# Is "Stardust" by Neil Gaiman a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Stardust by Neil Gaiman (DC Comics / Vertigo, 1997-1998) is identified by: The true first appearance is the four-part illustrated 'Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess' Stardust: Being a Romance Within the Realms of Faerie' (Vertigo prestige-format miniseries, 1997-1998), followed by the collected illustrated hardcover and trade paperback (Vertigo, 1998). The Charles Vess-illustrated Vertigo edition (1997-1998 miniseries, collected 1998) is the true first appearance.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first appearance is the four-part illustrated 'Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess' Stardust: Being a Romance Within the Realms of Faerie' (Vertigo prestige-format miniseries, 1997-1998), followed by the collected illustrated hardcover and trade paperback (Vertigo, 1998)
- The unillustrated prose edition is a later, separate first
- Publisher imprint reads DC Comics / Vertigo
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Neil Gaiman |
| Publisher | DC Comics / Vertigo |
| Year | 1997-1998 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first appearance is the four-part illustrated 'Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess' Stardust: Being a Romance Within the Realms of… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
The true first appearance is the four-part illustrated 'Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess' Stardust: Being a Romance Within the Realms of Faerie' (Vertigo prestige-format miniseries, 1997-1998), followed by the collected illustrated hardcover and trade paperback (Vertigo, 1998). The unillustrated prose edition is a later, separate first.

## Is this the true first?
The Charles Vess-illustrated Vertigo edition (1997-1998 miniseries, collected 1998) is the true first appearance. The unillustrated prose version followed in 1999: the US Avon/Spike hardcover (February 1999) is the first prose edition, with the UK Hodder Headline hardcover (1999) issued afterward.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Distinguish the illustrated Vess first from the later prose first. The 2007 film tie-in editions are reprints.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Stardust* by Neil Gaiman a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/stardust-neil-gaiman
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.