The final, full trailer is looming. The signs are clear…Episode VII – The Force Awakens is upon us. At this point in the game, Lucasfilm and Disney are faced with the task of getting kids up to speed on the story, further getting them amped up to buy the products and, of course, see the film. The key to the continued success of the Star Wars franchise is the 8 to 12 year-old demographic. That was me back in the 80-s…and, of course, I was hooked for life. Today’s twenty-somethings(?) — that was your 8 to 12 year-old demographic for Episodes I through III. While I hold the original trilogy closest to my heart (making it odd for me to imagine) some of these die hard 20-year-old Star Wars fans love the prequel trilogy more than the first set of films.
Admittedly, while The Phantom Menace is my least favorite of all the Star Wars films, I have the most vivid, happy memories of the build towards that film’s release. Seems to me that Lucasfilm must have known what they were doing. So, what about the new 8 to 12-year-olds? Hopefully they’ve seen the six films. More importantly however, in regards to Episode VII, that they’ve seen the original trilogy. That they go into this new chapter of the Star Wars saga knowing who Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewie are. Sadly (and, again, I can’t fathom a kids logic), there are kids in the world that just don’t have a lot of interest in the original trilogy because they are old films. They’d rather watch the more polished and flashy prequel trilogy.
So what to do?
Books… books are the key. The practice of turning a book into a film is a common practice in Hollywood. Jurassic Park and The Wizard of Oz are a couple of the greatest books gone cinema out there. Harry Potter and The Hunger Games are prime examples of how to do it right: well-written stories with a long lasting, vast fan base turned into well cast, well-produced films that easily stand up on their own. On the other end of the spectrum, you have poorly written, but for whatever reason popular, books like Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey that the studios jumped on and quickly threw into the theatre before fans moved onto the next thing.
But I digress.
Today, the Disney Lucasfilm Press released a set of three Star Wars novels covering A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi aimed at that younger demographic. Each has a different author and takes a different approach to the stories.
First up: A New Hope – The Princess, The Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy, written by Alexandra Bracken.
The story of A New Hope is told pretty much as it appears on screen. However, it is broken up into three sections: Leia, Han, and, finally, Luke. The Leia portion of the book, shows the events of the first third of the film through her eyes by including her inner thoughts, background, and everything going on around her. The second section picks up with Han walking into the Cantina and, just like with Leia, we get to see this portion of the story from Han’s point of view. Finally, once Obi-Wan has sacrificed himself so the trio can escape from the Death Star, Luke takes over the story. I found this section of the book to be my favorite. Days earlier, Luke lost his aunt and uncle to the Empire and now Obi-Wan. Bracken perfectly captures Luke’s thought process as he ponders recent events, and where all of this is taking him. I have to wonder which loved one the author lost and channeled into Luke. You can’t put words like that on paper without a great deal of personal insight.
Next: The Empire Strikes Back – So You Want to be a Jedi?, written by Adam Gidwitz.
In this telling of The Empire Strikes Back, you are Luke. “You gaze out over the field of white. It is winter on the planet Hoth. It is always winter on Hoth. I mean, they have summer. That’s when the temperature crawls up to about 10 degrees below freezing. It’s lovely.” While the author gets serious when he needs to, this is the general tone of the story. I find the tongue in cheek nature of Gidwitz’s writing to be a refreshing take on the darkest chapter of the Star Wars Saga. Even more entertaining are the “So You Want to be a Jedi?” lessons scattered throughout the book. So what happens when Han and Leia are on Bespin and Luke is still on Dagobah? The author shifts from second person to third person and relays what’s happening elsewhere. When Luke is involved in the events of the story, he’s right back to second person telling you what “you” (Luke) are doing and thinking. A very entertaining read, and my favorite of the three books.
And what about that third book? Return of the Jedi – Beware the Power of the Dark Side!, penned by Tom Angleberger.
The author makes himself the storyteller here, regularly breaking the fourth wall and addressing his audience: “Two robots. Two robots plodding through an endless dessert. Fear not, reader! It will get better! But not every story can start with a bang. Or Wampa attack, for that matter.” As a lifelong fan of Carlo Collodi’s The Adventures of Pinocchio, which uses the same fourth wall device, I enjoy this type of writing. You don’t always need to be directly involved in the events of a story… but, occasionally, it’s just nice to be told a story and to be acknowledged by the story teller.
As you can see, the cover designs of these books fit right in with other popular young adult books:
It’s not likely that these books will introduce readers to the original films, but it may just provide them with a fresh, more welcome take on the three original (certainly not my opinion) old, less flashy films. My final word on these books? While they are geared for 8 to 12-year-olds, I found them entertaining and each of the 300 or so page books can be read in an afternoon. Buy them for yourself, buy them for your kids… just buy them.
Until next time dear readers, may the Force be with you!