Pawanraj Sadhwani

Stardust by Neil Gaiman is the story of a half-blood Tristan, the result of a tryst between a simpleton in the village of Wall and a Faerie girl from the realms beyond. Desirous of Victoria Forester, young Tristan sets out on a perilous journey beyond the wall to the magical land of Faerie, to find her a falling star.

But, Tristan discovers, this isn't a simple task. And in the course of accomplishing what he set out to do - he also discovers himself. And love.

Stardust is a fairy tale for adults. Well at least PG-16. There are fairies, gnomes, magicians, and witches engaged in acts of kindness, cruelty, lust and love with their own respective agendas. The writing feels old-timey, but language is modern. The prose is tight - no superfluous witticisms, no self-indulgent embellishments. A welcome change from the last book I reviewed..

And yet, the world of Faerie doesn't feel incomplete or underdeveloped. There is just enough detail to draw you in without constraining your imagination. The characters are all active, dynamic, and have reasons for doing what they do. The story flows easily and naturally, like a quiet river. Tributaries come and meet the river, merging into the main story, sometimes peacefully, and at other times noisily. And the river continues its course, meandering pleasantly towards its final destination. It follows the path known and well understood.

If one were to nitpick, one could say that the plot moves forward "conveniently". Help appears exactly where it is needed, without the characters having to go through a phase of metamorphosis. Tristan Thorn's coming of age is equally effortless, and occurs naturally. He goes from a "naive, infatuated teenager" to "a mature grown up" just as a matter of course. Romance too, just "happens".

However, I think this is by design. This isn't meant to be a complex or unpredictable book. It isn't a book written to tax your emotions. It is a book to take you on a journey while leaving you free to enjoy it however you want. You could curl up with the book, read the story, and come away from it without feeling tired or burdened.

Stardust is a well-told coming of age meets a children's fairy-tale packaged for adult reading. It is book comfort-food. It was fun, non-serious literature and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 4/5 stars.