Star Wars Made Easy: A Beginner's Guide to a Galaxy Far, Far Away

Journey to Star Wars: The Last Jedi

by Christian Blauvelt

Don't know your Wookiees from your Wampas? If the Star Wars saga has you stumped, we've got your back. Star Wars Made Easy gives you everything you need to get you around the galaxy.

Star Wars is a global phenomenon and the Force has truly reawakened. So where to start if you have never actually gotten around to watching the movies? Or if you find yourself dating an avid Star Wars fan? Or your kids keep asking you tricky questions about the dark side? Don't worry! We have you covered. Star Wars Made Easy is aimed at Star Wars novices who want to get up to speed and make sense of the Star Wars references that permeate modern culture. This book will answer questions about the movies, the Star Wars universe, and much more!

© & TM 2017 LUCASFILM LTD. Used Under Authorization.

Genres: Star Wars, Nonfiction, Reference, Fandom, Childrens

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2017

Reviews

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! I thought it might be a bit juvenile, but it was an excellent way to review the current films and TV shows. I’ve seen the films multiple times, and some things I never caught onto until reading this. My only complaint it in the pronunciation guide, it adds r’s onto the pronunciation of Amidala and Jabba. Huh??

[Brigid · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an awesome guide to the Star Wars universe. Not just for newbies, this book has something for even the most die hard fans! The writing is fun and informative. Met the author today and he was so nice, down to earth, and knowledgeable! A wonderful gift for anyone interested in Star Wars.

[Ili · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. Even though I have seen all the star wars movies it was so helpful. It made me understand what was really going on in this complicated universe. It also includes the new movies, which is nice because you notice the connection between the old movies and the new ones. Maybe I didn't understand the movies the first time I saw them because I was about 5 years old, but now it all makes sense and that made me fall in love with this franchise all over again. I would watch it a hundred times. It has everything from love stories to political issues. And I got to explore it and understand it better with the help of this amazing book. I highly recommend it for a Star Wars lover as well as for a beginner in the process of becoming a Star Wars lover. The force is strong with this book.

[Lexy Kelleher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great for clearing up some confusion for me in some of the Star Wars movies, particularly the prequels. I loved the plot overviews, and the pages that would focus in on a character and explore their motivations. However, this book tries to sell itself at the beginning as a guide for people who don't know anything about Star Wars, and I don't think that's the right audience for this book. I would have been completely lost reading this book if I had never seen any of the movies.

[Anastasiia Polieshko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Це такий кайф😍
Зібрана до купи і компактно викладена інфа по всіх фільмах(до 2017 року) та навіть мультиках про всесвіт Зоряних Воєн. Ще й з гумором і красиво оформлена.
Коли хочеш зануритись у всесвіт улюблених героїв, а часу передивлятися всю кіносагу (в сотий раз) немає – це те що треба👌
Ну або можна позичити цей гайд близьким людям, котрі поки не в темі, і навернути їх на темну сторону. Або хоча б допомогти зрозуміти звідки ці цитати, що ви постійно повторюєте.

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!

[Erica Hollinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received this as a Christmas gift. Read it while working a festival. Pretty good if you are a star wars fan. Had some humor

[Josh Trice · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun read, great for younger readers!

[Marilyn Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good back ground to the Star Wars movies.

[Ursula Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful book is designed as a guide for newbies to the Star Wars universe. While aimed at young people, this book is a wonderful read for anyone who is curious about what millions of Star Wars fans obsess about. If you are already a fan, whether you are an Imperial, Rebel, Jedi, Sith, trooper, bounty hunter or more, there is something here for everyone. It covers all the films and an overview of the Clone Wars and Rebels shows as well. This book clearly explains everything from the basics of how it was created, some reasons for why it is so popular, good guys, bad guys, vehicles, a bit about the Force and the basic difference between the Jedi and Sith. Each film is clearly explained with an easy to follow guide map and answers to major plot points, people, places and things. It also has easy to follow diagrams of the major battles so you can clearly see how the opposing sides match up. It particularly works well for the prequels, as they are more complicated plot wise than some of the later films. There is also a peek at the upcoming Last Jedi. A glossary and section of famous quotes round out this book, written in a fun, comedic style.
While this book is designed to cover the films in more depth, with mentions of the shows Clone Wars and Rebels, Star Wars is much more than just the films and TV shows. Knights of the Old Republic, Battlefront and other games are also extremely popular. There is also a large book and comic universe that cover eras, characters and situations sometimes mentioned in the films. The book does not cover the games or the book and comic series. The majority of the books were known as the EU or Expanded Universe and most were written when new films were not being produced and before Lucasfilm was bought by Disney. New books and comics are considered Canon. We have a number of incredible authors who have written Star Wars books including James Luceno, Timothy Zahn, John Jackson Miller, Paul S. Kemp, Drew Karpyshyn, Alexander Freed, Christie Golden, Claudia Gray, Chuck Wendig and more. As for me, I'm an Old Republic Jedi (that's over 3000 years before Episode 4, A New Hope) fan. For new fans and those who have not read the books or comics, I hope you try some of the books, comic books and even the audiobooks. http://www.yodasdatapad.com/booklist.... The audiobooks have music, sound effects, character voices, superb narrators like Marc Thompson, Jonathan Davis, January LaVoy and more. It's like listening to the films and the production quality is excellent.You can also connect with fellow fans on Facebook in the many groups dedicated to all facets of the universe, including a group I'm an Admin, Star Wars Docking Bay 94. May the Force be With You and welcome to the Star Wars universe!

[HANNAH · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for the purpose with which it was written. Background: I've seen most of the movies at least one time, and the men in my family love Star Wars. I'm planning a trip to Galaxy's Edge soon and wanted more context. Couple this with a book fair where I teach and it's game on!

What makes this book great is several things: 1- There's a good balance between text and pictures. I never felt bogged down with endless paragraphs of information that were difficult to visualize. 2- The information about Star Wars was presented in layman's terms, but from an engagingly witty perspective and in a logical flow and order. 3- This book was easy to pick up and put down. You could read a lot or a little. Give a lot of space in between readings or continue the following day. 4- It provides information about Star Wars, answers questions, and does what the title says it's going to do. 5- I feel like I should have a five to round out this list, but I already covered the major points, so let's just say the fifth point is my five star rating.

One side note: The version I have came out before Solo hit theaters, so in that sense it's a little "outdated", but that said I still highly recommend this book as a fantastic starting point.

[RumBelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a detailed, if overly simplistic guide to the Star Wars, primarily film and TV, universe. It covered all the films through The Force Awakens, and mentions The Last Jedi in passing several times. It also talks about two TV shows, Clone Wars and Rebels.

The first few items discussed are broad, the Skywalker Family Tree, what are the movies about and when do they take place. Then the book moves into discussing each film, in the order of theatrical release.

The illustrations are a mix of film stills and drawn elements, usually in black and white, with hints of color. One thing I saw as a flaw had to do with some of the captions under the illustrations. For example when a chart showed the good guys and bad guys had their names listed, while the good guys, such as Mon Mothma and Leia were just called Rebel Leadership. Also many of the captions, that I'm sure we're meant to be comedic, really reduced the characters to silly caricatures when they are anything but.

If you are coming to Star Wars for the first time, this is a good guide.

[Haldoor42 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got the family to buy me this for my birthday this year, though I'm a long-time SW fan and should know all this stuff by now!

All the same, this is a great visual guide with great pictures and straight-forward explanations of characters, places, weapons, battles, plots, etc, that really added to my knowledge, and makes for a great basic reference book.

Loved it's simple and clear explanation of the plots to all the movies up to Rogue One, and some great explanations of some of the well-known (and not so well-known!) happenings and legends in the 'verse.

The only disappointment was that it wasn't up to date enough to cover Solo and the last two Skywalker Saga films. I hope they update it one day so I can get the full version!

[David Allan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This informative, funny and graphically pleasing book is for the emerging Star Wars fan but also for the hardcore fan (like myself) as well -- filling in interesting details in the films, explaining confusing plot twists and answering questions lingering in the back of any fan's brains. I read the book as I was showing a couple of the film to my daughter and Christian's succinct explanations made it easier for me to answer my daughter's questions. And, of course, she enjoyed looking through the book as well. Bravo. The Force is strong with Christian Blauvelt.

[H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever wondered how to avoid falling to the Dark Side? Or what kind of being General Grievous is? Is Vader's first name Darth? Did Han shoot first? Then, this is the book you're looking for. Star Wars Made Easy has something for the newcomer and those familiar with the Force.

What other book describes Anakin Skywalker as a mama's boy? And Leia as a hair bun aficionado? It has snark; it has shiny droids; it has guidelines on how not to fall to the Dark Side. What more could one ask for a book?

Note: No assembly required but Wookie sidekick not included.

[Lisa Day · Rating 5 out of 5]

Happy #StarWarsDay . I do like the original Star Wars films and am looking forward to watching them with my nine year old. I have watched other films and part of the TV show Clone Wars, but still I often feel like I am missing something. No longer. This great book offers important details from each movie as well as the basics, including the Skywalker Family Tree. As all DK Books do, the information is presented in an easy-to-digest way including short paragraphs, lots of pictures and graphics, quotes and infographs. #MayTheFourthBeWithYou.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up at the library to read along with Olivia-Grace. She has seen all of the movies so far, but figured this would be a good primer to get her ready for The Last Jedi. And its a good informative quick little book. Nothing extraordinary or amazing, but with enough information to keep someone up to speed for the newest movie. (Shame the movie turned out to be such a piece of hot garbage dumpster fire though.)

[Manuel de la Rosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great guide

This was amazing! I knew nearly nothing about the saga or the complements (series and stand-alone films). However this guide really helped me to finally understand the whole story.

The diagrams of each film are fabulous and well designed. They are basically a map into to the adventurous roads (films). And the succinct and friendly explanations after that, help the reader to learn further.

[Jessi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really don't understand who the intended audience is, because who wants to know about Star Wars but isn't willing to, say, watch a movie? Is there anyone out there who doesn't know a single soul who could tell them "just watch A New Hope first and go from there"? I dunno. But it's still a nice book. I like the way it's laid out and the way it looks. I just don't know who it's for.

[Kat Ice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love star wars and have seen every book but sometimes it is hard to keep up with! I will say if you have not seen all the movies it does spoil some things but then again it really helps to fully understand what is going on and who everyone is in all of the movies. Get guide for the fans just starting out!

[Ashley Coberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

My husband is a die hard fan. I, on the other hand have never seen any of the films in their entirety. I learned a lot and even found several things interesting. I still doubt I’ll see the movies but at least I have some background knowledge.

[Kelley Mittan loop · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is pretty cool. If you’re a fan of Episodes 4-6 but want to know more without reading all the books or comics, this book sums it all up for you. I thought I knew a lot and was pleasantly surprised but a few things.

[maaariars · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Star Wars since I was a child, but there were things I didn't know... and this book helps a lot! It's great. If you want to introduce someone into this beautiful world, give them this book. Such a great book with hilarious moments!

[Francesca D. Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for a person interested in knowing more about the star wars universe. More could be added though, as the guide doesn't include much about the animated series, which, has even more characters and storylines.

[Aleeha Alaoui · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm absolutely a die hard Star Wars fan and definitely NOT a beginner but, this book is perfect for my collection! I enjoyed reading it (even though I know everything about the franchise) and it looks beautiful on my shelf! ❤️

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like other books of this calibre, it feels dated. However, it is a good book for kids to get their heads around the Star Wars Universe.

I loved the How to Become Emperor: The Palpatine Way. It made me laugh so so hard.

[Kelsey Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect intro to curious new fans. Helps especially with all the political factions in the prequel trilogy. It also has a wry sense of humor that adds to the fun. The only thing that could possibly make it better is if it were updated to Star Wars IX.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very visual & fun way to be introduced to the Star Wars universe.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beginners guide to Star Wars and a friendly reminder for fanatics.

[Chris Evans · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel bad for anyone beginning with Star Wars after the Disney Purge.