Read, You Must: Force Collector

Every teenager goes through dramatic changes. Karr Nuq Sin, a teen on the planet Merokia, is experiencing something entirely unique. In an era long past the end of the Jedi, Karr is realizing he is Force-sensitve, and possibly more directly connected to the Jedi than he could ever imagine!

Force Collector is YA novel from Disney/Lucasfilm Press published last year as part of the "Journey to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" promotion. Author Kevin Shinick previously penned the adorable picture book Chewie and the Porgs and now brings us his first Star Wars novel.

The story follows the teenage Karr as he more and more frequently has to deal with his "episodes" - blackouts and seizures - when he comes in contact with items with a connection to the Force or past Force-users. Karr's parents expect him to follow them into the family business. Karr sees his destiny on another path...

Along the way he connects with and befriends a fellow student named Maize. With her rebellious spirit and his longing for answers they set out on an adventure seeking more and more artifacts across the galaxy. They hope to learn more about the Jedi in their travels, but little do they know the secrets they may uncover.

Also by Kevin Shinick

What follows is a 379-page planet-jumping adventure, virtually a tour of the Star Wars galaxy as we know it. Instead of exploring new and exotic worlds, Karr and Maize travel to parts of the galaxy we as readers are quite familiar with. Tatooine, Jakku, Takodana, and even Batuu from Galaxy's Edge. Kajimi makes an appearance here too, before the release of The Rise of Skywalker happened.They learn about the Star Wars galaxy from a fresh perspective, meeting familiar faces like Maz Kanata and Unkar Plutt.

Set shortly before the events of The Force Awakens, Force Collector offers a unique way to explore the Star Wars galaxy. The reader is probably already very familiar with the places Karr visits so we often know more than Karr simply by having seen the movies. That is until the last quarter or so, where we are just as in the dark as Karr and secrets are finally revealed!

Force Collector is fairly light-hearted by modern Young Adult standards, and very mild on the "Adult" part of the YA moniker. While it has it's serious parts and pretty raw emotions at times, it is an excellent YA starting point for young teen readers stepping up from middle-grade novels like Join the Resistance, Ezra's Gamble and the Adventures in Wild Space titles.

Add Force Collector to your collection!

Fatherhood in a Galaxy Far, Far Away

Bail and Brea Organa, with their new baby Leia

For an epic tale like the Star Wars saga, which places plenty of importance on who

is who's father, there aren't a ton of great examples of day-to-day fatherhood to be seen. There are a few moments to be sure, but it's takes a little digging to see great moments in fatherhood in Star Wars.

Of course there’s quite a few examples of terrible fathers like Darth Vader. There's also completely absent parents like Rey’s, Han Solo's or Ezra Bridger’s. But on a positive note, here’s a few of our favourite examples of fatherhood in the saga…

Bail Organa and his daughter Leia are only seen on screen together when she is a baby, but clearly there is great love and mutual admiration between them. As a founding member of the Rebel Alliance, Organa obviously influenced Leia's world-view of politics, justice and rebellion. Bail even states in Rogue One that he trusts her with his life, and Leia soon after goes searching for Obi-Wan Kenobi because he served her father during the Clone Wars.

 
Galen Erso in Rogue One clearly loved his family and of course his beloved "Stardust", his daughter Jyn. Unfortunately to keep her safe from Director Krennic and the Empire he had to leave her to be raised mainly by Saw Gerrera. The two were never able to properly reconnect, but Jyn clearly inherited a spirit of rebellion from both of her parents.

Cleigg Lars seems like he was decent person and devoted husband, so presumably he was a pretty good dad, too. He freed Shmi Skywalker from slavery and then later lost his legs trying to save her from Tusken Raiders!

Cleigg’s son Owen Lars, though he probably only knew Shmi for a few years at most (and apparently only met Anakin Skywalker once), took on the task, with his wife Beru of course, to be guardians of Anakin's secret son Luke.

This may seen like an unlikely one, but arguably the most involved father shown in any Star Wars movie is Jango Fett in Attack of the Clones! While Boba Fett isn't technically Jango's son but rather actually a CLONE of Jango, Jango raises him as his son and seems to be teaching Boba many of the tricks of his bounty hunter trade along the way.

We never really got to see what kind of father Han Solo was when Ben (aka Kylo Ren) was a child but certainly at the end of The Force Awakens Han shows nothing but love for his son. Clearly by then Han has regrets about his life so maybe he wasn't the kind of father he wished he'd been, but it's easy to see the emotional attachment he shares with Ben. There are glimpses of what kind of a dad Han might've been when he interacts with Rey throughout the movie.

Near the ending of The Rise of Skywalker there is a hint that Lando Calrissian may be interested in learning more about who Jannah's parents are. The junior novelization and Visual Dictionary take this one step further by pointing out that Lando is indeed a father and had his daughter taken away to be part of the First Order. It is certainly possible that Jannah is the long-lost daughter he misses but that is not made completely clear.

Did you know that Jabba the Hutt is also a dad? That was a new revelation in the movie of The Clone Wars that preceeded the release of the TV series. Little Rotta the Hutt, nicknamed "Stinky" by Ahsoka Tano, was only an infant at the time and perhaps the rest of his story will be told at a later time. It's really hard to imagine crime lord Jabba as a father, but it's true!

Who is your favourite Star Wars dad? Who did we miss? Leave a comment below...

Read, You Must: Queen's Peril

In follow-up to last year's Queen's Shadow, author E.K. Johnston (Star Wars: Ahsoka) has further chronicled the early career of Padmé Naberrie aka. Queen Amidala with her latest YA book from Disney/Lucasfilm Press: Queen's Peril.

It is forgivable after the open ending of Queen's Shadow to have assumed that this novel would continue the Padmé story chronologically, getting closer to the events of Attack of the Clones. Instead Queen's Peril is set many years before, and details Padmé's election to become Queen of Naboo, then her early days as ruler. The two books seem to be part of a series but could be read individually or in chronological order, not necessarily in release order.

Although the main characters are a several years younger than they were in Queen's Shadow, this is also a young adult novel with young adult themes and language. 

The events of Queen's Peril lead right up into, and overlap with, much of The Phantom Menace. If it's been a while, it might be worth a rewatch of Episode 1 before readers dive into this book. Many moments in this book happen between-the-scenes of the movie moments and presume the reader knows that part of the story already.

Author E.K. Johnston

Tensions grow between the newly-elected Queen and increasing threats from the Trade Federation, and Naboo becomes far from the safe haven for arts and culture it usually is.

The heart of Queen's Peril is the formation of Amidala's security team, especially her group of handmaidens. Partly bodyguards, partly companions and friends, the team of young teenagers must learn to work together, live together and utterly trust each other. None of those are always simple.

Despite the fact that the handmaidens were selected for their ability to blend together and be interchangeable, Johnston does a good job of giving each of them a truly developed personality and story. They all have their strengths and weaknesses, and the story does much to humanize the whole team.

The main focus of personal tension arises between Padmé and handmaiden Sabé. Then there is the frequent friction between Amidala, and the handmaidens' other boss, Captain Panaka.

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Captain Quarsh Panaka and his wife Mariek play key roles not only in the Naboo security force but in the events that unfold here. Along the way there are also interwoven moments featuring Darth Maul, Jar Jar Binks, Qui-Gon Jinn, Anakin Skywalker, Yoda and more, as each story builds ultimately towards the Battle of Naboo, and the return of the Sith.

With the publication of Queen's Peril, Canadian author E.K. Johnston now has the distinct title of being the most prolific Star Wars YA author (at least until Claudia Gray's High Republic novel comes out this fall). Let's hope we keep seeing more from this talented voice in the galaxy!

Although not an illustrated book, a word of praise must also be said for the hauntingly beautiful front and back cover art by Tara Phillips.

(Publisher’s Recommendation: Ages 12 and up)