Stardust by Neil Gaiman Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Stardust
Book Review: I have no idea what they are saying......
Summary: 1 Stars
I have no idea what they are saying. What this story is about. Or if there was a point to it. I thought Harry Potter was bad, this is untranslatable.Book Review: I know it's cliche, but the book is better than the movie!
Summary: 5 Stars
A wonderful fairy tale for adults-- kids will like it too, but there are a couple of passages that may be too adult for kids.
In the tradition of The Princess Bride, but much better!
Like most fairy tales, there is a love story involved, and witches, and magic, and princesses, and lots of fantastic imagination!
Book Review: I prefer Disney and the like
Summary: 4 Stars
I read the book after watching the movie, and I have to admit I was a little disappointed. The movie is appropriate for young audiences, more of a family entertainment sort of thing, but I LIKED that. It was more pretty colors and sparkles. The book reminded me more of the old, orginal Grimm tales: dark and deadly. As far as basics go, most of the characters are pretty much the same, and it's mostly the same story. But the tone is very different, and the book's ending was less satisfying for a Disney-lover like myself.Book Review: I wish I were a folklorist...
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is fascinating. At times it is somewhat predictable, but only because it employs many of the familiar archetypes of the Western/European fairy tale tradition; however, it most usually does so with an intriguing and inventive twist. What you *know* is going to happen either doesn't...or does BUT in a different and eye-opening way.
I believe that the childhood stories of any culture reflect the norms and zeitgeist of that culture at that time, and that how these change can be traced through how the stories evolve. Witness the Brothers Grimm transformation to Disney, for example. No shoes full of blood in our modern Cinderella or our modern acknowledgement of how life either *is* or *ought* to be (even though this defies reality for some). If I knew more on the subject, it would be fascinating to see what Stardust says about who "we" are now in relation to the canonized tradition.
Further, Stardust strikes an enjoyable and "believeable" transition in tone between the mythic and the mundane. For perspective, I found "The Finovar Tapestry" lacking in this regard--it wavered jarringly between something like "The Silmarillion" and Tad Williams or Charles De Lint at their least inspired.
In spite--or perhaps because--of this, Stardust is *not* a children's story. Kids are accustomed to the bad guys dying, so that's probably no big deal, but there are 2-3 scenes that are not appropriate for young audiences due to either graphic sex or profanity. However, once you've read it, you could likely get away with an only mildly edited out-loud read to your kids; it's by no means pervasive.
Book Review: Interesting Ideas - But Expectations Not Met
Summary: 3 Stars
I purchased this book after reading the summary listed on Amazon and thought it would be quite interesting. However, the author did not seem to want to go into much detail. He had crafted some amazing ideas, but overlooked some of the opportunities to develop them. There was alot of potential that he missed out on. Other than that, I found the book to be rather enjoyable. I would recommend the book to readers who don't have to much time to get drawn into other more developed books.