In Publishers Weekly, Disney has announced a new line of Star Wars children’s books that will build to Star Wars: Rebels and Star Wars: Episode VII.
The Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight, a picture book encompassing all three films, written by DiTerlizzi and illustrated with Ralph McQuarrie concept art, will kick off the program in October. It will be followed by retellings of Star Wars: A New Hope by Palacio in April 2015, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back by Gidwitz in July 2015, and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi by Angleberger in October 2015; all three will be illustrated by Iain McCaig. McCaig and the late McQuarrie are well known for their work as Star Wars concept artists.
The books will be available globally. In the U.S., they will be published under the Disney-Lucasfilm Press imprint of the Disney Book Group. They will be preceded in August by the first books under that banner, six titles tied to the Star Wars Rebels animated TV series on Disney XD. The Rebels program also includes titles from licensees DK, Bendon, Klutz, and Scholastic. “It’s not just a vertical program,” said Roeder, who noted that Star Wars publishing going forward will include a combination of books from existing licensees, new licensees, and Disney-Lucasfilm Press.