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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
adventurous
fast-paced
"Remember, Luke, the suffering of one man is the suffering of all. Distances are irrelevant to injustice. If not stopped soon enough, evil eventually reaches out to engulf all men, whether they have opposed it or ignored it." Ch. 5
For the past 5 years or so, as I have rewatched most of the Star Wars catalogue, The Prequels, OG Trilogy, Sequels, Rogue One, The Clone Wars, Rebels, Andor, and a few other star wars media. I have had a growing suspicion that Star Wars might be better fit to literature, rather than film and animation. My reasoning for this, is I feel like the visual nature of film can de-emphasize the spiritual, political and philosophical nature that is inherent to the world of Star Wars.
When Vader is being evil, or the empire is doing something terrible, I feel like the literary format brings more attention to the horror of star wars than what the films can do or show
I have felt this with the movie, but I think it is highlighted even more in a written format, that Luke's character development and relationship with Obi-Wan is very rushed. I am usually all for good pacing, but it seemed like the story prioritized pacing over proper character development, and did not stick the landing or find a balance between good pacing and proper character development. It feels like A New Hope, should have been a trilogy all on it's own for the characters ethical development and motivations to make sense, as well as the terror of the empire to set in, to bring stakes to the plot.
The notable additions that the novelization brings is a deleted scene that was filmed, but not included at the beginning of the story, where Luke catches up with his friend Biggs Darklighter at a local hangout spot on Tatooine. The second notable addition is a fascinating history of the civilization that existed on Yavin IV.
In conclusion, like the movie, Star Wars: A New Hope novelization is a great proof of concept, but has some obvious rushed or missing pieces, making it feel a little bare-bones but manages to be a functional minimum viable product.
Title: Star Wars: A New Hope
Series: Star Wars Movie Novelizations
Order: 4
Author/Editor: George Lucas / Alan Dean Foster
Note (Accolades):
Genre/Subject: Star Wars Canon
Pages: 212
Owned/Platform: EPUB
Excitement: 7
Rating: 6
How did I hear about it: Star Wars is pop culture
Finished: Yes
Read over the course of: 2 Weeks
Date Finished: Wed, Jun 18, 2025
Reason Finished: The rare, but intriguing elements of world building, internal character motivations, and extra context that does not appear in the movie
Reason Dropped:
Expectations: Mixed
Pacing Feel: Too Short
Style: Narrative
Worth My Time: Kinda
For the past 5 years or so, as I have rewatched most of the Star Wars catalogue, The Prequels, OG Trilogy, Sequels, Rogue One, The Clone Wars, Rebels, Andor, and a few other star wars media. I have had a growing suspicion that Star Wars might be better fit to literature, rather than film and animation. My reasoning for this, is I feel like the visual nature of film can de-emphasize the spiritual, political and philosophical nature that is inherent to the world of Star Wars.
When Vader is being evil, or the empire is doing something terrible, I feel like the literary format brings more attention to the horror of star wars than what the films can do or show
I have felt this with the movie, but I think it is highlighted even more in a written format, that Luke's character development and relationship with Obi-Wan is very rushed. I am usually all for good pacing, but it seemed like the story prioritized pacing over proper character development, and did not stick the landing or find a balance between good pacing and proper character development. It feels like A New Hope, should have been a trilogy all on it's own for the characters ethical development and motivations to make sense, as well as the terror of the empire to set in, to bring stakes to the plot.
The notable additions that the novelization brings is a deleted scene that was filmed, but not included at the beginning of the story, where Luke catches up with his friend Biggs Darklighter at a local hangout spot on Tatooine. The second notable addition is a fascinating history of the civilization that existed on Yavin IV.
In conclusion, like the movie, Star Wars: A New Hope novelization is a great proof of concept, but has some obvious rushed or missing pieces, making it feel a little bare-bones but manages to be a functional minimum viable product.
Title: Star Wars: A New Hope
Series: Star Wars Movie Novelizations
Order: 4
Author/Editor: George Lucas / Alan Dean Foster
Note (Accolades):
Genre/Subject: Star Wars Canon
Pages: 212
Owned/Platform: EPUB
Excitement: 7
Rating: 6
How did I hear about it: Star Wars is pop culture
Finished: Yes
Read over the course of: 2 Weeks
Date Finished: Wed, Jun 18, 2025
Reason Finished: The rare, but intriguing elements of world building, internal character motivations, and extra context that does not appear in the movie
Reason Dropped:
Expectations: Mixed
Pacing Feel: Too Short
Style: Narrative
Worth My Time: Kinda
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
fast-paced
"They were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Naturally, they became heroes." - Leia Organa.
I first read the original trilogy novels when I was about 13 or so. I decided to give it another go after reading dozens and dozens of Star Wars books. And I have to say it wasn't bad. It was pretty much a shot for shot telling of the film with some small differences in dialogue.
It was enjoyable. And now I'll see how the next two hold up.
I first read the original trilogy novels when I was about 13 or so. I decided to give it another go after reading dozens and dozens of Star Wars books. And I have to say it wasn't bad. It was pretty much a shot for shot telling of the film with some small differences in dialogue.
It was enjoyable. And now I'll see how the next two hold up.
Seriously?
You want a review on THIS book?
Go watch the movie! And it's the first time I EVER said that.
You want a review on THIS book?
Go watch the movie! And it's the first time I EVER said that.
Found a copy of this in an antique shop. It smelled ancient and heavenly. I was doomed.
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
After years of buying Star Wars novels, I figured it was time to actually read one. I know y'all say to start with the Thrawn trilogy but I decided to go one even further, so far back that the film isn't even out yet. For those who don't know, this book was released in December of 1976, about five months before the original Star Wars came out and was ghostwritten by Alan Dean Foster going off of script drafts and rough footage.
For the most part I'd say you're better off just rewatching the film as this book is basically just that, but there's some interesting differences between the book and the movie here. It includes the deleted scenes that add to Luke's relationship with Biggs that we never really got to see at first, and there are many little differences and additions between dialogue throughout the book. They also reference real world animals as well, there's one scene where Ben is talking about ducks and Luke says "what's a duck?" and one scene where Luke thinks of a dog he used to own. But one of the biggest differences is at the end where Chewy actually gets a medal. But what I find most interesting is the first page and a half with the Journal of the Whills, which is a heavily condensed and slightly different version of Palpatine taking over the Republic. Also interesting is that this book uses the word "Sith" when it was never said once in the original trilogy.
I wouldn't say this is necessarily a must read but I think it's worth a look at to see some of the earliest Star Wars media to date and see how much of the lore you could tell was being made up as it went, and how much of it was planned. Will likely read and actually finish the Thrawn trilogy next.
For the most part I'd say you're better off just rewatching the film as this book is basically just that, but there's some interesting differences between the book and the movie here. It includes the deleted scenes that add to Luke's relationship with Biggs that we never really got to see at first, and there are many little differences and additions between dialogue throughout the book. They also reference real world animals as well, there's one scene where Ben is talking about ducks and Luke says "what's a duck?" and one scene where Luke thinks of a dog he used to own. But one of the biggest differences is at the end where Chewy actually gets a medal. But what I find most interesting is the first page and a half with the Journal of the Whills, which is a heavily condensed and slightly different version of Palpatine taking over the Republic. Also interesting is that this book uses the word "Sith" when it was never said once in the original trilogy.
I wouldn't say this is necessarily a must read but I think it's worth a look at to see some of the earliest Star Wars media to date and see how much of the lore you could tell was being made up as it went, and how much of it was planned. Will likely read and actually finish the Thrawn trilogy next.
adventurous
medium-paced
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Great adaptation of the movie with a few additional scenes that were not in the movie.