Are NJO Novels Felicitously Titled?

What irritates me sometimes is when the title of a novel has nothing to do with the content of the story. I felt this vexing sensation when reading Greg Keyes' Edge of Victory novels.

Why were they titled Edge of Victory? I never understood that. I also never understood why book one was titled Conquest. What was the conquest, actually? The Yuuzhan Vong's capture of Yavin IV? It doesn't seem too colossal, in my opinion, to have contributed to the title.

And then there was Rebirth. All right, so Ben was born, but why did the novel need to be titled Rebirth?
No one was reborn, unless you want to think of Ben Skywalker as a new Ben Kenobi. Of course, the introduction of a newborn baby might have contributed to Rebirth, but it seemed to be a really minor part of the novel.

The Agents of Chaos heading seems somewhat fitting for Luceno's novels. Hero's Trial, in my opinion, was especially felicitous.
However, Jedi Eclipse wasn't as fitting, I don't think. The novel again focused on Han Solo, and the Jedi played only a minor role. So, what was the purpose in titling the novel Jedi Eclipse? Because the Jedi established a new base of operations? But, again, that was a minor subplot, as I recall.

The Dark Tide novels seemed to bear appropriate titles--Onslaught and Ruin.

In regards to Star by Star: I was hoping that the title would have implied that the Jedi or New Republic intended to retake the galaxy star by star, or something to that effect. Instead, I found the phrase used once--and by the Yuuzhan Vong.

Dark Journey was obviously appropriate. I'm only on the sixth chapter of Rebel Dream, but I feel as though the title is fitting, as well.

Any opinions/comments?

 

I agree with you. And it's not just a SW thing. I haven't read a lot of series, but those that I have I have found that the titles often do not make any sense at all.

Of course, some could say that I am just too dense to really be able to get the title, but I prefer a straightfoward thing.

 

I was reading The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, and what one guy did who was selling crappy pulp novels was come up with a series of fifty interesting titles, and then have his authors write books for them.

 

About Star by Star, actually Jacen quotes the words which give this novel its title.

It's when he finally apologizes to Anakin and he sees the galaxy turning dark - star by star.

 

"and what one guy did who was selling crappy pulp novels was come up with a series of fifty interesting titles, and then have his authors write books for them."

LOL! Now that's an intriguing idea.


"I haven't read a lot of series, but those that I have I have found that the titles often do not make any sense at all."

Most series novels that I've read have had appropriate titles. For instance, the final novel in the Death Gate Cycle was titled The Seventh Gate--you won't get it unless you've read the series, of course.
The second-from-last novel was titled Into the Labyrinth. Again, this title was fitting for the content of the novel.

The titles of Salvatore's Drizzt Do'Urden adventures in the Forgotten Realms series also seem appropriate--Homeland, Exile, Sojourn, Servant of the Shard, etc.

Zahn's Vision of the Future also felt appropriate, as did Kevin Anderson's titles for his Jedi Academy Trilogy.

It just sometimes provokes me when I can't understand why the author chose a particular title that seems to have relevance to the content of the story.


"About Star by Star, actually Jacen quotes the words which give this novel its title.

It's when he finally apologizes to Anakin and he sees the galaxy turning dark - star by star."

Ah. I suppose I forgot about that.

 

Edge of Victory refers to the Vong being on "the edge of victory" over the New Republic.

 

The title for Rebel Dream has a few things in the book that give it its appropriateness though I won't spoil anything and tell any. Conquest could refer to the fall of Yavin IV, Tahiri and Anakin CONQUERING the Vong shaping, or Vua Rapuung being redeemed. Rebirth might refer to the fact that dosen't Mara lose her illness all together and is virtually reborn? Vector Prime, the Dark Tide series, Star by Star, Dark Journey, and Heros Trial were all very clear. Jedi Eclipse may refer to Eclipse but I think it may have been to early. Balance Point referred to Jacen's vision of the galaxy basically being involved in a huge balancing act. These are just my opinions though.

 

"Edge of Victory refers to the Vong being on 'the edge of victory' over the New Republic."

How does the capturing of Yavin IV (a moon in the middle of nowhere that the Vong didn't even know was home to the Jedi Academy--as I recall, at least) put the Yuuzhan Vong on the "edge of victory" over the New Republic?

"Conquest could refer to the fall of Yavin IV..."

It wasn't much of a conquest, thus, in my opinion, the word shouldn't have contributed to the title. The Yuuzhan Vong took Yavin IV with little effort, and the fact that Yavin IV was taken wasn't even a major factor in the story's plot. Sure, the majority of the story happened on the captured moon, but the readers weren't given the image that "Oh, no! Yavin IV's gone! Now the NR's going downhill from here!"
Such a portrayal was given to the fall of Corsucant, which was the true conquest, in my opinion.


"Tahiri and Anakin CONQUERING the Vong shaping, or Vua Rapuung being redeemed..."

Again, both of these were fairly minor to have contributed to the title, in my opinion.


"Rebirth might refer to the fact that dosen't Mara lose her illness all together and is virtually reborn?"

I think that's a stretch of the word rebirth. And, again, Mara losing her illness was very minor in comparison to everything else that happened in the story. The most climatic part, as I recall, was probably Anakin's first kiss with Tahiri. I think it would have been appropriate for that experience to have contributed to the title and for Ben's birth and Mara's recuperation to be a little extra treat.


I've never read Vector Prime or Balance Point, so I'm not at liberty to comment on those.

 

Hey Valyn.. I think I read the first book of the Death Gate cycle.. that's by the Dragonlance duo Weis/Hickman isn't it? Something to do with these ships that fly with pixiedust or some such, and an evil lord who is a carbon copy of LotR's Sauron?
That was a cool book.. I picked it up at the school library in my short-lived fantasy stage, late 98-early 99 when there were no new SW books coming out down under.
How many of those are there in total? I'd really like to re-read the first and then the rest of the series. It was interesting and pretty original in parts.

Oh and in answer to your thread question-- no, I don't believe I have seen Felix the cat feature in an NJO book yet ;P

 

"I was reading The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, and what one guy did who was selling crappy pulp novels was come up with a series of fifty interesting titles, and then have his authors write books for them. "

Thats such an awsome book!

 

Valyn,

I've never read Vector Prime or Balance Point, so I'm not at liberty to comment on those.

Vector Prime refers to, I believe, the point of entry through which the Yuuzhan Vong came into the SW galaxy. And Balance Point refers to the vision Jacen had in said book, in which the galaxy tipped back and forth between light and darkness while he stood in its center--or balance point.

So far, I think the hardcover books at least have had appropriate titles.

 

"Again, both of these were fairly minor to have contributed to the title, in my opinion."

Interesting, considering that Anakin rescuing Tahiri and the two of them conquering the shaping was the plot.

 

I actually haven't had any trouble seeing where any of the titles have come from:

Vector Prime- the yuuzhan vong's entry of the galaxy was called Vector Prime, the book was about the Yuuzhan Vong entering the galaxy

Hero's Trial- Han. His trials and perils were the center of the entire story.

Jedi Eclipse- This is the only one I agree with you about the title not corresponding to the plot. Only things I could find: Anakin activates centerpoint, the Jedi are thought of as renegades after this. Wurth Skidder dies. Not really enough, I would think, so I guess I have to agree with you on this one.

Balance Point- Already mentioned by several people, and I think everyone can figure this one out regardless.

Conquest- See my above post.

Rebirth- Well, let's recap: Luke Mara and Ben merge to not only wipe out Mara's influence, but create a bond more powerful than any seen so far through the Force, Anakin and Tahiri kiss for the first time (both of them are completely changed, a metaphorical rebirth, not a literal one), Anakin is completely changed by the perils he goes through (thinks things through more, etc. (he even says something like "the only reason I survived is b/c I have you two as siblings" to Jacen and Jaina), and Leia and Han are fully reconciled.

Star by Star- Also already mentioned. Jacen's "Star by star" speach to Anakin

Dark Journey- Jaina. Darkside. 'Nuff said.

Rebel Dream- This thread doesn't have a spoiler warning, so I can't really address this one, but needless to say, the plot fits the title.

 

Xanakh: "I think I read the first book of the Death Gate cycle.. that's by the Dragonlance duo Weis/Hickman isn't it?"

Yes, it is. The mage Zifnab also seems terribly familiar to Dragonlance's Fizban. Notice how the names consist of the same letters and that in each series, the characters act considerably alike.

"How many of those are there in total?"

Seven. They are as follows:
Dragon Wing
Elven Star
Fire Sea
Serpent Mage
The Hand of Chaos
Into the Labyrinth
The Seventh Gate

"Oh and in answer to your thread question-- no, I don't believe I have seen Felix the cat feature in an NJO book yet"

Gah!

Thanks, Balance_Point.


Jedi_Anakin_Solo: "Interesting, considering that Anakin rescuing Tahiri and the two of them conquering the shaping was the plot."

Ah. I was led to believe that the plot had something to do with Anakin rescuing Tahiri from a vision he had. But, please, enlighten me. Just how did Anakin and Tahiri manage to claim conquest over shaping?

 

"Ah. I was led to believe that the plot had something to do with Anakin rescuing Tahiri from a vision he had."

Ah, but coudln't it be said that he conquered the potential future the vision presented ?

"But, please, enlighten me. Just how did Anakin and Tahiri manage to claim conquest over shaping?"

Well, let's see... Tahiri was about to decapitate Anakin, but he managed to bring her back to her old self. Since she's not running around hunting Jedi with Dark Side powers, I would say they did a pretty good job conquering the shaping, wouldn't you?

 

"Well, let's see... Tahiri was about to decapitate Anakin, but he managed to bring her back to her old self. Since she's not running around hunting Jedi with Dark Side powers, I would say they did a pretty good job conquering the shaping, wouldn't you?"

Perhaps this is somewhat banal on my part, but if this is truly the meaning behind Conquest, I would have preferred this meaning to have been made more, well, obvious.

 

IMO, it was obvious enough, considering the fact that it occured at the climax of the book.

 

How can you say, Valyn, that Edge of Victory is not an appropriate title for that duology when two books later the Vong have conquered Coruscant and have control over a quarter of the galaxy? Look at the galaxy map in rebel dream and the space taken up by the Vong corridor.

Now as far as Rebirth is considered, it could mean several things depending on how far in the future it could be alluding too. The REBIRTH of the Skywalker family with little Ben. Could be debated that either he'd be a Skywalker reborn like Luke, OR, which is what I want to see, that the Evil that was embodied in his grandfather is reborn. The kids gonna grow up in a messed up galaxy, he's bound to have issues. Or even still, it could refer to the rebirth of his namesake. There's lots of different meanings it could have. I don't see why it's so hard for you to make the connections. Sometimes it's better for a book to have a not so straight forward title. I mean, "The Empire Strikes Back"...we KNOW what the movie's gonna be about simply by the title. "Edge of Victory" without reading it, you might expect it to mean the NR was on the Edge of Victory. A duology with a dualistic title. I liked it.

 

J_A_S: You make perfect sense spelling these titles out. I would think that you've answered your own question on "Jedi Eclipse". "the Jedi are thought of as renegades after this." A shadow was cast over the jedi as a whole. They are now looked at with skepticism.

Although "Heros Trial" and "Jedi Eclipse" are mostly dealing with Han, there are some Jedi issues there too. It seems proper to me that one title refer to Han and the other to the Jedi.

 

""Edge of Victory" without reading it, you might expect it to mean the NR was on the Edge of Victory."

That's what I assumed it referred to when I first saw it.


"How can you say, Valyn, that Edge of Victory is not an appropriate title for that duology when two books later the Vong have conquered Coruscant and have control over a quarter of the galaxy?"

First: Conquering Coruscant has not given them liberty to claim victory, as yet.

Second: Coruscant's position in the war was not dilineated in those two novels. As I recall, nothing in the story so much as hints that the Yuuzhan Vong will be striking at Coruscant next.
Your theory would have been excellent, in my opinion, if Keyes had conveyed as much.


"it was obvious enough, considering the fact that it occured at the climax of the book."

I still believe that Keyes could have selected a better title.


"Now as far as Rebirth is considered, it could mean several things depending on how far in the future it could be alluding too. The REBIRTH of the Skywalker family with little Ben. Could be debated that either he'd be a Skywalker reborn like Luke, OR, which is what I want to see, that the Evil that was embodied in his grandfather is reborn."

So, you're saying that the novel's title does not need to reflect on the content of the novel? That it can reflect on possible story content in future novels?
Does anyone else percieve this as being ludicrous?

 

The three book titles I've had problems with were the ones most seem to have problems with too.

Jedi Eclipse-if it was about the Jedi being looked with skepticism at because of the centerpoint fiasco, then it should've been a larger thread in the book, and not just a metaphor of a subplot-the book was about Han the title should've reflected that.

Conquest-again a metaphor, yet without a clear interpretation posed in the script or plot of the book.

Rebirth- Actually I thought Rebirth represented a Rebirth of Hope and return of the feeling of the movies, but the next book SbS disabused me of that assertion though.

In general I take a very utilitarian veiw on book titles, they should generally express what the book is primarily about (the main plot not a side issue or subplot), if it is a metaphor that's supposed to sum up the events in the story it should be made obviously clear to the readers or explained in the text somewhere.

For example:
SW: A New Hope-refers to Luke and the rebellion
SW: The Empire Strikes Back-refers to Vader and the empire's crushing victories over the good guys at Hoth and Bespin.
SW: Return of the Jedi-refers to Luke's victory over the darkside, Vader, and the Emperor/also referring to Anakin's return to the lightside.
All of these are metaphors yet are clear in what they refer to and that they refer to the major points of the stories.

 

Yes! Thank you, I-Poodoo! Finally! Some support!

I, too, think that titles should be obvious reflections of the story's content!

Take, for example, Salvatore's Drizzt Do'Urden novels for the Forgotten Realms fantasy series.
Homeland: That title has a very obvious relation to the story.
Exile: Duh. I wonder what it's about.
Sojourn: Another duh.

And it goes on from there.

But Conquest? Again, the issue that this title could be referring to is debatable. The same applies to Rebirth, as well.

 

I thought that Conquest was a fitting title. I mean if you think about it, Anakin conquered the Vong resistince and freed Tahiri. Anakin and Vua conquered a previous belief that all Vong are demons and would never side with the Jedi.

I think the Edge of Victory title is fitting as well. With the Vong shaping of Tahiri and trying to produce in a sense a dark Vong Jedi and with Anakins intervention, then is that not on the Edge of Victory? Don't think of victory in terms for the end of the war, but a different victory. The succesful shaping of Tahiri Veila and the Vong were on the Edge of Victory and Mara Jade's death, but the virus was wiped out permenatly in Rebirth.

 

Errant_Venture, your points are appreciated, of course, but the relation between those titles and their stories can be different for everyone due to each individual's own interpretation.

For you and for Jedi_Anakin_Solo, Conquest was fitting because it reflected upon Anakin's conquest over the Vong shaping or whatnot.
Others might see as relating to something else in the story, or not relating to anything in the story at all.

I'm saying that I think titles should have an obvious relation to the context of the stories.

Returning to previously mentioned examples, consider Salvatore's Exile. There is no room for debate on the relationship shared between that title and the story. It's obvious. One reader isn't going to not see the connection while another reader does. It's blunt and simple. It immediately lets us know what the story is essentially about.

Into the Labyrinth from the Death Gate Cycle is another example. Within the story, the characters get trapped within the mythical labyrinth.
Again, no opportunity for debate. It's blunt and obvious.

The Return of the Jedi was very blunt. The Jedi essentially return during this installment.


Salvatore's Servant of the Shard deals with Jarlaxle's mental conflict with the Crystal Shard. Is Jarlaxle the servant of the Shard? Or is the Shard the servant of Jarlaxle? That's the relation.

Salvatore's The Silent Blade was explained in the context of the story--during one of Drizzt's essays.

Salvatore's Luthien's Gamble for the Crimson Shadow trilogy is another example. An entire chapter was dedicated to defining this title.
Again, no room for debate. A common interpretation is shared by all readers. It's clear and obvious.


As for my repetitive utilization of Salvatore's work for examples, it's because they were the only stories that came to my mind at the moment. Sorry.

 

I personally like having a title be kinda ambigous and making one think about the relationship between the title and the storyline. To me it gives the book more of an edge to it.

Someone mentioned the original SW titles Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, this obviously tells what is going to happen during the movies. From my point of view it just lessens the book/movie/whatever if the title just screams out a big plot in the title.

Of course this is just my view on the title thing that and I don't really care too much for spoilers which might be why I prefer ambigious titles. I suppose examining titles helps me with my AP Lit junk.