One of Neil Gaiman's recurring themes that works so well in his hands is the art and significance of storytelling. The Sandman followed Morpheus, the embodiment of "dream," to that ever elusive place, full of baffling realms our imaginations take us to, and the threshold of inspiration for those who tell stories. Stardust follows a vein of thought within this realm of dreams (Faerie, to be precise), and although it reads at times like a parody of classic western fairy-tale lore, overall it proves to be a celebration, a tribute, and a whole new legend worthy of Gaiman's authorship.

Beyond it's intentionally cliche (but in such a delicate way..) coming of age theme, the story takes unexpected and original turns every new chapter, tipping its hat to formulas of similar stories, but in the end striving to blaze its own path, even if the author shows a bit of pretention in the process. Just as the narrative threatened to lose this reader's interest with uncharacteristically long bits of meticulous description, the story's originality and charm allow it to recover nicely and deliver some of its delicious doses of unreality.

The illustrations are often beautiful companions to the story, incurring a sort of childish wonder at whimsical venues and characters, while sometimes delivering shocking images to emphasize moments in the story that would have scared the shit out of you as a child (well, me anyway..). This is the next step in maturity for those of us who were captivated and elevated by fantasy as young readers, listeners, observers of tales which challenge the depth of our imaginations, but do not insult our intelligence. ( )

D-This is probably my favorite of Neil Gaiman's novels, and I adored the ending. ( )

Absolutely a gorgeous fairy tale for adults. Stardust is a captivating and thriller read, busting across all sorts of genres to weave a fabulous tale. Gaiman really gets at the heart of Faerie -- the man knows whereof he speaks. ;) Highly recommended.

This edition of "Stardust" was the first I've read & truly loved of Gaiman's works. It touched the child in me & got me interested in the fantasy genre once more. What's more it's graced with Charles Vess's exquisite 175 illustrations -- delicate, colorful, ethereal, and full of little details and shadowy corners. He captures every shred of the magic that Gaiman's words are able to conjure, and a little bit more than that.

What is intriguing is the proposition that some time ago, mortal men & faerie creatures are involved in commerce, even though it's only every 9 years. An apt description of the Faerie Market: (There were wonders for sale, and marvels, and miracles; there were things undreamed-of and objects unimagined)
"Bottled dreams, a shilling a bottle!"
"Coats of night! Coats of twilight! Coats of dusk!"
"Swords of fortune! Wands of power! Rings of Eternity!"

Now, if you're mortal, would you pass up the opportunity to go & visit such a wonderful place? Never mind the caution of old, of not indulging in any faerie food & drink. I absolutely devoured the whole page spread of Vess' illustration of the Faerie Market....think of all the possibilities that could occur at such a place (reminiscent of the Floating Market as mentioned in Gaiman's "Neverwhere").

We met the slave girl in disguise who falls in love with the simple Dunstan (helped along with the gift of finding one's Heart's Desire by members of the Fellowship of the Castle). I laughed out loud at her sharp tongue, when she chastised Dunstan's imitation of a little owl's hoot as a signal of his arrival: "That is nothing like a little owl. If my ears were stopped up with twigs perhaps I'd imagine an eagle owl. But it's not a little owl." :)

One cannot help but cringe at what men would do in order to seize power to rule a kingdom, in this case, the Power of Stormhold. I thought that Primus would gain that right to rule, but ahh, be wary of those who are more cunning than you are.

The Three Ladies who are the Lilim can be traced back to old folklore; I don't know how they kept themselves sane having that mirror which reflects a warped version of their personal reality or longing (I can't decide which). In the end, I felt sorry for the oldest of the Lilim, knowing that her sisters await her return with cruel punishment:
Yvaine realized that she felt nothing but pity for the creature who had wanted her dead, so she said, "Could it be that the heart that you seek is no longer my own? I have given my heart to another."
"The boy? The one in the inn? With the unicorn?"
"Yes."
"Your boy will break it, or waste it, or lose it. They all do."
"Nonetheless, he has my heart."

When you read the book you don't realize how big a role the little hairy man plays in Tristran's life, but with Vess' illustrations, you see him popping up everywhere, slyly hidden. The two become fast friends when Tristran first entered Faerie, the former instructing him on the best way to deal with the locals & how not to give away his goal since others are also seeking the fallen star for their own purpose. I particularly liked how the hairy creature gave Tristran the candle-wax to aid him in finding the star ("Can I get there by candlelight? There and back again.")

You find yourself feeling for the characters, no matter the way they were introduced to the story. I rather felt that the unicorn deserved better, since I was appalled by the violent way its life ended. The captain of the ship Free Ship Perdita proved that ships can be airborne, on a lightning-hunting expedition & can later dock on a huge tree with other skyships. You should see Vess' illustration of this.

But the most romantic is of course the colored painting of Tristran & Yvaine realizing that they truly care for each other: (They kissed for the first time then in the cold spring rain; and neither one of them knew that it was raining). And the saddest, is the last illustration of Yvaine who stares "upward into the dark sky and watches, with sad yes, the slow dance of the infinite stars.")

Book Details:

Title Stardust: Being A Romance Within the Realms of Faerie (signed copy)
Author Neil Gaiman & Charles Vess
Reviewed By Purplycookie ( )

Read: 2/18-2/20/09

Synopsis: A graphic novel that is set in the sleepy town of Wall is the english countryside. The town is so named for the border that separates it from the land of Faerie, save for a market that is held every nine years. Dunstan Thorn is in love with a girl in his town, he also falls in love with a mysterious woman with cat-ears and violet eyes at the market. (This page was ripped out of the copy I got from the library). Anyway, time goes on and Dunstan's son, Tristran grows up and falls in love with Victoria. He promises her the shooting star that they see in exchange for his heart's desire. Tristran is able to cross in the lands of Faerie and adventure begins! There are short hairy people, unicorns, a star-woman, and 2 villians who are also after the star.

Pros & cons: It is an interesting tale with wonderful illustrations. There were some parts that were dull and I wanted the story to hurry along. The witch is truly evil and there is one part of hers I did not enjoy reading. This book is part of my start to reading graphc novels and I am impressed. ( )