*All posts in the Star Wars Canon series contain minor spoilers
15 weeks until Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
“It is a period of civil war. Rebel spaceships, striking from a hidden base, have won their first victory against the evil Galactic Empire.
During the battle, Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire’s ultimate weapon, the DEATH STAR, an armored space station with enough power to destroy an entire planet.
Pursued by the Empire’s sinister agents, Princess Leia races home aboard her starship, custodian of the stolen plans that can save her people and restore freedom to the galaxy….” –Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope.
Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View is a collection of short stories each telling the events of A New Hope from various side characters.
Written by: Multiple Authors
Published: October 3, 2017
When does From a Certain Point of View take place?
Simultaneously with A New Hope.
Synopsis:
An anthology brought together to explore the multiple side characters of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, From a Certain Point of View begins with Captain Antilles of the Tantive IV during Vader’s desperate attempt to retrieve the Death Star plans and ends with Miara Larte witnessing the Royal Award Ceremony of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Chewbacca on Yavin 4.
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I absolutely loved reading From a Certain Point of View. Despite knowing the story of A New Hope by heart, I was completely enthralled by the stories in this book and had a difficult time putting it down. Each story is well written and adds a deep new layer to the original Star Wars film. It is obvious all of the authors love Star Wars and had put in the effort to carefully craft a rich story despite each one only consisting of a few pages.
The inside cover promises “hilarious, heartbreaking, and astonishing tales” and From a Certain Point of View delivered exactly that! Many of the stories made me laugh or cry. Some of my favourites were “The Bucket” by Christie Golden (about the Stormtrooper who stunned Leia on the Tantive IV), “The Kloo Horn Cantina Caper” by Kelly Due DeConnick and Matt Fraction (about some patrons of the Mos Eisley cantina), and “Desert Son” by Pierce Brown (about Biggs Darklighter—bring the tissues for that one!)
One issue with this book, which is pretty much unavoidable with over 40 authors writing it, is some continuity inconsistencies. It is especially noticeable in stories based on scenes with many background characters such as the Mos Eisley cantina and during the Battle of Yavin. One example is one story (which more lines up with the film) mentions that the Rebel Alliance has more pilots than X-wings, but another story says the exact opposite. No inconsistencies are major and probably go unnoticed by many readers.
The authors of From a Certain Point of View were not compensated for their stories and the proceeds from this book go to First Book, an organization that provides books and other learning materials to educators and children in need.
From a Certain Point of View was written for the 40th anniversary of Star Wars in 2017 (which is why there are exactly 40 stories) and I would recommend it to any Star Wars fan. There really is a story for everyone!
Next week: Battlefront II: Inferno Squad
Complete list of Star Wars Canon novels
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