Review: Stardust

Stardust by Neil Gaiman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Stardust, by Neil Gaiman and Charles Viss is a modern fairytale for adults. All those mystic and fantastical elements which made the fairytales of old retain their timeless quality, Gaiman was able to recreate them, and show that there is always room for innovation and creativity even in a genre where one would not hope for anything such.

There is everything in this tale which one would ascribe to the classics. A damsel in distress, the dashing prince/ hero, the wicked witch with nefarious schemes, helpful Samaritans and acquaintances you come to meet during an adventure, and a mostly happy ending. And all are sprinkled with just the right amount of magic and faeries. Like in a world of magical realism, no one is in awe of it, magic is just part of the world they inhabit, some have it others don’t.



Much like in a Greek play, or well, a fairy tale, the actions of the characters, in addition to meddling by supernatural and elemental entities, move the plot along just as much. This also provides a great toolkit of McGuffins which can help a writer circumvent the inconveniences of writing oneself in a corner.

How to make sure that the male and female protagonists meetup quickly across great distances? A supernatural compass in the hero’s head, combined with a magical traveling candlewick.

The hero is not strong enough to take on the big, bad witch-queen? Introduce a family of fratricidal uncles vying for the throne and end up as collateral damage.

As is customary for Mr. Gaiman, he manages to impart his characteristic blend of wonderment, sense of allure, adventure into a world with the right amount of stakes and fabled disbelief. The setting, the living breathing world, and the characters who behave in ways that you don’t always expect in the given scenario, keeps you on the edge as to what happens next. And that also applies to those who’ve watched the 2007 movie adaptation, and have some idea of what happens.

For instance, Unlike in the movie, the Lilum are not entirely evil; well they are evil as far as the wicked witch troupe goes. But, towards the end, having expended all her magic, and having failed to secure the star, the witch queen resigns to her fate, and even makes amends with her target. Too bad for Primus, Septimius, the poor farm boy and the Billy Goat; oh also the Unicorn.

The artwork of the story is gorgeous. Most of it takes place in woods and places rich in magic, so the frames are filled to the brim with faeries, gremlins, morlocks, nymphs, Silva, Sleigh beggy and whatnot. Even when they have nothing particular to do with the narrative, they’re present in the periphery, like critters.



I like the fact that unlike typical fairy tales, the story doesn’t end happily ever after. It shows the bittersweet conclusion afterwards, when Tristan, being a mortal, grows old and dies. While Yvianne the daughter of the star, remains unchanged, and having lost all her loved ones, rules as the Immortal queen of Stormhold, but in reality, being a star who fell out of the sky and lost her place.

This ending sort of hit me hard. And it will those of us who are content with the ‘happily ever after’ form of storytelling. As Gaiman himself said in ‘The Sandman’, "If you go on long enough, all stories end in death." And it’s that mature seasoning which Gaiman has added to the story which I believe is the secret sauce to making it a memorable experience.



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