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k_winchester's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
I mean, I can't help but love it, because it's the OG Star Wars (my faaav ❤).
Reading the original 1976 novel of it is so interesting - obviously the screenplay and script came straight from this (or they were all written around the same time), so it's interesting to see what lines stuck, verbatim, and which ones were changed. It was so easy to hear the exact tone and everything in my head because I've seen the movie soooo many times - to the point where I wanted to "correct" the battle of Yavin stuff in my head the last 20 pages, as this original novel has Luke as Blue Five when in the movie, he's Red Five. 😅🤓
The style is, again obviously because 1976, pretty old style writing. At times George ( + co) is soooo dry, technical, and/or wordy, that some chunks are strange or confusing or just feel totally unnecessary (see: basically the entire first page of the first chapter). At other times, the descriptions are sooo perfectly put, I found myself wanting to jot the lines down (two lines I did in fact jot down, about Tarkin and Taggart as great examples:
"A certain sliminess clung to him, a sensation inferred rather than tactile"
"A thin, hatchet-faced man with the hair and form borrowed from an old broom and the expression of a piranha"
👌)
And it is expressly stated in the very end that Leia gives Chewie a medal, so I don't know why that never made it in screen, in any version, including the millionth re-edit whatever! 😂 And Han shoots first. End of story.
Anyways, this really only gets one less star out of 5 because of those extra clunky, extra dry chunks scattered throughout that took away from everything else, and because everybody is, realistically, pretty 1D at best on paper here. But I can't help loving it all the same because STAR WARS. ❤🌌
Reading the original 1976 novel of it is so interesting - obviously the screenplay and script came straight from this (or they were all written around the same time), so it's interesting to see what lines stuck, verbatim, and which ones were changed. It was so easy to hear the exact tone and everything in my head because I've seen the movie soooo many times - to the point where I wanted to "correct" the battle of Yavin stuff in my head the last 20 pages, as this original novel has Luke as Blue Five when in the movie, he's Red Five. 😅🤓
The style is, again obviously because 1976, pretty old style writing. At times George ( + co) is soooo dry, technical, and/or wordy, that some chunks are strange or confusing or just feel totally unnecessary (see: basically the entire first page of the first chapter). At other times, the descriptions are sooo perfectly put, I found myself wanting to jot the lines down (two lines I did in fact jot down, about Tarkin and Taggart as great examples:
"A certain sliminess clung to him, a sensation inferred rather than tactile"
"A thin, hatchet-faced man with the hair and form borrowed from an old broom and the expression of a piranha"
👌)
And it is expressly stated in the very end that Leia gives Chewie a medal, so I don't know why that never made it in screen, in any version, including the millionth re-edit whatever! 😂 And Han shoots first. End of story.
Anyways, this really only gets one less star out of 5 because of those extra clunky, extra dry chunks scattered throughout that took away from everything else, and because everybody is, realistically, pretty 1D at best on paper here. But I can't help loving it all the same because STAR WARS. ❤🌌
Content Warnings
Moderate: War
Minor: Gore, Death, Death of parent, and Gun violence
erikbergstrom's review against another edition
3.0
Why did I read a novelization about Star Wars? That's.... a really good question. Thanks for asking!
I've been reading various Legends books recently and none of them really "scratched that itch". Too much fan fiction, plug and play style writing... didn't feel "lived-in" the way the original Star Wars movies did. So it was time for a course correction!
What can I say about this novelization written by George Lucas, aka Alan Dean Foster? Well, sadly there's nothing really new here. There's a scene in the beginning that never made it into the movies with Luke and Biggs hanging out in Anchorhead. Was hoping for more of that. But otherwise it was a straight run-through of the plot that just makes one want to watch the movie instead. The action isn't described all that well, meanwhile the advantage of it being a book - having any internal dialogue of the protagonists - isn't there either. Actually, the dialogue in this book is much worse than the movie! Especially for Han Solo. If that's how it was scripted (apparently this book was written off the script before it was produced) makes me kinda happy that Harrison Ford said "screw this dialogue" to George and did it his own way.
All right. I feel better now. On to Splinter of the Mind's Eye, the sequel that never was! We'll see how Alan does on his own...
I've been reading various Legends books recently and none of them really "scratched that itch". Too much fan fiction, plug and play style writing... didn't feel "lived-in" the way the original Star Wars movies did. So it was time for a course correction!
What can I say about this novelization written by George Lucas, aka Alan Dean Foster? Well, sadly there's nothing really new here. There's a scene in the beginning that never made it into the movies with Luke and Biggs hanging out in Anchorhead. Was hoping for more of that. But otherwise it was a straight run-through of the plot that just makes one want to watch the movie instead. The action isn't described all that well, meanwhile the advantage of it being a book - having any internal dialogue of the protagonists - isn't there either. Actually, the dialogue in this book is much worse than the movie! Especially for Han Solo. If that's how it was scripted (apparently this book was written off the script before it was produced) makes me kinda happy that Harrison Ford said "screw this dialogue" to George and did it his own way.
All right. I feel better now. On to Splinter of the Mind's Eye, the sequel that never was! We'll see how Alan does on his own...
mbouchard's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
torilind13's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
mh_books's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
nikshelby's review against another edition
5.0
I ve read it before...and I'll read it again. I love all things from a galaxy far far away...thank you, George Lucas.
anispaperbacks's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This was a nice short read from a franchise I love. It's only just under 200 pages long so not very hard to get through at all although I did find I was dragging myself through parts of the middle/3rd quarter of the book a bit. Perhaps because I was familiar with the events and thise chapters werent particularly dramatic or vibey. The start and end were definitely the best bits imo. the start being vibey in the way that Star Wars is, nostalgic and full of the wonder of the rich world. And the end was exciting even despite knowing the outcome. The writing style was a little bit wordy at times but otherwise worked well for the story and provided lavish descriptions both of setting and what was happening. Overall, this was a great novelisation and captures the film well, although I say that as someone who has seen the film many times so I'm not sure how it would be to someone who hasn't, but I'm sure it would still stand regardless. I think perhaps the only thing it could have done better was make the stakes feel higher? Maybe my brains making stuff up but they feel higher in the film, but that makes sense as that was the original format and therefore would feel more like it's naturally achieving what it sets out to do. I also appreciated some little details and such that were I suppose more exclusive to the novel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: War and Genocide
Minor: Torture and Gun violence
shawn_annets's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
eahoffm2's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Xenophobia