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Introducing...

Heather's May the Fourth Star Wars Reading Event

[I had a vintage movie poster image, but it looks like it was making the rest of the post disappear on mobile, so I've removed it, alas. Imagine a cool Star Wars poster here.]

What is this?

Back in March, one of the nominated PBT tags was star-wars. At that time, I outed myself as a huge Star Wars nerd who, in fact, had grown up reading many Star Wars Expanded Universe novels and went to bat for many of them being excellent sci fi. Although my lobbying was unsuccessful, there was interest in reprising the idea for a "May the Fourth" reading event, so here we are.

I was actually embarking on a reread a few years ago but fell off the wagon due to real life stuff, so I figured it's a perfect opportunity to get back on the horse and try to take some of you with me! ;)

What kind of books can I read for this event?

Any book you like! You can read multiple! You can jump around in the timeline! You can read nonfiction about the films, or Carrie Fisher's memoirs. If you're reading something related to Star Wars in the month of May, feel free to tell us about it here.

I am a Star Wars fan, but I had no idea there were any novels in the franchise. Where can I start?

Excellent question! Since the franchise so so vast, I am here to give you a brief primer on what is out there to read and what I recommend you start with, if you've no familiarity with them.

For starters, some lingo:

The original run of novels, from the 1990s onward, were called the Expanded Universe (EU for short), but when Disney bought the franchise, they were declared no longer canon and were rebranded as "Legends." I see a lot of people refer to these books as these two things interchangably; I tend to use EU because that's how I remember them. I am a huge fan of the EU. However, modern covers tend to show "Legends" somewhere on them to differentiate them from Disney canon. My recommendations will mostly come from the EU.

With that in mind, here are some recommendations.

Do you love Han Solo? Would you like to read more of his space adventures before he met the rest of the Star Wars crew?

Read the The Han Solo Adventures by Brian Daley. Written concurrently with the original trilogy's release, these are a trilogy of fantastic adventures featuring everyone's favorite scoundrel with a heart of gold. They also come individually:

Han Solo at Stars' End | My review from 2021
Han Solo's Revenge
Han Solo and the Lost Legacy

I had this book in a trilogy pack as a kid and read them so many times pages started to fall out. I revisited the first book as an adult and can confirm they hold up. (I have linked my review above.)

Did you always wonder what happened to Luke, Leia and Han after the Return of the Jedi (before the sequels came out, at least)?

Read Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn. (My review from 2020 is here.) The first in the EU's most iconic trilogy, it features the entire cast of the original trilogy five years after ROTJ: Han and Leia are married and expecting twins, Luke is trying to understand the lost history of the Jedi so he can build the Jedi Order anew, and the remnants of the Empire lurk on the fringes of the galaxy, trying to upend the new democracy being built by the heroes of the Rebel Alliance. Thrawn is considered THE best villain of the supplementary canon material, and it's easy to see why: he's smart, calculating, and just really cool.

All the post-ROTJ material follows the Thrawn trilogy, so it really set the gold standard for the series. There are many more trilogies to come, and some standalones which I love, including:

• Ambush at Corellia by Roger Allen McBride (lots of Han Solo backstory and the main villain involves his evil cousin)

• Jedi Search by Kevin J. Anderson (Luke tries to find more Force sensitives so he can start his Jedi school)

• Star Wars: The New Rebellion by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, where Leia is president of the New Republic and Han is framed for a terrorist attack against the Senate.

These latter ones I haven't revisited as an adult yet, but were such formative reading experiences for me at about 11 years old that I was just able to do those summaries without looking at the GR blurbs (LOL!!).

But really, Heir to the Empire kicks all that off, so if you're struggling for a starting place, I recommend there.

Are you curious what other books were written in this era and want a full timeline?

There is one, but GR is not letting me link it. Please google "Timeline of Star Wars Legends books" and take a look at the "New Republic era" for the books I'm specifically referencing here. You may find other authors you recognize (I know Barbara Hambly came up in the original discussion thread, for instance).

It also purports to be a complete list of every EU book ever written, which, wow, there sure were a lot.

Are you a Star Wars fan but don't care to read about further adventures of your faves?

Understandable! Here's a few other suggestions.

Many in the original voting thread suggested the Shakespearean Star Wars books, starting with William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope by Ian Doescher. I have not read these, but they sound delightful, so I'm including them.

Also, the late great Carrie Fisher was a profilic writer, so you could always read one of her books, including The Princess Diarist or Postcards from the Edge.

If you have other recommendations, please let me know in this thread.

Heather, I'd love to hear more opinions on where to start with these books.

Great, I love espousing them!

A few things about the state of the novels and my preferences regarding them:

1) I consider the "golden age" of the EU to be from about 1992 through 1998. These were the books I was reading as a child, some of which I have revisted as an adult, and can confirm I think they hold up quality-wise. Most were penned by well-respected sci fi writers of the time, and the world-building is interesting and fresh, in my opinion. If you are looking for books and find one labeled Legends that fall into this publication period, they get my general stamp of approval.

2) I have less familiarity with anything labeled "the New Jedi Order," which
is still the EU, but shifted heavily in tone from largely fun optimistic space adventures to some pretty dark and gritty stuff. This was not my jam and therefore I didn't read many in this run. If that's your jam, though, feel free to check them out and report back.

3) I have no familiarity at all with any of the novels put out in the Disney canon. I have not heard great things from friends who have read some. As a whole I find the Disney worldbuilding to be much weaker and less interesting than the EU (except for Kylo Ren, but I digress ;). Your mileage may vary, however.

I think that's it! Let me know if you have any questions! Go forth, happy reading, and may the Force be with you.

I have been waiting for this with bated breath! Or somewhat bated!

I think I will end up with my crush Han Solo's early adventures, but I also have Carrie Fisher's The Princess Diarist sitting in my TBR. If I find time, that will be read too.

A dozen years or more ago, Carrie did a one woman show about her life - Wishful Drinking - that I saw on Broadway. It was, and she was, brilliant, touching, and funny, and it covered in part her time on Star Wars. Wishful Drinking was subsequently recorded first as an audiobook, then a book. I recommend it.

I have only read one Star Wars book. I have watched every movie and tv show. I’m interested in only reading canon. (I guess some of the old stuff isn’t considered canon anymore)

What do you recommend reading.

Jason, I highly recommend William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope by Ian Doescher, and ideally with the dramatized audiobook--it's funny and the author really knows both his Shakespeare and his Star Wars. It's the story of the first movie done a la Shakespeare, so by my definition it's canon.

@Theresa - I'm so glad! Haha. If you go for Han, Han Solo at Stars' End is really excellent, and quite short, iirc - less than 200 pages.

@Jason - Well, the EU/Legends books will always be canon in my heart. :D If you're interested in those, see my recommendations above. If you're more interested in Disney canon, alas I haven't read them, but I know there's a lot to choose from. I would maybe start with the Star Wars tag here on GR. It looks like there's a lot of recent titles that tie in with the sequel films and some of the recent TV series (I spy one for Ahsoka, for instance).

I forgot to share what I'm planning to read!

I am hoping to get to the last book in the Thrawn trilogy, The Last Command by Timothy Zahn, because that's where I was when I fell off my reread project a few years ago.

I may also succumb to pure nostalgia and try to add Shadow Academy by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta. This is the first book in the Young Jedi Knights series, which I TORE through as a kid. They are probably middle grade reading level. They came out a few years before Harry Potter and I was obsessed with Han Solo's kids and their friends at Luke's Jedi school, very similar vibes to HP. I think they're out of print now, so I was delighted to find a couple at a local used bookstore for like a dollar each. I bought them thinking I could gift them to my friend's daughter, who's about five (but they grow up quick, amiright?? lol, she'll grow into them). But now I'm so curious I may just read them myself first, to see if they hold up.

Heather - This looks like fun and I'm in!

This will be my first Star Wars read, so I'll take a look through your recommendations.

I am all set!

I am going to indulge my Han Solo crush and read at least Han Solo at Stars' End - borrowed from NYPL. I borrowed the other 2 in the trilogy as well but not sure I will get to them in May.

I also dug out of my ebook TBR Towers The Princess Diarist to read - which is only 195 pages.

Last, I added Wishful Drinking audio for nostalgia as I saw her perform it. It isn't long and can keep me company while doing laundry next month.

I picked up Heir To The Empire, yay!

I’m reading a Han Solo graphic novel, Solo: A Star Wars Story Adaptation. It’s actually 7 comic books combined together. I didn’t see the movie, so it’s a new story for me. I’m about a third of the way through. It’s great so far. I saw how he met Chewbacca.

The illustrations are so good I could almost recognize the actors. One looked especially familiar - Emilia Clark stars in the film. (I think she’s prettier with dark hair, than in her GOT wig.) I don’t read many graphic novels, so I’m wondering if these are actual illustrations or CGI.

I finally got the knack of how to read enlarged panels in Kindle without a lot of shifting and clicking. Then I took a break for coffee and now everything is off kilter. It’s cutting off about a third of each panel. I’ll close everything and start again later.

I’d also like to read something about The Force, in honor of the day.
May the Fourth be With You!

I’m part way through the Shakespeare spoof “Verily A New Hope” on audio. Not one to listen to in public - there’s a lot of giggling involved. Exactly what I need right now. Heather, you are my hero!

I'm part way through The Paradise Snare, which tells the story of Han's early years. It's definitely an adventure!

May the 4th be with you!

In honor of the day, I have settled in cozily with Han Solo at Stars' End.

I've begun What Have We Here?: Portraits of a Life. I so enjoyed the prologue with Billy Dee Williams eating at a favorite Hollywood bistro and talking with the servers and guests who wanted pictures with him.

I'm about 25% into my Han Solo adventure and thoroughly enjoying it! You might have made me a fan of these books - at least those building off the original franchise which are the ones that define Star Wars world for me.

I can 'hear' Harrison Ford in all the dialogue ... that's just awesome!

@Nancy - I didn't realize they made a graphic novel of Solo! That's really cool. I never saw that movie because I was pretty set in "my" take on Han Solo, but I did think casting Donald Glover as Lando was fantastic.

@Kate - Yay!! I'm so glad you're enjoying it!! Maybe we can make this a yearly tradition, goodness knows the franchise has enough books to support it XD

@Sue - Oh man, I remember The Paradise Snare! I remember liking it a lot, though it's one of the books I haven't yet revisited as an adult, so I'm not sure how it holds up. The plot is REALLY vivid in my memory though. Funny how that works. I sure wish I could retain that much these days, LOL.

@Theresa - Yay!!! I'm so glad!!! That book is one of my all time favorites. I think Brian Daley captured Han SO perfectly, as well as the spirit of the original films. IIRC, he wrote Han Solo at Stars' End when only A New Hope had been released, so it was really interesting to me how much he got right just working off of one film.

Happy May the fourth, everyone!! I'm running behind, in typical fashion. I just finished my trim book for April, and probably won't crack a Star Wars book until tomorrow or Monday. But every day is Star Wars day in my heart... ;)

Count me in for this to be annual! Hey I started Christmas in July just because I like reading christmas set books in high summer - especially romance and mystery. This feels of that spirit!

Now back to Han.

I finished this yesterday and just loved it! I'm sorry I dismissed these books with a sniff all these years - but I'm saying that a lot about SFF these days. I like a good adventure thriller, and this delivers in spades. Plus Daley so well captures Harrison Ford's Han Solo voice ... major fangirling was going on. I will definitely be streaming that first one again. I still remember seeing it in the movie theaters at either Thanksgiving or Christmas 1977 with my family in one of the mall theaters in Binghamton NY - no lines even though it was full - unlike NYC. My family had a tradition of going to the movies while the turkey cooked on those holidays, and that was the choice that year.

Here's a link to my 4 star review.

Daley paid homage to one of my favorite scenes from the original movie by setting Han's meet with Ploovo Two-For-One in the elegant bistro The Free-Flight Dance Dome in the spaceport at the beginning, with a twist of course. For those who don't remember that scene from the original movie: https://youtu.be/vDpDhofRoXA

That was a special effects make up artist's dream of a sequence in a movie.

Next up this month will be reading The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher.

I am wholly in for an annual tradition!

‘Verily A New Hope’ was freaking hilarious. I probably wouldn’t have liked the print book quite as much, but the audio was a riot. The droids in particular were perfect and I loved how R2s inner voice was so scheming and manipulative. I listened to some of it while I was out for a walk and have probably acquired a neighbourhood reputation for eccentricity with all the grinning and the occasional repetition of ‘meep, meep, squeeeeak’…

I finished my May the Fourth book: The Paradise Snare byA.C. Crispin.

This was a wild adventure book, covering Han Solo's early childhood and young adulthood. It was a lot of fun to read.

Thank you for setting up this buddy read Heather. I hope we do it again next year!

I wish I could remember all the titles of the Star Wars books I read with my son when he was younger. I've read quite a few but none of them are on my Goodreads list.

I hope to get to The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisherthis weekend. It's been in my TBR Towers for years. This buddy read is the perfect time for it.

I read this book weeks ago but just now writing the review.

Thrawn - 3 stars

I was first introduced to Thrawn in the Rebels TV Series. This book covers Thrawn joining the Empire Imperial Fleet and his rise up the ranks.

Thrawn is very practical and intelligent. The greatest tactician and strategist. The story gives glimpses into Thrawn's motivations and how he reconciles the atrocities of the Empire.

A good and enjoyable read.

It may be mid-June but I finally had a chance to read my 2nd choice for our May the Fourth buddy read 2024: The Princess Diarist. I recommend reading it not just by Star Wars fans like Heather, but also by any who was around and saw that first Star Wars in 1977. We are brought back fully to that time, and I got a new appreciation for just how historic that film was. Not even Harry Potter films had the same global impact - though it did have a similar impact on its young inexperienced stars - but then Star Wars had already happened and they were far more protected and those around them aware, than Carrie, Harrison, and Mark were.

This was published 2 months before Carrie died. It's as if by publishing a memoir that brought us back to her career beginning, she closed the circle, brought down the curtain and was able to step off the stage of her life.

My Review

Here I am, finally participating in my own event!!

I had a delightful time revisiting one of my favorite series of the 90s EU novels, the Young Jedi Knights. I read the first book, Heirs of the Force, starring Han and Leia's kids.

4 stars - review is here!

Glad everyone had a good time participating – I hope we can do this again next year :D

It was a tough work day, coupled with many closing early for a long holiday weekend. I turned the TV on to watch while eating a very late lunch, and found Star Wars, the original, just starting. Put paid to my work day!

I was exhausted so actually fell asleep an hour or so into it. I had been thinking I needed to watch it again after reading The Princess Diarist, and here was an opportunity.

It's been a really long time - more than 20 years - since I watched it with a lot of special effects advances in movies. And of course more knowledge on just what a tiny budget it had. So why am I surprised its 'look' is dated? And the lack of budget shows. But that last is also part of its strength as there is less tech to rely on to carry the viewer along.

Yet... it's still got the magic! The raw thrill! Oh they were all so YOUNG!

I am now catching the end of Empire Strikes Back while eating dinner. Might hang in for beginning of Return of the Jedi. Already you can see the bigger budget, the slicker production, tech advances. And still the great story.