One word: great!This trilogy is excellent, I thought at first I wasn't going to rate it that highly, but it's very well written, it's interesting and fantastical without being over-the-top.The one thing that bothers me just a very tiny bit is (though I think it could well be in the 2nd book, this I can't remember for sure..!), that Pantalaimon is flying alongside the boat that he and Lyra are on, but it reads that Pantalaimon is in the form of a 'Stormy Petrel'.However, there is no such bird as a Stormy Petrel. The correct name for this sea-bird is 'Storm Petrel'.I'm sure this may well be seen as splitting hairs, but I am a keen ornithologist and it just bothers me!That aside, this is a great read; I believe this first book is the best; the third book is my least favourite.I also think that these books are not just 'for kids..and younger readers' - in fact I think some of the language may be slightly too much for younger readers, and also some of the imagery, in the first one, certainly.