Sara's Library: Stardust

Stardust by Neil Gaiman
Original publication: Avon Books 1998
This edition: William Morrow 2006
Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel Nominee 1999
Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature 1999
A-

In a village called Wall, so named for the wall between our world and that of the faeries situated nearby, a Faerie Market is held every nine years.  In 1839, Dunstan Thorn goes to the market to procure a gift for his love, Daisy.  After purchasing a crystal flower from one stall, he ends up having intimate relations with the stall-girl.  He marries Daisy shortly after the market, and in February the next year, a baby boy (presumably the result of his tryst with the stall-girl) is left at their doorstep.

Seventeen years later, the boy, Tristran, foolishly tells his heart's desire that he will find and claim a fallen star, which the two had seen fall earlier, as a gift for her.  He enters the world of Faerie and soon discovers that the star is not a dead space-rock, as we would expect, but a living, breathing girl named Yvaine -- though it should be mentioned that were she to ever cross the wall she would  become a space-rock.  Although at first Tristran intends to give Yvaine to Victoria, his ladylove, during the course of their travels he comes to view Yvaine as a person, not an object.

Two other characters in pursuit of the star round out the cast: a witch who wishes to gain immortality by snatching the star's heart, and the Lord of Stormhold, who is searching for a lost topaz in the star's possession.  The various encounters between the protagonists and these two account for most of the tension in the novel.

The two protagonists, Tristran and Yvaine, are both written rather believably and often have snappy dialogue, as is usual for characters attributed to Mr. Gaiman.  In the hands of a less capable writer, the story would have seemed too far-fetched and easily become asinine drivel.  But even the non-fantasy reader should be able to enjoy this tale, styled after the early fantasy novels of the Victorian era, yet accessible to modern readers by avoiding overly long and overly dry passages.

I will say that when I first read this I was not at all in the mood for a breezy fantasy, so I do caution potential readers to be in the right frame-of-mind when choosing this title.  Stardust isn't groundbreaking, but it is a beautiful homage to fantasies of the past.

Mowgli Meets Dracula and the Wolfman

The Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
Newbery Medal 2009, Carnegie Medal 2010

I first read this book back in October of 2009, long before I had this blog. Recently, I was assigned the audiobook version for a children's resources class, hence my post. While I will focus primarily on the plot and characters, I'd also like to speak a little of the book versus the audio version.

In the opening pages, the parents and sister of the main character (a baby boy) are murdered by the Man Jack, while the baby manages to escape to a nearby cemetery where he is promptly adopted by the Owenses, a married couple who died sometime in the 1800's. While the book chronicles the life of the boy (christened Nobody "Bod" Owens) through adolescence and his eventual confrontation with the Man Jack, the manner in which it is written is more akin to a series of vignettes than a traditional novel.

There have been complaints by some that the characters who populate the book, being ghosts, vampires, werewolves, etc., are inappropriate for the young readers at whom the novel is directed. However, it should be pointed out that these characters are all friends, teachers, and mentors to our young protagonist and that the entire work is also modeled upon The Jungle Books, in which a young boy is raised in the jungle by animals. Just as some animals intended Mowgli harm, but the majority looked after him, the majority of the supernatural characters here have Bod's best interests in mind.

As has come to be expected, Mr. Gaiman's writing is a brilliant marriage of Kipling's stories and characters with a modern setting and Mr. Gaiman's trademark wit. Regarding the audiobook, which is narrated by Mr. Gaiman, it has some nice additions, such as performances by Bela Fleck, and being read by the author himself provides perhaps the truest reading of the material. I personally prefer reading the book myself, however, as I found my attention wandering while listening to the audiobook for too long.

I read a year or two ago that a book focusing on Silas, Bod's mentor and the Bagheera character, was in the works, but I've not heard anything more about it. While I would certainly enjoy returning to Bod's world, this installment works perfectly on its own.

Grade: A

To Remain? Or Return?

In May, my book club selection was Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. Now, I have been a fan of Mr. Gaiman’s work ever since I discovered The Sandman. However, I had neglected to read this, his first novel. Reading something he wrote in 1996 after having read his more recent works made every blemish in this work apparent, creating some difficulty for me in completing it. I’m not writing this to focus on his writing, though. One of the questions asked at our club meeting rather intrigued me, but in order to progress, I need to explain a bit of the book’s plot first.

The main premise of the book is that there is a world below that in which we dwell, where those who slip between the cracks wind up. Being that this particular book is set in London, its counterpart is London Below, and our protagonist, Richard Mayhew, finds himself there after rescuing an injured girl. And, despite spending the vast majority of the novel trying to find a way home, trying to regain the sense of normalcy he had before the whole adventure began, once he has gotten his life back, he almost immediately seeks his way back to London Below.

Now, London Below is not some amazing Neverland, where one’s problems seem to disappear and every wish is granted. Rather, it’s a dark, dreary place where one must fight for his very survival day in, day out. And yet, our hero chooses to return there, after returning home to a promotion!

This prompted someone at book club to inquire, “Would you return to London Below?” Unsurprisingly, the vast number of those present said they would not. I wonder, though, how many people would return if it had been Neverland? Or Narnia? Or Oz? Or any number of other fantasy worlds? The primary reason so few of us wished to return to London Below was because life there is so very difficult. Why ever would one give up a good job and nice home to live in squalor? I certainly don’t understand it, although it was suggested that after having lived through such an adventure that Richard couldn’t settle into a desk job again and remain happy.

Personally, I would never want to go to London Below. Even as a child, I hated going outside and getting dirty, so I would be miserable wearing the same patchwork garments everyday, dirt and soot smudging my face. Eating pigeons and cats is also something I’d prefer to avoid! Not to mention all of the shady characters skulking about who might want to kill me for fun!

However, I might very well consider staying in a place like Neverland or Narnia, so long as it wasn’t always winter and never Christmas. It seems logical to remain in a place if conditions there are better than the life one would be leaving behind (which they certainly would be for me at this current point in time). Never having to grow up would also be an added bonus. So, what would you do? Remain, or return?