Stardust in Around the World in 80 Books

Dec 28, 2016 Nadine in NY Jones rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy-and-sci-fi, saw-the-movie-b4-i-read-the-book, mythopoeic, fairies

As they traveled, the star cursed the day she had fallen to this wet, unfriendly world. It had seemed so gentle and welcoming when seen from high in the sky. That was before. Now, she hated everything about it, except the unicorn; and, saddle sore and uncomfortable, she would have even happily spent time away from the unicorn.

I was a little nervous to read this. I loved the movie, my kids and I have watched it a bunch of times, and a lot of reviews say the movie was better than the book. I u

As they traveled, the star cursed the day she had fallen to this wet, unfriendly world. It had seemed so gentle and welcoming when seen from high in the sky. That was before. Now, she hated everything about it, except the unicorn; and, saddle sore and uncomfortable, she would have even happily spent time away from the unicorn.

I was a little nervous to read this. I loved the movie, my kids and I have watched it a bunch of times, and a lot of reviews say the movie was better than the book. I usually love Gaiman but every once in a while ... I don't. So I wasn't sure about this.

I should not have worried! This book is (dare I say it?) PERFECT. Really. (It should be noted that this is a book for grown-ups, not for kids! that startled me a bit, since the movie is an all-around family movie ... granted, with some violence and grown-up jokes.)

Adventures are all very well in their place, he thought, but there's a lot to be said for regular meals and freedom from pain.

Still, he was alive, and the wind was in his hair, and the cloud was scudding through the sky like a galleon at full sail. Looking out over the world from above, he could never remember feeling so alive as he did at that moment. There was a skyness to the sky and a nowness to the world that he had never seen or felt or realized before.

Some of it is quite like the movie; the dialogue has the same feel. And this run of insults is worth remembering:

I shall turn your bones to ice and roast you in front of a fire! I shall pluck your eyes out and tie one to a herring and t'other to a seagull, so the twin sights of sea and sky shall take you into madness! I shall make your tongue into a writhing worm and your fingers shall become razors, and fire ants shall itch your skin, so each time you scratch yourself ...

Yes, it's not exactly like the movie. (Would you really want it to be, though?) It's neither better nor worse than the movie. It's quieter, more meaningful, more of a fairy tale. And the movie is, of course, a MOVIE with swash and buckle and flash and pomp and a big happy Hollywood ending and all that. What's really kind of fun is that the end is different. Not drastically different, but different enough.

And this final bit deserves to be quoted, because this is the only time I've known Gaiman to be actually romantic but it's kind of spoilery if you haven't seen the movie yet. (view spoiler) ...more

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Aug 08, 2013 Becca rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, fantasy

I just loved this book!

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Nov 12, 2009 Sarah rated it liked it

Shelves: bildungsroman, owned, page-to-screen, gr-author, magic-sci-fi-fantasy

Cute fantasy about a man who chases a falling star and finds out it's a woman. He must protect her from those who would do her harm and take her back to the girl he thinks he loves. I wish I would've seen the movie before I read the book, because picturing Robert DeNiro as the cross-dressing pirate would've made the book that much more enjoyable. ...more

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