Lit GENERAL QUESTION THREAD (What to read? Where to start? What's canon? What's not? Duros, etc.)

The TPM and AOTC novelizations aren't really anything like Stover's. There are a few extra scenes, but very little additional insight into character motivations or what's happening in the plot. TPM isn't too bad but Salvatore's AOTC is painfully dull. Really the only parts of it I can recommend are the additional Jango/Boba scenes. So basically I would read Darth Plagueis before bothering with either of them.

As for the OT novelizations, ANH isn't bad but it's more interesting from a historical perspective than anything. The ESB novelization is pretty dull and forgettable, it's basically a direct transcription of the screenplay, although it does include a few deleted scenes like Yoda training Luke to use his lightsaber. I really, really love James Kahn's ROTJ, though. It's nothing like Stover's ROTS, but of all five other novelizations, I think it comes the closest. Kahn doesn't quite make the story his own like Stover does, and there are a few questionable parts, like how all of Chewie's and Artoo's lines are spelled out phonetically, but all the Death Star scenes are written really beautifully and I appreciate how seriously Kahn treats the story despite the movie's disappointingly silly and lighthearted tone. Highly recommended.

 

Once again, I'm glad I asked! I might just pass on TPM...it seems the local library's copy is lost, and it doesn't sound like it's worth purchasing it! I may check out AOTC and just skim for the additional scenes. I had wondered about the OT novelizations, but hadn't thought about them too much, but I might look into ROTJ.

So I'll pick up Darth Plagueis this evening.

While we're discussing books from this period, there are three other books I'd be interested in your perspective on...Cloak of Deception, Shatterpoint and Labyrinth of Evil. Since Shatterpoint is also written by Stover, I'm guessing it's good?? Cloak of Deception and Labyrinth of Evil seem to have some mixed reviews on Amazon.

 

Yeah they're all excellent, you can't go wrong with Stover or Luceno.

 

I actually really liked the TPM one, but I like Brooks in general. And Darth Plagueis...was just amazing.

 

I've recently returned to the EU after having been alienated from it by the NJO. I read Yoda: Dark Rendezvous while on a flight the other day, having picked it based on some of the other threads floating around the Literature board. I didn't think it was perfect, but I did like the exploration of Dooku and Yoda's personalities, and Scout and Malreaux came across pretty well for what they were.

I'm on another six hour flight at the end of this business trip in three days, so I might need another novel to read on the plane. Would Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor be a good pick? I didn't like the NJO, and from everything I've researched on Wookieepedia, I would hate the LOTF/FOTJ books. Plus, I don't have time to read a massive series, so stand alone novels would be good. I was also considering picking up Mercy Kill thanks to fond memories of Starfighters of Adumar as well as the rest of the X-wing series (and the X-wing games themselves back in the day), but I don't see it mentioned as a must-have around here.

 

Yes, Shadows of Mindor is great. Stover manages to nail the original trilogy characters - barring maybe Lando - while still making you question, every other page, how the heck are they getting out of this one?

Mercy Kill was good but not great. More nostalgic throwback than excellence in its own right. I still enjoyed it.


EDIT: Mindor also has a Hobbie and Janson scene. Mercy Kill has no Hobbie and Janson scene.

 

if some of the EU is safe after Episode VII, VIII and IX, i'll try to read some of them but for right now i'm sticking to the novels i enjoy namely The Thrawn Trilogy, Truce at Bakura and Shadows of the Empire.

 

I have decided to read some of the post-RotJ books as well, but this time I'm doing it chronologically.

So far I've read:
- Truce at Bakura
- Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor
- X-Wing: Rogue Squadron
- X-Wing: Wedge's Gamble

I'm planning to finish the whole X-Wing series, then I'll move to The Courtship of Princess Leia, Tatooine Ghost and finally The Thrawn Trilogy. I suspect the EU becomes less and less safe after Thrawn (I mean due to Episode VII), so I'm not going to move on.

Clone Ysanne Isard? And then Clone Thrawn? Let's not forget about the Clone Emperor either from Dark Empire! Will warlord Zsinj get a clone too? Or Tarkin? Maybe those Yuhzan-Vong or however you write their name, maybe they have a clone army too.

So no, thank you.

Instead, I'm thinking about going to the Prequel Era: as a kid I used love the Jedi Apprentice series (or the first six that I used to own), so I'll start with those. I hope I'll enjoy them again after some 12-13 years!

 

Honestly, clones of old villains isn't all that common of an occurrence. There are no clones of Zsinj, Tarkin or the Vong, so no worries there.

And there's honestly no reason not to read the later EU. Even if Episode 7 does mess up the chronology, they're still a bunch of enjoyable stories.

 

If anyone wants to read all the books and short stories in chronological order, I put together this timeline - http://www.resolution507.com/sw/timeline.html

I'm about 55 books in and fix it as I go along. Wookieepedia is kind of off these days so there are some minor differences.

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Started to play X-wing miniature game which made me wanna dig deeper into the world of Star Wars.
I just wanna make sure I got an updated list and reading in the correct order.
As far as I can see, if you wanna read in chronological order you start with:
Dan of the Jedi: Into the Void (ISBN: 9780345541932) by Tim Lebbon

The only thing is, the ISBN I can get hold of says 300 pages, while there is another with 320. Don't know if it's just a mistake or something.

These are the lists I found:
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Timeline_of_books
http://www.yodasdatapad.com/booklist.html

EDIT: Wow, looked at the post above, and there it was, thanks Pax
EDIT2: Seems that the longer one includes the short story

 

Good timeline! A few questions since I haven't read most of these stories:

1) Shouldn't "Darkness Shared" go before POD and BotS, since it's a pre-Ruusan story?

2) Isn't "Pax Empirica" supposed to be closer to ANH? I know it has the Wookiee invasion thing but it also calls Tarkin a Grand Moff and establishes that like half the stormtroopers are non-Fett clones grown with-non Kaminoan technology, and none of those things seem to fit so soon after ROTS. Couldn't the Empire have just gone back to Kashyyyk later?

3) Doesn't the Hutt character in "Hunting the Gorach" die in Scourge, meaning the short story would have to come first?

4) I remember there being a lot of continuity issues between A Practical Man and the NJO. IIIRC APM is supposed to end between VP and DT, but Traviss totally messed up the timeline of the invasion so it has to last a lot longer. I think the ERC put it between AoC and BP, but not sure if that's based on anything.

 

He just falls into the depths of Nar Shaddaa, given that his suit actually has repulsor coils and insanely well made, as well as "the Hunter" just being one tough son of a Hutt, he properly survived that. The Essential Reader companion also lists it after Scourge, so looks like it really is meant to take place just after that novel.

 

1. You're absolutely right. I just changed that last week, and I have no idea why lol

2. I know Pax Empirica was originally supposed to take place closer to ANH but I bumped it up since it's about the Invasion of Kashyyyk in Dark Lord. Reading the story there are definitely some inconsistencies, but without a clear date I didn't know where else to put it.

3. About half the stuff after Episode 4 is based on Wookieepedia. I'm fixing things as I read but I haven't made it that far yet.

4. I also haven't read A Practical Man but I thought I heard it was supposed to take place throughout one or two of the novels.

The latest changes I've made (that differ from Wookieepedia) are that I changed the Lando Calrissian Adventures to coincide with The Hutt Gambit, since all three books take place in the middle of it. Wookieepedia has them listed 2 to 3 years later, but it just doesn't work. In the Mindharp of Sharu, Lando wins Vuffi Raa and in The Hutt Gambit about halfway through Lando already has Vuffi. I also fixed the dates of the Alex Winger short stories, which the Essential Readers Companion changed for no apparent reason.

I appreciate the help Catherine!

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The Essential Readers Companion has a lot of small errors. I really wish Wookieepedia hadn't changed years of peoples' hard work to match it.

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TERC is an attempt to justify osik because no one could tell Lucas that TCW was a disrespectful attack on the EU and Denning that the post-NJO was a disrespectful attack on everything the NJO stood for. Such bad ideas can't be undone since TCW was Lucas, and he can do no wrong, and everything is canon so the post-NJO isn't very likely to be undone and redone properly anytime soon, with the ST being the only I see of cleaning up that disaster.

 

i personally don't know which version of The Clone Wars to follow. should i follow the tv series or the comics that were part of the Star Wars Republic Series and the books that had "a Clone wars Novel" written on them?

 

Anything that was released prior to the abomination known as Ahsoka is good to read (apart from Jedi Trial ). The later stuff that was based on the TV show isn't very good at all.

 

where do we discuss non-fiction like the upcoming Making of Return of the Jedi book ?

 

Just make a thread for the book

 

in this forum ?

just wanted to be sure cos this looked like a fiction forum.