Literature supports this idea. In the Chronicles of Narnia, for example. After becoming ‘too old’ Susan and Peter can no longer visit Narnia and are effectively banned from the lovely place where they once ruled. Then, in the Last Battle (the final book in the Chronicles) Susan is banned from Heaven because she’s…well, see for yourself.

" ‘My sister Susan,’ answered Peter shortly and gravely, ‘is no longer a friend of Narnia.’

‘Yes,’ said Eustace, ‘and whenever you’ve tried to get her to come and talk about Narnia or do anything about Narnia, she says ‘What wonderful memories you have! Fancy your still thinking about all those funny games we used to play when we were children.’’

‘Oh Susan!’ said Jill. "She’s interested in nothing nowadays except nylons and lipstick and invitations. She always was a jolly sight too keen on being grown-up.’"

I myself am interested in clothes and makeup. Am I going to hell…?

Again, we see this clinging to childhood in the classic Peter Pan and Wendy. Peter Pan is a little boy who refuses to grow up, and so simply doesn’t. He lives in Neverland, which is a kind of culmination of all the make-believe lands children make up while at play. However, if you want to be in Peter’s band of lost boys, there’s one catch:

"The boys on the island vary, of course, in numbers, according as they get killed and so on; and when they seem to be growing up, which is against the rules, Peter thins them out;"

And again, at the end of the book, when Peter comes back for Wendy, she cries that she is grown and has forgotten how to fly. Peter becomes very upset with her, since she promised never to grow up, and Wendy becomes very upset, since Peter won’t let her touch him and she’s a woman and cannot fly.

"Something inside her was crying ‘Woman, woman, let go of me.’"

Only virgins can touch unicorns.

In the Bible, Jesus tells his followers to be like little children.

What is this obsession with never growing up? Are children’s lives so charming? In the daylight I might tell you yes, yes they are; but after dark when monsters creep all around your bed I’d ask you to think again.

Here’s where HDM comes in.

Pullman finally wrote a book where it was okay to grow up. More than okay, necessary and beautiful. Only in growing up could Lyra and Will fall in love, only in growing up could they save the world, and only in growing up could they experience Dust. When you grow up, your daemon finally settles and you learn who you really are. The antagonist of the story, the Church, tried to stop people from growing up, so automatically we must know it’s a good thing.

I say it’s about time someone wrote about the joys of coming of age. We all have to, anyway (with the exception of Peter) so we might as well look on the bright side. Look at this! We can fall in love! We can experience things so much deeper, so much more meaningful than our sweet flights of imagination as children. Why should we be ashamed to grow up? Why should the Peters of the world gnash their teeth at adolescence?

Dust is a key element in HDM, and look when it starts coming down.

In the end, I suppose the choice is everyone’s own. Love or Narnia? Dust or Neverland? Daemons or unicorns?

Peter or Pan?