Let's get this out of the way immediately--if you are a fan of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, you will be disappointed by some of the elisions and excisions made in this movie. The degree to which it bothers you will largely determine how much you enjoy The Golden Compass. I won't get into the details too much since it would spoil the movie for those unfamiliar with the novels. Let's just say......

Young adult fiction is the best-kept secret in publishing. Rather than getting stuck in the midlist graveyard, like Daniel Handler before he became Lemony Snicket, authors - and readers - would be doing themselves a favor to check out the genre. Crossover titles from this field have made it onto bestseller lists and into the hearts of us Not-So Young Adults quite a bit recently. If you've already pre-ordered your Harry Potter, and you're......