Parents' Guide to The Rose Field: The Book of Dust, Book 3

Parents need to know that The Rose Field is the final book in Philip Pullman's The Book of Dust trilogy and takes place, chronologically, nearly 20 years after the first Book of Dust, Belle Savage, and some seven years after the His Dark Materials trilogy. It helps to read all those books first because these two series are philosophically complex and they are referenced often. Lyra continues to search for her daemon (an animal that represents part of the human soul), and she encounters plenty of violence as the greedy leader Marcel Delamare, head of the religious government, makes his case for war. People die in explosions, gunfire, and stabbings and are torn apart by large birds and gryphons, with some gory descriptions. Another man drops dead from a heart attack onstage. People are hit with clubs, bullets, tear gas, and water cannons in a street riot, and a man is found after being badly beaten in police custody. Other mature content includes mentions of past lovers, social drinking, and smoking, and swearing that includes "f--k" and "bitch," most often uttered by one bitter character. The His Dark Materials trilogy was often banned or challenged from 2000–2009. Neither that series nor this one look kindly on the power-hungry religious order, and the religious characters are never the good guys. Readers can decide whether Pullman's books promote atheism, as the ban attested, or accountability for those seeking power in religious offices. Or they can focus on all the other gifts this highly inventive series offers, including more time with Lyra, one of the most beloved and intellectually curious characters in all of children's literature.