Chronicle all the critters in 'The Star Wars Bestiary, Volume 1: Creatures of the Galaxy'

Reference books have always been a fun part of the Star Wars ancillary material. However, it's always fun when it goes the extra mile to be written like an in-universe book. That is the case with the upcoming new book The Star Wars Bestiary, Volume 1: Creatures of the Galaxy. The book crashes in like a wampa on November 5.

Star Wars Insider via StarWars.com sat down with writer S.T. Bende and illustrator Iris Compiet (something we teased here) to discuss the bestiary's premise, their inspirations, and some of their favorite parts to create. You can see the full preview in Star Wars Insider #228 out on October 29.

Bende shared the idea behind the book was a member of the Galactic Society of Creature Enthusiasts was the narrator. She explained that the organization "has different divisions, so we invented a new vocation in the Star Wars galaxy, and developed a backstory for our narrator, Ardis San Tekka, who is a creature cartographer." Ardis isn't alone in these ventures either. She is joined by her very helpful friend, who Bende says is "this safari droid named B8-T5 and calls him “Bait.” Bait lures creatures out of hiding, which is a task he doesn’t always love!"

If any of this sounds familar, especially if you're a fan of the work on Star Wars Kids' YouTube channel, it's similar to the webseries Star Wars: Galaxy of Creatures, where a droid named SF-R3 or "Aree" goes on journeys to detail the critters he finds. Aree and San Tekka work for the same organization, which is a neat callback.

Bende shared her favorite creatures to write about thanks to her favorite Star Wars film and TV show, The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars Rebels. "Getting to write about tauntauns was really fun," she explained. "Because that was a nod to my favorite movie, but getting to write about the purrgil was really special. I remember being awed by the concept of space whales, which was so different from anything we had seen in Star Wars before, and anything I had imagined anyone could come up with. It was a personal connection to the real-world creatures that I love so much, so it was really neat to see them in the galaxy far, far away. And then, of course, when they came back in Ahsoka, that blew my mind. Now they’re in the Disney Parks in Star Tours, so I even got to ride with a purrgil for the first time!"

Compiet's two favorites were more straightforward but for very fun reasons. "The banthas!" She shared, "That was actually the first one I drew when I began working on this project. And I started very enthusiastically. I was so naïve. I sketched them in many different situations. And then I was like, 'Oh, I have 130 more animals to do.' I love the blurrgs. They are the weirdest things ever, and so much fun to draw: they’re essentially fish-like blobs on two legs with short, Tyrannosaurus Rex arms."

If you want to get a sneak peek at The Star Wars Bestiary, Volume 1: Creatures of the Galaxy, pick up your copy of Star Wars Insider #228 on October 29. Or if you're more patient than I am, you can grab the bestiary on November 5.