Stardust by Neil Gaiman

This is the book groups selection for October, a bit of a departure for us since we tend to lean heavily toward the science fiction and not so much in the way of fantasy. I think we've read less than 5 fantasy's since the groups inception in 1999:

• A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin
• War for the Oaks by Emma Bull
• Olympic Games by Karen What
• The Simarillion by JRR Tolkien
• Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

So it looks like this would make our 6th fantasy in 8 years. Buy why did we select this one? Well, simply put, we like Neil Gaiman. We have previously read American Gods and Neverwhere and enjoyed both of them. Gaiman has some very interesting concepts and his writing style is amniable with the groups personality.
So it was thus that Stardust made it through our convoluted voting process. This was a very quick read, but a really good one. For me, this was a classically written fairy tale, with a bit of modernism thrown in. What it wasn't was the wishfull thinking of some modern day character who was thrust into a fairy world. No, hardly that.
The story revolves around young Thomas, who has lived his 18 years in the town of Wall. The town is thus named for a very large, stone wall of unknown origins separating the town from the other side. Every nine years the people of Wall may pass freely through the one and only gate and partake in the fair. Thomas was not allowed to do so upon his ninth birthday, and was in fact sent far away until the fair had come and gone. Young Thomas loves Victoria Forester, and one night, feeling emboldened, asks for her hand in marraige. She laughs at him, and says he may have whatever he desires if he goes to fetch the falling star. Not one to be easily daugnted, he does, but his journey takes him far, far beyond the walls solid borders and he learns much in the months that he is gone.

Gaiman has such a beautiful writing style; it's simplicity is it's strongest asset. Unlike many, many authors of today, he didn't go on and on ad nauseum describing something, but kept it short and very sweet. The refreshing dialog only enhanced his prose and the overall story was wonderful for it.
Will I see the movie? I don't know. I do know that there are significant devations between the book and the movie, which were done with intent. I may, just to see how the screen writer Gaiman worked with interpreted his tale, and I may not, because I did so enjoy the story.