Dear readers, Philip Pullman has brought the story of one of his most beloved characters, Lyra Silvertongue, to a close. Readers first met her in “The Golden Compass” (or “Northern Lights,” if you were in Britain), and came to love her bravery, imagination and recklessness. Along with her daemon, Pan, an animal companion who reflects her soul and eventually settles into the form of a pine marten, Lyra helped to save the universe — all before she even entered adulthood. (If you need a refresher on this fictional world, peek at this guide.) Pullman decided to return to Lyra, he said in a recent interview, because of where he’d left her. “She needed another adventure,” he said. “Besides, she was getting to a stage in her life where interesting things go on.” “The Rose Field” is the final volume chronicling her adventure, and was published this past week. Readers have been anticipating the book with a type of bittersweet fervor — eager to plunge back into Pullman’s universe, but loath to see Lyra off. On the subject of Lyra’s devotees, I urge you to read Dan Kois’s essay about naming his daughter after Pullman’s heroine. “To name a real child after a fictional character is an act of hope,” he writes. “In choosing her name, we were offering ourselves at least one road map for the person she might one day become.” I’d love to hear about any Pullman-associated memories you might have. I remember attending a release party at my local bookstore for “The Amber Spyglass,” where I can all but guarantee most of the “Paradise Lost” references zoomed over my four-foot head. You can reach me the usual way: by emailing books@nytimes.com. See you on Friday.
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