Shades of Death
William N. Wilder on Three Tales & the Demise of the Last Enemy
I’ve spent a lot of time reading fantasy literature over the past year or two. That is to say, I’ve spent a lot of time reading about death. First, there was the July 2007 publication of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. This book was in many ways the fitting climax to J. K. Rowling’s delightfully imaginative and witty work. Nevertheless, it is not Harry Potter and the Happy Hallows (despite the alliterative possibilities) for a reason.
Then The Golden Compass hit the theaters last December, which led me to read His Dark Materials—the trilogy by Philip Pullman comprising The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass. One thing is clear: However golden and amber his book titles may be,
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