Book Review: Stardust
Book Title: Stardust
Author: Neil Gaiman
Purchase: Amazon
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Publish Date: 1999
Description from Goodreads:
Young Tristran Thorn will do anything to win the cold heart of beautiful Victoria—even fetch her the star they watch fall from the night sky. But to do so, he must enter the unexplored lands on the other side of the ancient wall that gives their tiny village its name. Beyond that old stone wall, Tristran learns, lies Faerie—where nothing not even a fallen star, is what he imagined.
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman comes a remarkable quest into the dark and miraculous—in pursuit of love and the utterly impossible.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
What a fun fairytale! I watched the movie years ago and remember loving it, so I had a good feeling I’d like the book. After reading and loving The Ocean at the End of the Lane earlier this year, I figured it was finally time to pick up Stardust.
This is Neil Gaiman we’re talking about, so of course the writing is superb. The omniscient narrator gives the familiar, comforting feeling of sitting around a fire and hearing a fantastical bedtime story, this one about a boy tracking down a fallen star in the world of Faerie beyond the Wall (I wonder if this inspired Sarah J. Maas’s wall between the mortal lands and Prythian in A Court of Thorns and Roses).
Tristran’s crossing from Wall to Faerie is reminiscent of Alice crossing into Wonderland, Harry Potter into Diagon Alley, Lucy Pevensie into Narnia. At least, I assume so, having read only one of those three. You get what I mean, though—there’s that magical feeling of crossing a threshold into a new world where anything is possible. And as such, we’re greeted by talking animal guardians and a dangerous forest.
This story is at once familiar and completely unique. There are evil witches, princes on quests, and skyship pirates. Bringing them all together is a shooting star that’s fallen to Earth and can grant incredible power. Unfortunately for those tracking this jewel, fallen stars take human form in Faerie and can, you know, run away.
This standalone fairytale is fast-paced and so much fun. “Fallen star” conjures images of something ethereal, otherworldly, precious. And maybe Yvaine—the star—is those things, but she’s also foul-mouthed, defiant, and broken-legged… which is also exactly what you might expect of someone being hunted, captured, and threatened by multiple forces. In a world that typically revolves around damsels in distress, she’s a breath of fresh air.
All the elements and characters tie together at the end, proving that every scene and each character serves a purpose. By the end of his adventure, Tristran is also much less of a knob, which is a welcome relief. The epilogue, especially, is quite satisfying. I highly recommend Stardust for all fantasy enthusiasts—I only wish I’d gotten to it sooner.
