With the premier of Star Wars Rebels on Disney XD quickly approaching, I wanted to take a look at an assortment of Rebels books from the Disney Lucasfilm Press.
The first two books are from Disney’s “World of Reading” series. I like to think of these books as the modern equivalent to those Dick and Jane books that I read as a kid. This being the 21st century however, Dick and Jane have been replaced with far more engaging stories about Mickey, Sofia, Captain America, and the Rebels. These books include a simple rating system indicating the level of the intended reader.
“Zeb to the Rescue” is a level one book for Pre K thru First Grade level readers, and that means simple text and word repetition. The story is based on the Rebels short “Entanglement” which was made available online August 25th. This 32 page book is filled with what appears to be promotional artwork of the characters coupled with images taken right from the short.
“Ezra and the Pilot” is a level two book intended for Kindergarden thru Second Grade level readers. Readers will find simple story lines that include compound sentences and contractions. Once again the book is based on a Rebels short, this time “Not What You Think” which was made available online September 1st. As with “Zeb to the Rescue” this 32 page book includes plenty of images right out of the short. From a quality standpoint, this pair of books is great. The covers are eye catching, and the pages within are sharp and colorful. Without having seen the episodes yet, I can’t say how closely they follow their respective episodes, but I have no doubt that young readers will find these stories engaging. At just $3.99 each you can’t go wrong.
Next up is “Chopper Saves the Day”, which is based on the Rebels short “The Machine in the Ghost” which was made available online August 11th. While the story itself was adapted by Elizabeth Schaefer, the short that it’s based on was written by Gargoyles alum Greg Wiseman. The book is once again filled with eye popping images from the short, and as a bonus includes two full pages of Rebels stickers. The quality of the book is great, but at just 23 pages I don’t know if the inclusion of a handful of stickers is worth the $4.99 price tag.
“Rise of the Rebels” is a chapter book aimed at the 9 to 12 year old audience. Lets do a quick breakdown: 118 pages, 12 chapters, 4 stories. Each story is Three chapters long. Here’s where it gets interesting. The story titles are: “The Machine in the Ghost”, “Art Attack”, “Entanglement”, and “Property of Ezra Bridger”. If you’ve been paying attention dear readers you’ll recognize three of those titles from above. The fourth, “Art Attack” is based on the Rebels short of the same name which was made available online August 18th. The book is filled with stylized artwork, and even after having watched the shorts that three of these stories were based on, my 10 and 12 year old sons were still entertained by the book. In fact I caught my 10 year old picking it up a second time…and that’s never a bad thing. At $5.99 it’s a great value!
Also available for the 9 to 12 year old crowd is “Ezra’s Gamble” an original novel written by Ryder Windham. This one is a great stand alone story that, as far as I can tell, isn’t based off of any episode of the upcoming Rebels series. Once again, both of my sons loved the story, and…so did I. For myself, it was a quick very entertaining read. The story is a great introduction to the Ezra character and even includes Empire Strikes Back bounty hunter Bossk. Always on the hunt for easter eggs, I was delighted that the book included a nod to the old Star Wars Radio Drama. The books final chapter is adapted from that “Not What You Think” short. Having not seen any of the episodes yet, I get the impression that these “shorts” are really just long clips pulled out of the first episode of Rebels which will be premiering on October 3rd. That said, I honestly hope that “Ezra’s Gamble” is a precursor to meeting the character in the series. At $6.99 I’d say it’s great for young and old fans alike.
Finally, let’s take a look at the hardcover “Star Wars Rebels – A New Hero” written by Lucasfilm Story Group member Pablo Hidalgo. The books 46 pages are filled with original artwork. As stated in a note, the artwork was created to determine the look and feel of the characters and environments during the early stages of the shows creation. Aside from providing us with a look at some beautiful pre-production artwork, the book serves as an introduction to all of the main characters we’ll be meeting in the series. Safe to say that this is a wonderful look at the upcoming series and the $17.99 price tag makes it an affordable addition to any Star Wars library.
I’ve been counting down the days until Star Wars Rebels hits the airwaves, and now that merchandise is starting to arrive I couldn’t be more excited for October 3rd to get here. Looks like I’ll have to find something to keep myself occupied…
Until next time…may the Force be with you!