Serpentine (book)

{{Short description|2020 novella by Philip Pullman}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Infobox book|  | name = Serpentine | title_orig = | translator = | image = SerpentinePullman.jpg | caption = | author = [[Philip Pullman]] | cover_artist = Tom Duxbury | country = United Kingdom | language = English | series = | genre = Fantasy | publisher = [[Penguin Random House|Penguin Random House Children's]] | release_date = '''United Kingdom''':<br />{{Start date|df=yes|2020|10|15}} | media_type = Print (Hardback) | pages = 80 | isbn = 9780241475249 | followed_by = }} '''''Serpentine''''' is a [[fantasy]] [[novella]] written by [[Philip Pullman]], set after the events of his ''[[His Dark Materials]]'' [[trilogy]] and before the events of ''[[The Secret Commonwealth]]'', the second book of his ''[[The Book of Dust]]'' trilogy. The manuscript was originally sold at a [[charity auction]] in 2004 and the book was publicly released in October 2020.<ref name="Philip Pullman to release unseen His Dark Materials novella in October" />

==Origins== ''Serpentine'' was not originally intended for publication but was instead written in 2004 at the special request of [[Nicholas Hytner]] (then the artistic director at the [[Royal National Theatre]]) to be auctioned for charity during the company's production of ''[[His Dark Materials (play)|His Dark Materials]]''; the work sold for a "substantial sum".<ref name="Philip Pullman to release unseen His Dark Materials novella in October">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/jul/09/philip-pullman-his-dark-materials-novella-serpentine-october| title=Philip Pullman to release unseen His Dark Materials novella in October|last=Flood|first=Alison|date=9 July 2020|work=[[The Guardian]]| accessdate=16 August 2020}}</ref> At the time of writing Pullman had not intended to revisit Lyra as an adult but after the publication of ''[[The Secret Commonwealth]]'' decided to issue the novella as it prefigures Lyra and Pantalaimon's character development in ''The Book of Dust''.<ref name="Philip Pullman to release unseen His Dark Materials novella in October" />

==Synopsis== In this story, a teenage [[Lyra Belacqua|Lyra]] and her [[Dæmon (His Dark Materials)|dæmon]] Pantalaimon revisit Trollesund, the Arctic town prominently featured in ''[[Northern Lights (Pullman novel)|Northern Lights]]'' as the place of her first meeting with the aeronaut [[List of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust characters|Lee Scoresby]] and the armoured bear [[List of His Dark Materials and The Book of Dust characters|Iorek Byrnison]]. They seek the witch-consul Dr. Lanselius in the hope of finding answers to their ability to separate.<ref name="Philip Pullman to release unseen His Dark Materials novella in October" />

==Audiobook== An audiobook narrated by [[Olivia Colman]] was released on the same day as the print and ebook versions.<ref name="Philip Pullman to release unseen His Dark Materials novella in October" />

==References== {{Reflist}} {{Portal |Children's literature}}

[[Category:2020 short stories]] [[Category:Short stories by Philip Pullman]] [[Category:His Dark Materials books]] [[Category:Fantasy short stories]] [[Category:2020 children's books]]