💃🏽 Fleur's Fantastic Reviews: Stardust 🌟

 This week, our fabulous guest-blogger Fleur presents her first-ever Fantastic Review of the Month! Dig right in...

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“Go and catch a falling star...”

  

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Expectations of a modern fairytale are somewhat allayed when one encounters a poem by 

John Donne on the opening pages of Stardust. Having absorbed the essence of the poem I started a journey into a fantastical world that I wished extended beyond its hundred odd pages. Having travelled with the young protagonist Tristran Thorn, caught a headstrong star and witnessed bizarre battles, I understood that Donne’s poem was the best entry point to the novel.

“If thou be'st born to strange sights,

Things invisible to see,

Ride ten thousand days and nights...”

We have long heard the story of the traditional hero, one who travels to distant lands in order to accomplish an impossible task, only to return to his land of origin a changed and enlightened man. Stardust presents you with a similar story; one that has Tristran embarking on a seemingly futile mission of catching a falling star to prove his love for a girl. As expected, his journeys bring him into contact with a host of interesting sites and characters. However,will Tristran journey to a place of no return?

  ”And swear,

            No where

Lives a woman true, and fair.”

In assessing Donne’s poem, many literary critics remark at the horrendous generalisations made about women. Gaiman seems to set the record straight in Stardust by introducing readers  to a host of female characters who defy convention. From a cat-eared lady to  shape shifting witches and a fallen star, Tristran comes into contact with a host of women who are imaginative, strategic and strong-willed. It seems Gaiman has set out to challenge Donne’s poem.

Another fascinating feature of Stardust is its length. Unlike many other fantasy novels that are of epic proportions, Gaiman accomplishes the tremendous task of bringing to life a wild and magical world within relatively few pages. The geography of the world that Tristran traverses is carefully constructed and at no point will a reader lose their sense of bearing. 

John Donne’s poem might seem easy to ignore especially because it has been placed at the beginning of the novel. Yet, for me it sets the tone for the novel, and also provides Gaiman with the ideal material to imagine his characters and construct a fresh fairytale. Now, it’s time to “Go and catch a falling star...”

If you are interested in hearing another story about a non traditional hero, watch this TedEd video and be drawn into the world of Irish Mythology.

💃🏽 Fleur