Force Friday: Everything a Star Wars Fan Needs to Know
By Kyle Warnke
The Books
While the merchandise will dominate Force Friday, it’s important to remember that the event kicks off one of the most anticipated campaigns that Disney has in store. The Journey to The Force Awakens will feature the release of content designed to amp up hype for the movie as well as fill in the gaps as far as what happened in the galaxy after Return of the Jedi.
It begins with Chuck Wendig’s novel Star Wars: Aftermath, the first in a trilogy of books picking up right after the death of Emperor Palpatine. As we learned in the book’s excerpt, the Empire isn’t automatically dissolved after the death of the Emperor, leading to more fighting and war in the wake of the events of ROTJ.
RELATED: 5 Post-ROTJ Clues from the Aftermath Excerpt
If you’re looking for something a bit lighter, you have other options as well. Lost Stars, a novel by Claudia Gray, follows a Rebel pilot and an Imperial officer who are in love as they grapple with the turmoil of the galaxy following the events of ROTJ.
Meanwhile, the three leads of the original trilogy are each getting their own young adult novels. Smuggler’s Run: A Han Solo & Chewbacca Adventure and The Weapon of a Jedi: A Luke Skywalker Adventure are set between Episode IV and V, while Leia’s installment, Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure, is set between Episode V and VI.
Finally, if you’re just looking for a coffee table Star Wars book, there are several compendiums coming out as well. Star Wars: Droid Factory will offer in-depth looks at the droids of the universe, including BB-8, while Star Wars: Ships of the Galaxy takes a look at the various spacecraft of the series, including some Force Awakens vehicles.
Lastly, if you need to catch up on various aspects of Star Wars, there’s Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know, a collection of trivia and factoids.
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