These are the kind of fairy tales I like to read. Fairy tales that contain wicked witches, beautiful stars, unicorns, magic, trees that speak, wizened wise old men, bitter family feuds and love.
This is the story of Tristran Thorn, yes. But first it begins with the story of his father and before that a mystery where the ending is clear, but the beginning is not. It’s a story based on the mythical village of Wall, where only a wall separates the land of man from the land of fairy.
This fairy tale is a little crude in places and not one for children to read. It’s an adult fairy tale with some adult themes in it. It is tastefully done and the imagery, as with all of Gaiman’s novels, leaps off the page. I read it quickly and couldn’t put the book down.
My first introduction to Wall and Tristran was through the movie, Stardust. I had no idea it was a book at the time, and when I picked up Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman to read and saw that he also had written Stardust I knew I had to read it. The book was much less violent than the movie in places, and more so in other places. I enjoyed the ending much more and love that the main character of Tristan made the choices that he did.
I highly recommend this to those fantasy lovers wanting a good fairy tale. This is beautifully written and a wonderful addition to my own personal library.
