A Fall of Stardust is a unique little collection that I got as part of Gaiman’s recent Humble Bundle. It’s kind of a reader alluding to his (incredible) novel Stardust. Remarkably, it’s only about 14 pages long, including the cover, yet it packs quite the punch. The majority of the volume is a short story (almost more of a vignette) about a girl named Jenny who watches as magpies gather around her, recalling a superstitious poem about them and truly experiencing that one precious moment of her life. It’s a truly beautiful piece. The remainder is a short group of poems that somehow or another connect to the world behind the Wall. My favorite is the last, which is a pantoum–making the repeating lines actually work in context and make sense is somewhat mindblowing to me. And of course, the whole collection is illustrated in Charles Vess’ skillful hand, which I always enjoy seeing paired with Gaiman’s writing; it just fits. So yeah, if you’ve enjoyed Stardust in the past and get a chance to read A Fall of Stardust, I think you’d likely find it enjoyable (plus it’s a quick read). ( )

http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2776783.html

This was part of the Neil Gaiman Humble Bundle, only 14 pages, published in 1999 and illustrated by Charles Vess. Most of it is a very short coming of age story about a girl and the significance of magpies; there are also three poems. The third poem is rather neat but the other two are rather slight. ( )