My track record in terms of reading challenges (those organized by other bloggers and my own little personal ones) has been sketchy at best lately. Perhaps I am going to have more success this time around with Carl's challenge. The goal is to read a total of five books--a fairy tale, a fantasy, a myth, and something in folklore, and at the end to read Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. I have actually completed my first book. Not too shabby considering how dismally my last few challenges have gone.
Neil Gaiman's Stardust is a wonderful fairy tale for adults. Actually I think young adults could easily read and enjoy this book as well. There are not many books that I would describe using the word "delightful" (as a matter of fact only Helene Hanff's books come to mind), but Stardust really is a delightful little novel. Okay, there are witches, people are turned into animals, a little fratricide goes on and maybe other murderous sorts of thoughts. But it is all portrayed in such a fanciful way, you can't help but enjoy yourself as you are reading.
I don't generally read books in the fantasy/fairy tale genre, so I wasn't really sure what I was getting myself into. The book was a tad bit slow starting, but once the story gets going, you can't help but turn the pages quickly. Wall, where the book is set, is a little village in Victorian England. It is bordered on one side by a large rocky wall (hence the name of the town). Through the gap in the wall you can see a meadow on the other side, but the opening is guarded by the townspeople of Wall. No one can pass through except once every nine years when a market is held. What makes this such an unusual market is that it is held in the realm of Faerie. And as you might imagine it is not your usual type of market.
Tristan Thorne's father brought home more than one unusual thing from the realm of Faerie on one of his visits. Now Tristan will impetuously travel into Faerie to find a fallen star, which he promises to bring back for the beautiful Victoria Thorne. If he brings it back, she will give him the one thing he wants most. When he found the star, it was not what I expected. As a matter of fact most of the book was not what I expected, which is what made it such a delight. There were goblin press gangs, trolls, gnomes, flying ships (a favorite of mine), even talking trees! This was a fun read, and I definitely recommend it. Stardust has been made into a movie (opening in August) and you can see the movie trailer here.
Although I had not planned on making a definite list of books to read, I have ended up making a list of books I want to read. I may not stick to it, but I do want to read these books eventually (so why not now). Next I plan on reading Angela Carter's Saints and Strangers (a retelling of folk tales), I want to finish (it is sitting on my night stand partially read) Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon (mythology), and Susan Cooper's Over Sea, Under Stone (fantasy). I have two more months, I hope it won't be a problem to get through these books. One down anyway!