There's no such thing as an abridged SW book, right?

I'm relatively new to the EU, so I've just recently finished SOTME. On one of the first pages, just before the introduction, there's a little teaser-excerpt that's supposed to be a taste of what the book will be... I thought. When I actually got to the passage in the text, there were several differences in wording. I thought they might have changed the excerpt to suit someone who hadn't read the book yet (taking out the reference to Hin, for example.) But the last two senteces of the excerpt didn't need to be changed. So why were they? Was it changed, or was the book changed?

I'm usually not such a sucker for these details, but since canon-ness is so important, it would be a nightmare to readers and collectors if more than one version of the text exists. The Del Rey paperback has the exact same text as the original hardback, right? There's no such thing as an abridged SW book, is there?

 

I'm not sure if there are abridged SW books or not, though I know that they have bits cut - e.g The Apprentice was originally going to be part of Dark Journey, and there was a cut bit between Luke and Face that was going to appear in Rebel Stand. Ok, being a relative newbie to EU, I hope you just understood all that stuff I rambled on with.

 

If not, Apprentice is a short story that takes place in the novel Dark Journey.

I think the excerpts in the front are swiddles around a bit, to make them more accessible. Or something. It's done in the WST. (Wraith Squadron Trilogy, X-Wing #5-7)

 

I know that just about all of the audiobook versions of the novels are abridged, but the actual books? I don't think so. At least I've never seen any.

 

They often edit the teaser they put at the beginning of the book, to make it more immediately exciting, and not to spoil anything.

 

One of the sci-fi book club editions of one of the AC Crispin books is missing the Epilogue. This is more a printing error than an abridgement though.

 

Gotta go with Mastadge on this one. Most of the older teasers I can think of tend to leave a little something out.

 

The funny thing is, this teaser added something about Leia's hands quivering that wasn't in the text. I don't know why they did that.

I was a little suspicious because on the copyright page of SOTE, there's a comforting bit of info that says NOT A WORD HAS BEEN CHANGED from the original. None of my other books has this.

Then there's also the typo-ridden DW preview at the end of Traitor. None of the typos were actually in the book. But then, it's only a preview. And obviously the publishers change other things, like maps in the same NJO books, the spine of the paperback SBS...

Just a little too close to what happened with LOTR. Before FOTR was a movie, there was a little teaser at the end of the book about the two towers, ORTHANC and MINAS MORGUL, in TTT. Now that the books are being reprinted with movies covers and stuff, that little bit is gone from some versions. Why? because Minas Morgul doesn't fit with the movie. and of course the text isn't abridged...

But it's still manipulation. I hope that never happens to SW.

By the way, does "Tales from the Mos Eisly Cantina" have a story called "The Butcher of Montellian Serat"? My friend told me it did (I think), but when I looked through it at the bookstore, I didn't see that story.

 

I don't recall if that is the title, but that is a nickname of one of the characters in the book.

 

Mm. Thanks.

 

DarthRealLife: The story you want is in the 'Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina'. It is called "Empire Blues: The Devaronian's Tale". And if you want the end of the tale, his capture by Boba Fett is in the 'Tales of the Bounty Hunters' book in "The Last One Standing: The Tale of Boba Fett".