You’ve heard that old saying that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery? It is interesting, then, that Philip Pullman’s atheistic His Dark Materials is really a retelling of Milton’s retelling of the Eden story, Paradise Lost. As a matter of fact, the phrase “his dark materials” is a line in Paradise Lost.

Don’t be too impressed that I knew all of that. I got it from a Mars Hill Audio (nothing to do with Mark Driscoll or Rob Bell) podcast on the books of the His Dark Materials trilogy. :) I’m not that clever nor that well read.

So if you’re interested in the original, theistic version, you can download an audio book for free this month.