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A review by inhonoredglory
Stardust: Being a Romance Within the Realms of Faerie by Neil Gaiman
4.0
Reading this was a so much more magical experience the second time around. Admittedly, I read it in the wilds of the outdoors this time, with the glorious illustrations of Charles Vess to accompany me. I was alone, outside in the spring, with the wind around me, clear blue sky above, and the mulberry tree dropping her seeds in my hair as the nymph-tree woman advised Tristran of his destiny. A hawk swooped on the ground next, not ten yards from me, and pairs of birds clucked in springtime revelry, the goose couple alighting on the shed behind me. Leaves on bushes rustled translucent and bright in the sun (and I remembered how that’s the voice of the Stormhold’s dead sons). Little flying bugs landed on my book and on my hands, and I didn’t fear them. I hadn’t felt so near to nature in a while, with this deft and magical book in my hands.
The real skill of Gaiman in this book is how in touch he is with the intricacy and colloquialism of medieval fairy tales, all the little tropes and lived-in details that make the narrative spark of authenticity. And the darkness, always the darkness, which makes this fairy story feel more real than any fairy tale children nowadays are subjected to. Gaiman's special touches especially shine: the three Lilim women in the mirror (are they there or are they only in the cottage?), the colorful, magical village market (now appearing in three books: Neverwhere of course, and implied in Ocean), the truth of nursery rhymes in the land of Faerie, and the candle that when burned would take Tristran many miles in the span of a few steps.
Admittedly, this book has always been my least favorite of Gaiman’s major works, mostly because Tristran captures Yvaine against her will and is unforgivable for not taking care of her injuries the moment he found her. But I appreciate the growth of his arc, how he literally learns that
So, from a fairy tale perspective, with Gaiman writing in the voice of the oldest and most unenlightened tales, he did the archaic stories a service with his feminist awareness for the end, Tristran is repentant for his actions (tho not enough as he should be IMO) and he does love Yvaine for who she is, without the starry-eyed stupidity of his shallow youth and obsession with Victoria Forester.
But I can honestly say I enjoyed Stardust this time, awash with the fairy voice. My favorite thing might very well be the hints of snarky modernity, such as when Yvaine fell:
The real skill of Gaiman in this book is how in touch he is with the intricacy and colloquialism of medieval fairy tales, all the little tropes and lived-in details that make the narrative spark of authenticity. And the darkness, always the darkness, which makes this fairy story feel more real than any fairy tale children nowadays are subjected to. Gaiman's special touches especially shine: the three Lilim women in the mirror (are they there or are they only in the cottage?), the colorful, magical village market (now appearing in three books: Neverwhere of course, and implied in Ocean), the truth of nursery rhymes in the land of Faerie, and the candle that when burned would take Tristran many miles in the span of a few steps.
Admittedly, this book has always been my least favorite of Gaiman’s major works, mostly because Tristran captures Yvaine against her will and is unforgivable for not taking care of her injuries the moment he found her. But I appreciate the growth of his arc, how he literally learns that
the star was not a thing to be passed from hand to hand, but a true person who was in all respects her own woman, and no king of a thing at all. (183)
So, from a fairy tale perspective, with Gaiman writing in the voice of the oldest and most unenlightened tales, he did the archaic stories a service with his feminist awareness for the end,
Spoiler
with Yvaine ultimately becoming the Lady of Stormhold and the twist that the Lady Una was the architect of her own salvation (from her tryst with Dunstan Thorn).But I can honestly say I enjoyed Stardust this time, awash with the fairy voice. My favorite thing might very well be the hints of snarky modernity, such as when Yvaine fell:
And there was a voice, a high clear, female voice, which said, ‘Ow,’ and then, very quietly, it said ‘fuck,’ and then it said ‘Ow,’ once more. And then it said nothing at all, and there was silence in the glade. (69)