Stardust
On the English side of the ancient stone wall that gives the village of Wall its name, a young man named Tristran Thorn promises the beautiful girl he imagines he loves that he will cross the wall into the land of Faerie and bring her back a fallen star. On the other side of the wall, the star is a woman, newly-landed, furious, and broken-ankled, and she is also being hunted by a trio of ancient witches who want her heart and by three sons of the dying Lord of Stormhold who need to recover the stone she is carrying to inherit the kingdom. Neil Gaiman's 1999 novel, originally published as an illustrated collaboration with Charles Vess and later reissued as a standalone, is a short, adult fairy tale in the English tradition of Lord Dunsany and Hope Mirrlees.
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What you might want to know about Stardust
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
In the village of Wall, a wall separates England from Faerie. To win the heart of a girl back home, young Tristran Thorn climbs over the wall to fetch the star they have just seen fall on the other side.
Yes. Matthew Vaughn directed a 2007 film adaptation starring Charlie Cox, Claire Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Robert De Niro. The film is widely loved despite differing from the novel in tone and ending.
Yes. Stardust was originally published in 1997 as a four-issue graphic novel illustrated by Charles Vess, then released as an illustrated novel in 1998 and as a prose-only edition in 1999. The Vess-illustrated edition is considered the definitive version.
Stardust was written by Neil Gaiman, published in 1997 by Headline Book Publishing.
Stardust is 232 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Stardust takes most readers 3 to 5 hours to finish.
Stardust is a standalone novel by Neil Gaiman, not part of a series.
Stardust is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
