Serpentine (book) facts for kids
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| Author | Philip Pullman |
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| Cover artist | Tom Duxbury |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Publisher | Penguin Random House Children's |
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Publication date
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United Kingdom: 15 October 2020 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| Pages | 80 |
| ISBN | 9780241475249 |
Serpentine is a short fantasy novel, also called a novella, written by Philip Pullman. It's a special story that takes place after his famous His Dark Materials series and before the second book of The Book of Dust series. This book helps connect the adventures of Lyra Belacqua across these two big series.
How Serpentine Began
Serpentine wasn't first planned to be a book you could buy in stores. It was written in 2004 for a special reason: to be sold at a charity auction! Nicholas Hytner, who was in charge of the National Theatre at the time, asked Philip Pullman to write it. The money raised from selling the story went to a good cause during the theatre's play of His Dark Materials.
At first, Pullman didn't think he would write more about Lyra as an adult. But after he published The Secret Commonwealth, he decided to release Serpentine. He realized this short story showed important parts of Lyra and her dæmon Pantalaimon's journey, which would be helpful for readers of The Book of Dust.
What's the Story About?
In Serpentine, we follow a teenage Lyra and her dæmon, Pantalaimon. A dæmon is like a part of a person's soul that takes the form of an animal. They go back to Trollesund, a snowy town in the Arctic. This town was important in Northern Lights, where Lyra first met the brave balloon pilot Lee Scoresby and the armored bear Iorek Byrnison.
Lyra and Pantalaimon visit Dr. Lanselius, who is a witch-consul. They hope he can help them understand something very unusual: their ability to separate from each other. Normally, a person and their dæmon can't be far apart, so this is a big mystery for them to solve!
Listen to the Book
If you prefer listening to stories, an audiobook version of Serpentine was released at the same time as the printed book and ebook. It's narrated by the famous actress Olivia Colman.
