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Summary: Fantastically wonderful and transporting!
Review: This book is a fantastic journey through a land called Faerie... with several characters all in search of different matters of the heart. Neil Gaiman has a wonderful way of creating fairy tales for adults with the same naivete as children's tales, but with an incredible maturity. I enjoyed Gaiman's "Neverwhere" a bit more, but this book was wonderful as well. It really allows for the mind to create the most beautiful images. I recommend highly!
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Summary: Enchanting, Effervescent, Read in one gulp!
Review: "Stardust" won the Mythpoeic Award for best adult fairy tale. After all, fairy tales are not just for kids. And they're not for wimpy adults, either. Just read "The Hard Facts of the Grimms' Fairy Tales" by Maria Tatar if you don't believe me. "Stardust" has some pretty Grimm stuff in it too, however the only people who might not enjoy it are those who take Unicorns very very seriously. Or are extremely fond of billy goats.Gaiman's story begins and ends with a fair that will remind you of Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market": "Backwards up the mossy glen/ Turned and trooped the goblin men,/ With their shrill repeated cry,/ "Come buy, come buy.".../ One set his basket down,/ One reared his plate;/ One began to weave a crown/ Of tendrils, leaves, and rough nuts brown/ (Men sell not such in any town);/ One heaved the golden weight Of dish and fruit to offer her:/ "Come buy, come buy," was still their cry." As Laura of "Goblin Market"-fame learned, it is better not to sample the merchandise at such Unseelie gatherings. Dunstan Thorn, who "was not romantic" learns this lesson too, when nine months after the "Stardust" fair, a baby is abandoned at the boundary between Faerie and the English village of Wall with his name pinned to its blanket. Thus begins the story of Tristan Thorn who is raised as a proper Victorian lad until age seventeen. Unlike his father, Tristan is romantic and at the bequest of the most beautiful girl in Wall, he sets out on a quest through the Land of Faerie to fetch her a fallen star. Not just any fallen star, but the one Tristan and Victoria both saw on the night she refused to kiss him. "Stardust" is stuffed with stock fairy tale creatures who have been blown loose from their moorings and brought to life in the most wildly imaginative way. Some of them make only token appearances, but all are memorable. Two of the most poignant are the boy who is turned into a billy goat, and a billy goat, turned into a boy. There are three truly evil witches, and one who is only so-so wicked. There are....well, read the book. Even if you aren't drinking while you read it, you'll feel drunk by the time you finish. If ever there was a book that could be labeled, 'Drink me!', "Stardust" is that book. P.S. The cover has nothing to do with the story
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Summary: Amazing book!
Review: I checked out his novels because I'm a big Tori Amos fan, well I thought it would be great when I scanned through some in the store, wow it's incredible. It's so neat to see some fairy tales for adults :) he writes wonderfully and I was completely absorbed in the book plus excellent character development. I cared so much for each character and I wasn't disappointed with the ending either :) Great read!
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Summary: A Shooting Star That Will Not Fade
Review: The quintessential hero's journey, this tale is so compelling I finished in in less than two days. In the spirit of Piers Anthony's Xanth series, it follows Tristran Thorn's travels through the dreamlike lands of Faerie, where anything is possible, and, given time, will happen. Young Tristran is more than a lovestruck youth setting out on a quest to find a fallen star. He is, of course, that spark of youth and wonder within us all, the person we all wish we grew up to discover we had always been. Born to a mystical mother from another world and raised in our own reality, he finds himself, and his true love, during his fantastic sojourn into the unknown. Most surprisingly, Tristan's story ends unlike most of Gaiman's tales: happily. Perhaps the most comforting and staying wrap-up to a novel I've read, it leaves the reader wanting more, but statisfied with the end. Leaving behind the traditional "happily ever after" of the faerie-tale, Gaiman manages to convince the reader of just that, without ever using the cliche itself. This is the book you want to read to your girlfriend when she wants a story to put her to bed, and to your children (with a tiny bit of imaginative editing) when they are old enough to understand it, but still young enough to be read to. Gaiman's work will be around long after we are gone, and it will continue to feed the imaginations of generations to come. If you have ever had a spark of wonder, and can remember even a drop of your youth, you will love this book. It will return you to those halcyon days - and magical nights - of childhood, in which the world was a fascinating mystery, and something new lurked around every corner.
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Summary: Who says fairy tales are just for children?
Review: Neil Gaiman, who first made his name in the realm of comics (The "Sandman" series), brings his sharp visual sense and encyclopedic grasp of mythology to the writing of an adult fairy tale. The (literally) stellar result combines the quirky black humor of Tim Burton with the illustrious literary heritage of Lewis Carroll, George MacDonald, James Stephens, Lord Dunsany, and Mervyn Peake. Fascinating, witty, and compelling, this one belongs on the shelves of any fantasy reader.
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Summary: A masterful fairy tale that anyone can read.
Review: This is another book that I just could not put down. One of my favorite books of fantasy. A very good read.
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Summary: A lyrical fantasy with pixie dust woven throughout
Review: Neil Gaiman is a brilliant writer and he certainly shows some of his best stuff in Stardust. Fans of Gaiman's Sandman series as well as Neverwhere will fall in love with Tristan and Star and the myriad of well drawn characters. The plot is a mix of fantasy, romance and adventure - it has something for everyone. Stardust is destined to become a classic - sitting amongst the Narnia Chronicles, The Little Prince and others. Beyond building a fantastical plot, the alternate world of Faeirie (beyond the Wall) that the reader can actually feel a part of and solid characters - Gaiman weaves these elements together to create a beautiful memory tinged with comic genius. Tristan undertakes a quest for a fallen star to give to his love Victoria. She has promised to marry him if he can obtain one for her. Despite the impossibility of this request - Tristan sets out from his home in Wall to the land of Faeirie, across the enchanted meadow to seek true love. Along the way Tristan meets many friends and foes, witches, fairies, talking trees and much much more and in the process he learns a thing or two about life, love, his heritage and friendship. Stardust is a unique blend and has something to appeal to every reader. He melds several plot lines together to form an intricate tale that I could not put down and can't wait to read again. This is a book to enjoy over and over again. If you liked Stardust you should try Neverwhere as well as Nicholas Christopher's Veronica and A Trip to the Stars.
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Summary: Rediscover your imagination
Review: There is quite alot to be said about a book like this. Whether Mr. Gaiman had the purpose or not, he succeeded in a very unique way. He allowed adults to go back and remember all the wonder they had as children in stories and fairy tales. Many adults lose the gift of imagination and wonder later in life. This book was all about the magic that could be. While this is not a childrens book, it captures all the magic of the old tales that used to excite you and send your imagination wild as a kid. His writing style is also unique. If you've gotten tired of the thousands of fantasy (epic or contemporary), then this novel will truly be refreshing. It reads like a Grimm fairy tale, with a little Stephen King thrown in here and there. Highly recommended!!
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Summary: Enjoyable in either edition...
Review: With or without the beautiful illustrations by Charles Vess, this is an enjoyable tale. Though it reads like a fairy tale, this book should appeal to more mature readers. Gaiman doesn't shy away from the darker or more risque topics if they are necessary to the story, and at the same time, doesn't overuse these topics gratuitously.
Stardust tells the story of Tristran Thorn, beginning with his father's early adulthood in Wall, the town that lies next to the wall that separates the realm of Faerie from the world of humans. When Tristran becomes a young man, he promises the most beautiful girl in Wall that he will go and fetch the star they just saw fall, if she will give him anything he desires, namely her hand in marriage, when he returns. She takes him up on the promise and so he goes into the land of Faerie to get it. Unbeknownst to Tristran, there are other people seeking the star, all for their own separate reasons. And none of them have really considered how the star feels about all this. On his quest, Tristran learns compassion and courage, and grows up a little somewhere along the way.
Stardust is a very light read. The writing style is very comfortable and natural, and this book makes a great selection to read aloud with a loved one. The motivations of all the characters are well-reasoned, and at the end, the reader feels compassion even for the most wicked of Tristran's competitors. Each of the characters seeking the star has a well-developed history and personality, all with a minimum of prose. Gaiman blends humor, romance, suspense, and action into a thoroughly enjoyable story that lets you immerse yourself in its fantasy world, if only for a little while.
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Summary: Stardust
Review: This book was so great that I couldn't put it down. I read it in one sitting and was thoroughly enthralled from the beginning. I highly recommend this adventure for everyone looking for some interesting reading.
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