lee and his daemon Hester get caught up in a tricky situation with some bad characters! Teaming up with the armored bear, they work on the side of good in an action packed short story.
The illustrations are lovely, as is the writing (as always). So happy to have gotten this glimpse into Lee’s character. If you’re a fan of His Dark Materials you should definitely read this book.
I received a digital copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
After traveling north, Lee and his daemon Hester get caught up in a tricky situation with some bad characters! Teaming up with the armored bear, they work on the side of good in an action packed short story.
The illustrations are lovely, as is the writing (as always). So happy to have gotten this glimpse into Lee’s character. If you’re a fan of His Dark Materials you should definitely read this book.
I received a digital copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
November 16, 2023
Aghhh love this! Prequel to the beloved “His Dark Materials” books by Philip Pullman! I have always enjoyed this series and was ecstatic to have the opportunity to read about Lee Scoresby and the beloved Lorek Byrnison! I truly enjoyed being placed back into this world P. Pullman has created and would recommend to those who already love the series! Those who may be new, this is a great place to start as if you enjoy this shorter version, you will love the Dark Materials series!
December 3, 2024
These are three beloved characters to me - so any extra insight into their friendship and background is a blessed time.
The story itself, however, I found to be a bit dull compared to all other books Pullman has written. Concept 5/5
Setting 2.5/5
Characters 5/5
Magic System -
Magical Objects/creatures 5/5
Plot 2.5/5
Romance 1/5
Prose-4/5
Audio Reader 5/5
Final Verdict- For the love of bears
The story itself, however, I found to be a bit dull compared to all other books Pullman has written. Concept 5/5
Setting 2.5/5
Characters 5/5
Magic System -
Magical Objects/creatures 5/5
Plot 2.5/5
Romance 1/5
Prose-4/5
Audio Reader 5/5
Final Verdict- For the love of bears
September 9, 2024
I'm really glad I got to read this story, I always wondered how Iorek and Lee met. Other than that the story was kinds dull. I enjoyed the action parts and the illustrations were great. Still only about a two and a half stars.
Want to read
June 26, 2024SM
August 8, 2024
Really enjoyed it. Nice edition too. A simple origin story introducing us to Lee Scoresby and Iorek Byrnisson, taking place some 30 years before the first Dark Materials trilogy.
April 6, 2025
Fun lil story and to be back in this world
December 18, 2024
A solid companion story to the overall "His Dark Materials" series. It was fun to re-meet Lee, Hester, and Iorek. Because of the characters the story is focused on, the genre is solidly western, which is always a plus in my book.
March 1, 2024
I really enjoyed this. Fun story, and great reading about two of my favorite characters from HDM. Amazing illustrations.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews