How old is to old?

Hi guys,

Im kinda new to the forums, but I wanted to ask what people thought abbout 'how old is to old' for the books. Im almost 30 and was wondering if certain books are good for adults to read and if some are better for the teen pre teen crowd.

Id appreciate any advice!!

 

well I am almost the same age and even though I still haven'r read all the books, I cas say that I really liked the complete New Jedi Order, IMO is more apointed to a teen to adult kind of story.

I can also recommend for adults the Han Solo trilogy which is complex enough and develop to be really enjoyed by adults.

On the other hand the Han Solo adventures and the Lando Calrissian Adventures are childish and might be too much of a fairy tales for adults.

As I mention I still have a lot of books to read(I'm really starting to read all the rest , and so far I can give you this points of view.

 

I think that you could read all of them personally without them seeming childish.

There are very good SW books out there.

 

Do not got near the Glove of Darth Vader series.....

*Shudders*


The Crystal Star however, is an excellent read and you will become one with the great Waru once you read about his greatness

 

I'm nearly 30 and I like all (well, most) of them.

The NJO isnt like the films at all, so you may not like those as much as the Bantam-era, but the majority of them are well-written enough to then get into those authors' other SW and non-SW books.

 

Read Republic Commando: Hard Contact.

-The Scummy-

 

*awaits customary Excellence tirade*

Seriously though, most of the novels are fairly good. Don't read them expecting to get some sort of enlightened epiphany out of them. But most of them are fun ways to pass the time for any age.

I'd suggest reading Shatterpoint or Hard Contact if you like the prequel eras. Or the Thrawn Trilogy if you like post-ROTJ stuff. The X-Wing books are very good too.

 

30 is the new 10.

 

And 10 is the new -20.

-The Scummy-

 

You guys have been so helpful!
I took a ride to Borders after work and browsed the Star Wars books-I actually picked up one called Tatooine Ghost. I did see the Han Solo Trilogy and it looked really good. I orederd 'I, Jedi' because I remember starting it a few years ago but dropped in the pool and never got to finish. Any thoughts on that one or 'Tatooine Ghost'?
I do vaguely remeber the Timothy Zahn trilogy that I read when it first came out many years ago, but I definately want to reread it.

I will avoid Glove of Vador lol. Anyone else really dislike certain books? Some of the ones I saw looked slighly cheesey. I did read Courtship of Princess Leia awhile back and really enjoyed it as well.

 

Well it's not EU, but the ROTS novelization is really good, as is Labirynth of Evil. I love Vector Prime and the Dark Tide Dulogy, (the first three books in the NJO series), but HATED Luceno's Agents of Chaos pair. Now that I'm on Balance Point, which I'm enjoying, I'm glad I read the dulogy because it set up a lot of backstory for the events and characters in BP (Randa, the Ryn, Centerpoint/Hapes). They still were bad though.

 

The RotS novelization is EU.

 

The six novelizations are good, but IMO the prequels are better. If I had to get them in order from the best to the worsth(not that they are bad though), I would put:

1) ROTS
2)EP II Clone wars
3) ANH
4) TPHM
5) ESB
6) ROTJ

 

Actually I would put the ROTS novelization as the best with the TPM novelization as number two, after that would be TESB, ANH, and the ROTJ novelization. I thought that the AOTC novelization was the worst.

 

Avoid The Approching Storm. Fall in love with the X-Wing Series.

 

Tatooine Ghost is superb. It ties the prequels and classics together fairly well without trying too hard. Plus its Denning, can't go wrong with Denning.

-The Scummy-

 

I have to say it looks good (Tatooine Ghost), it was between that one and Truce at Bakura, another one I vaguely remeber glancing through years ago.

Denning is a good one? Is he as good as Timothy Zahn, lots of people rave about that first trilogy he wrote that really put SW novels on tha map.

 

No, but no one is as good as Zahn maybe disregarding Traviss. Though she hasn't written enough books too really be considered the "best"

I'd say the best SW authors (in no order) are.

Zahn
Stackpole
Allston
Traviss
Denning
and Stover

-The Scummy-

 

Aside from Traviss, who I've never read anything by, I agree with that list definitely. Who ever wrote the Black Fleet Crisis was good too, but since he hasn't done anything bookwise since that trilogy and part of his masterpiece was wiped out by some s----y NJO authors, he doesn't get remembered much.

 

For some reason the NJO doesnt grab me.

 

Sorry, my friend, but it's viewed as a kid's series now. McDonalds believes that too; hook them at 3, and you'll hook them for life. Their TV ads reflect this before I found out. Authors write fine with their own book, but suddenly somes the Star Wars and it's neck below average, subpar at best.

I don't like it anymore than barbeque Hutts, but that's someone's current exec view and adult fans are feeling its effects. The Bantam books were for the main. And for their debatable faults still had depth and substance to them. The Corellian Trilogy is a quintessential balance; Allen wrote it perfectly for both a teen and adult readership. Black Fleet's style and persepctive into areas of Star Wars outside a bloody damn X-wing cockpit gives it both uniqueness and fan disfavour. How much of the NJO was just an X-wing cockpit, ask yourself.

Not all Del Rey novels reflect this, some have the fortitude save to offer value for money. There are some authors who now force me to say most Star Wars is pulpfiction litter, akin to Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms. Which is distinctly annoying, as I can no longer say all. The underlining issues are pervading. Too much of the NJO and Clone War series were unashamedly superficial in depth, the latter entirely one-sided.

Compare any average Star Wars novel to, say, Deadhouse Gates. You can't.

And I want to finish off by saying, Denning's Joiner King was so mature, creative and professional for a SW novel, it had the junk addicted fans gagging on fine food for once. Batman's butler Michael Gough betrayed his fellow Time Lords out of repect for a villain abandoned by them, and that's how I felt: respected with the full suit, not thrown another diaper.

 

Am I the only one who came into this thread thinking that it was about whether or not Luke, Han, Leia and the gang are getting too old for action? It's just that that comes up so much...

Anyway, I'm in my early 20s and I find that although I'm not as crazy about Star Wars literature as I was when I was 13, I still find it quite enjoyable, and still eagerly anticipate some of the novels. But I have to admit, now that I'm older and I pride myself on collecting and reading more classic and thought provoking science fiction literature (ie. Frank Herbert, Isaac Asimov, etc.) I find it a little sad that approximately 60% of my bookshelf is still Star Wars...

 

If Solid Snake can hold his own at 70, then so can Luke Skywalker!

SNAKE!

*lights lighter*

 

I think you are never too old to read any book... look at Harry Potter, people of all ages read it so why not Star Wars. I'm in my early 20's and I love almost all of them and read them frequently (when I'm not reading Organic Chemistry or Physiology) So if you are looking for the complete story line read them all...if your looking to read just a few here and there I'd say any of the Zahn books, The Han Solo trilogy, I Jedi, and the X-wing books.

 

am i the first person in this thread to admit to being 30 or older?

Tatooine Ghost is a great place to dive back into the EU - it's well written and doesn't require much foreknowledge other than the movies.

I've read pretty much everything (including all the Young Jedi Knights, and some of the Glove of Darth Vader series, but very little of the Scholastic titles). then again, i was in my teens when i started EU. at any rate, it really depends on what you like in your SW stories - some swear by the X-wing books, others like New Jedi Order, others prefer Clone Wars or the black fleet crisis.

anyway, here's a few that i would avoid:
-- the bounty hunter wars (trilogy) - unless you really really like boba fett.
-- jedi trial (in the clone wars series) - zzzzzz

ones to not read first, but perhaps save until you've read a bit more:
-- Corellian trilogy and Hand of Thrawn duology -- really builds off of most of the other bantam era books.
-- Rogue Planet --

always fun to read:
-- Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina
-- Tales from Jabba's Palace

fast reads (action packed pageturners):
-- Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter
-- Shadows of the Empire

and don't forget to pick up some of the comics -- they have the better flavor of the clone wars, and then there's Dark Empire (love it or hate it, you should read it)