Philip Pullman is a British author best known for His Dark Materials, a trilogy that began with Northern Lights in 1995 and established him as one of the most significant voices in contemporary fiction for children and adults alike. Born in Norwich in 1946, he worked as a teacher and lecturer before his writing career took over, drawing on a wide range of influences including Milton's Paradise Lost, William Blake, and Heinrich von Kleist. His Dark Materials brought him international recognition and considerable controversy for its unflinching engagement with organised religion, free will, and the nature of consciousness. The trilogy's final volume, The Amber Spyglass, became the first children's book to win the Whitbread Book of the Year award. He has since returned to the same universe with The Book of Dust trilogy, the second volume of which was published in 2019. He was appointed a Companion of Honour in 2019.