I read The Golden Compass to see if it would make a good birthday gift for my granddaughter, who's only two. My daughter will keep it for her till she's 10 or 11. I was inspired to do this by a New Yorker article on the author that came out about one or two years back.
Compass was a very good story. Positive outlook, "empowering" (I hate the word because it sounds like psychobabble, but in this case it's apt) for young girls, and it's not so much an attack on religion as an attack on conformity, herd mentality, tyranny and irrationality. I think if you're interested in developing a young girl to her fullest potential, completely free of any restrictive sexual stereotypes, this would be an excellent book. Much better than C.S. Lewis, who I find to be quite pernicious in some ways, although delightfully imaginative and light in others.
