main
side
curve
  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

EU Reading Dilemma

Discussion in 'Literature' started by lokus, Nov 4, 2012.

  1. lokus

    lokus Jedi Knight

    Registered:
    Nov 7, 2004
    This will probably come off as a stupid post but has anyone else been in the situation where you want to learn as much as you can of the EU but struggle to get through some of the EU books? I'm about 80 pages into The Last Command and just cannot get into it. I read the first two Thrawn novels and though they were ok. I'm usually a crime thriller fan and enjoy John Sandford / Michael Connelly books but have always wanted to know more about Star Wars. I read the first Bane novel and enjoyed it. I started reading Rule of Two directly after but got sidetracked by other life priorities and lost interest. I guess I'm not as interested in the EU as I thought. Maybe Star Wars novels aren't my thing? I'm a huge fan of the movies but maybe that's the extent of my interests. I initially started reading the EU novels because I was longing for more Star Wars material and was interested in learning what happens to everyone in the future. After ROTS, we never knew if the Star Wars saga would continue in film form (we now know the future plans) so turning to the EU for more Star Wars entertainment was one of the only options.
     
  2. Darth_Kevin

    Darth_Kevin Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2001
    You should consider picking up some Dark Horse Comics trade paperbacks then and see how you feel about them. They aren't as much of a time investment as a novel and thus you may enjoy a "quicker fix". Also, try one or more of the essential guidebooks if you like the whole "non-fiction" type of reading. Just note that the "non-fiction" contains lots of spoilers typically.
     
    Zorrixor and WIERD_GREEN_MAN like this.
  3. Bib Fartuna

    Bib Fartuna Jedi Knight star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 4, 2012
    What are you trying to suggest, that the novels are a gateway to the comics?
     
  4. LAJ_FETT

    LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together star 10 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 25, 2002
    I wasn't crazy about the Thrawn books. I think it's Zahn's style. I liked his recent ones about Mara Jade/Emperor's Hand though.
     
  5. Bib Fartuna

    Bib Fartuna Jedi Knight star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 4, 2012
    Point.
     
    Zorrixor likes this.
  6. WIERD_GREEN_MAN

    WIERD_GREEN_MAN Jedi Knight star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2010
    If you want to get knowledge, yes, comics are an effective way to get it. Try those. I can't get through some SW books, either, but comics? If I don't like them, great, I wasted 30 mins of your life. Now move on. Comics. Do it.
     
  7. Darth_Kevin

    Darth_Kevin Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2001
    I'm suggesting the movies are a gateway to the comics. If someone wants more Star Wars than the movies can offer there's a short list of substantial media to offer: television, novels, comics and video games.
     
    WIERD_GREEN_MAN likes this.
  8. SWpants

    SWpants Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 28, 2004
    You can also go for the semi-EU: novels based on the movies. Even if it's just the "Tales From..." books, they incorporate more of what you know than most of the other ones.
     
  9. Lt.Cmdr.Thrawn

    Lt.Cmdr.Thrawn Manager Emeritus star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 23, 1999
    Or comics based on the novels. Try the comic adaptations of the Thrawn books, compare and contrast with your experience of the novels themselves?
     
  10. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    Some novels read more easily than others. Zahn's style, I've found, is a bit spare.

    Try the X-wing series for some more engrossing EU. They're an amazing set of novels, and certainly a great start to the EU.

    Or, more recently, the most diverting EU works for me were: the two Medstar books, Shadow Games, and Dark Rendezvous.
     
  11. darthjulian777

    darthjulian777 Jedi Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2008
    Yea, I've been there, for me it was Karpyshyn, I just couldn't get through the second one, let alone the third one. I like the NJO a lot, it's very different from the rests of the novels so if you're looking for something that's maybe a little different that might be your place.
     
  12. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    It may be that you need to be acclimated to the books. Start off with some anthologies and shorter books, peruse the action-adventure books, as they tended to read easier. Ease yourself into back into the book later, but put it aside and give it a rest while you read other things.

    Or... just power through it. I did that with Outbound Flight. Reading it was like pushing a grocery cart with a bad wheel.

    Oh, and a head's up... Avoid Rogue Planet. I managed to get sixty pages to the end before I finally quit. Reading that far was a chore.
     
  13. Gorefiend

    Gorefiend Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 23, 2004
    You could also try and get audio books some of the newer books have unabridged ones. Especially the one for Death Troopers one is actually better than the book because of the scary sound effects they add. :)
     
  14. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    I liked the sound effects that my imagination added. :p
     
  15. Manisphere

    Manisphere Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 25, 2007
    I've never read Sandford or Connelly but if you're a thriller guy I'll suggest a couple that would be under the heading, "thriller".

    Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter (which leads into the Coruscant Nights Tril)
    The Coruscant Nights Trilogy (the first book, Jedi Twilight is the best)
    Shadow Games
    Knight Errant (not technically a thriller but it has elements of a thriller)
     
  16. _Catherine_

    _Catherine_ Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 16, 2007
    DISAGREED.
     
    Havac , RC-1991, Zeta1127 and 2 others like this.
  17. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    Yeah, I kind of loved Rogue Planet. I mean Tarkin and Sienar? What more could you ask for?

    Outbound Flight on the other hand.... if I wanted to hear about how Thrawn is the greatest all day, I'd post in Lit circa 2001.

    Oh wait, I did.
     
    Darth_Kevin likes this.
  18. LAJ_FETT

    LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together star 10 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 25, 2002
    Definitely recommend Death Troopers if you are in to horror. And if you liked the TV series MASH, you might like the Medstar books.
     
    TrakNar likes this.
  19. TrakNar

    TrakNar Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 4, 2011
    I still hate the book. :p
     
  20. WIERD_GREEN_MAN

    WIERD_GREEN_MAN Jedi Knight star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2010
    If you want to get lots of knowledge fast, comics before serious books.
    Some books can take hours and in the end don't matter much to the galaxy at all. If you want knowledge in the fastest way, go for comics. Although books do have a lot of interesting facts.
     
    _Catherine_ likes this.
  21. _Catherine_

    _Catherine_ Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 16, 2007
    This may be my favorite comment ever made about Star Wars.
     
    RC-1991 and WIERD_GREEN_MAN like this.
  22. Jobertus

    Jobertus Jedi Knight star 3

    Registered:
    Oct 31, 2012
    I started reading the EU novels with 'Dark Nest III: The Swarm War' and 'Tatooine Ghost' and I loved both of them, my collection expanded from there. 'TG' is good because it ties the OT, the PT, & the EU together nicely. 'DN III' is also good because you get to read about Luke as a Jedi Master of a rebuilt Jedi Order and it features the next generation of Jedi Knights & the Skywalker/Solo clan.
     
  23. darthcaedus1138

    darthcaedus1138 Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 13, 2007
    Books to avoid like the plague in novel form:
    Gambit:Stealth
    Gambit: Siege
    The Approaching Storm
     
  24. Darth_Kevin

    Darth_Kevin Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 30, 2001
    Wait now here a minute, Thrawn's not the greatest anymore? Maybe I was away from the boards too long :)
     
    Jedi_Glover and TrakNar like this.