Read, You Must: The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear!

Author Tom Angleberger returns to the galaxy far, far away with an exciting and entertaining adventure novel The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear!

Longtime readers of this blog know how much we love his best-selling Origami Yoda series of books. He has also written a young reader adaption of Return of the Jedi entitled Beware the Power of the Dark Side! We even had a chance to talk to him on our podcast a few years back.

Fear not! Despite the creepy title, fans of Angelberger's humour will not be disappointed with the The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear!, and his love of the entire Star Wars galaxy shines here too.

Set between the events of the movies Solo and Rogue One, this 261-page middle-grade novel from Disney/Lucasfilm Press sends the beloved wookiee on a high-paying job that seems to good to be true. Turns out it's all a trick to accomplish a very dangerous mission for powerful, dishonest people.

Very dangerous cargo - TOOKAS!

 

Whatever you call it, stay away!

Chewbacca is separated from Han Solo and unwittingly teamed up with Rogue One's K-2SO, a young adventurer named Mayv, and a shipload of tookas - cat-like creatures seen in The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels. What starts as an easy mission quickly becomes a run-for-your-life nightmare of creatures, bigger creatures, and then insanely big creatures!

Everyone seems to have a hidden agenda here, except for the mighty Chewbacca of course, and even those who seem to be working together have secret plans they hide from the team.

While this is really Chewbacca's story, most of the laughs come from the droid K-2SO with his deadpan commentary and inability (or unwillingness) to comprehend the behaviour of living things. Although Han Solo isn't the star here, fans will enjoy his part in the story and Rogue One's Cassian Andor is also key to this tale.

Many authors of Star Wars books have faced the challenge of how to reproduce Chewbacca's "talking" on a written page. Wookiee-speak, or "Shyriiwook", is very difficult to spell for readers! This is probably the main reason there have been very few books focusing on the beloved character over the past 40 years!

Angelberger has found a fun approach, making the narrator a central figure who speaks directly to the reader. He not only translates Chewie's many different growls and roars but also sneakily shares story details along the way. At times the reader knows more, sometimes much more, than the characters which helps build the excitement as they are about to get themselves in further trouble!

Fans of the recent Adventures in Wild Space series, or the classic Galaxy of Fear novels from the 1990's, will certainly appreciate the creepy chills and thrills hiding around every corner, or lurking in the next tree. The young team-member Mayv has to conquer terrors along the way that don't frighten wookiees (dangerous heights) or droids (hungry snarlers) and complete the mission for her own reasons.

The book contains a few exciting two-tone illustrations by Andie Tong, usually depicting the heroes of the story in escalating peril! The images leave the reader wishing there were just a couple of more pictures to enjoy along the way.

For those looking for connections to the Solo movie (this book was released in conjunction with the movie) the terrifying "snarlers" appear to be the same creatures referred to as Corellian Hounds, introduced onscreen in the early scenes in Solo.

If you're looking for a fun, exciting, funny, and occasionally scary adventure, The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear! is certainly the book for you!
Highly recommended!

(Publisher's recommendation: Ages 8-12)

Also by Tom Angleberger

"At last we have the Mighty Chewbacca!" - Jabba the Hutt

Read, You Must: Guardians of the Whills

For fans of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, learning more about the new characters and worlds from the movie is a welcome treat. The duo of characters Jyn Erso encounters in Jedha City, Chirrut Îmwe and Baze Malbus, have particularly intriguing pasts only hinted at onscreen.

Now those two are the stars of their own middle-grade novel from Disney-Lucasfilm Press, Guardians of the Whills by Greg Rucka (Before the Awakening, Smuggler’s Run).

Baze and Chirrut were a part of a group called the Guardians of the Whills, sworn to protect the sacred Kyber temple on Jedha. They are not Jedi themselves, but they do seem to be sharply attuned to some aspects of the Force, especially Chirrut. Since the Empire has taken over Jedha City and closed the temple, the two men are uncertain of their purpose or their future.

The story takes place before they meet Jyn or Cassian Andor. Under Imperial rule, Jedha City is getting worse and worse. Violence is escalating while food and water are becoming scarce. People are scared, hungry and losing hope. Baze and Chirrut find themselves helping an ever-growing group of children who have lost their parents in the conflict.

In order to protect the orphans they make a risky agreement with the potentially dangerous Saw Gerrara and his rebels. They all want to get rid of the Empire but Saw has some drastic ideas of how to fight them.

Also by Greg Rucka

Author Greg Rucka treats the story very seriously and doesn’t soften it for young readers. Where on TV Star Wars Rebels gives some idea how planets suffer under Imperial control, here readers get much more a real sense of that suffering. This book is difficult to describe without making it sound overly bleak. There’s tragedy, hardship and fear all around. That is the reality of war even in a fictional galaxy.

Chirrut is the main voice of hope though and his strong faith is uplifting when others around him feel so defeated. Indeed the story is at times heavy but the overall serious tone is very effective in building the tension right up to the final moments!

There’s no real reason to expect a happy ending, but Chirrut and Baze never lose hope that trying something nearly impossible is still possible. There’s always hope, a key theme of Rogue One, and Star Wars overall.

Some readers looking for lighter fun and adventure may want to look at books like Join the Resistance and the Adventures in Wild Space books. Guardians of the Whills is a complicated story about two aging men of faith and their struggles to find meaning. They deal with complex issues like when, if ever, is violence justified? The answers don’t come easy as Chirrut often points out, the cost may be too high.

Rucka particularly shines during the dialogue between Chirrut and Baze. He has perfectly captured their voices as they spoke in Rogue One. Chirrut always has a deeper twist in his sometimes puzzling statements. Baze is no-nonsense and quick to the point. They debate like only two life-long friends can.

Guardians of the Whills is a philosophical Star Wars novel and a captivating character story. It will certainly appeal to young readers who like to ponder the big questions of life, and probably a lot of adults too.

(Publisher’s Recommendation: Ages 9+)

Hunting and Collecting Rogue One Action Figures From the Past (Part 2)

(Warning: this article contains spoilers about Rogue One)

Rebellions are built on hope...but action figure collections are built on hunting and research!

Whether you’re playing with them or making a diorama, there are some characters from Rogue One that unfortunately won’t be available officially in Rogue One action figure form anytime soon. But don't let that stop your fun!

Rogue One is filled with exciting new characters that already feel like they important parts of the Star Wars saga, but it also has brief appearances by many other familiar faces longtime fans will recognize.

In the first part of this article we looked at a few key characters like Tarkin, Mon Mothma & Leia and our tips for the best and easiest-to-find action figure versions of them.

Here’s a few more Rogue One characters you won’t see on pegs in regular toy departments anytime soon but with a little hunting online or at local collectible shops should be fairly easy to add to your collection:

Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba infamously picked a fight with the wrong Tatooine farmboy in Episode 4 and proved Obi-Wan correct in his statement that the cantina could “get a little rough”. They are on screen only briefly in Rogue One but again they seem to be looking for trouble, this time in Jedha City.

Photo by Rebelscum.com

There have been a few versions of Dr. Evazan made over the years starting with the first version back in 1997 while Ponda Baba has been a Star Wars action figure since 1978. Originally, he was named “Walrus Man” by Kenner back then (older fans will still call him that!) and has been recreated several times since.

One of the easiest ways to get both characters would be to find Hasbro's 1997 Cantina Showdown 3-pack that includes Dr. Evazan, Ponda Baba and an action-ready Obi-Wan Kenobi. Despite being produced 20 years ago, this set is still fairly easy to locate and not particularly expensive. Otherwise, loose versions of both characters are also fairly common.

Photo by Rebelscum.com

Although they never say a word onscreen in Star Wars movies, the Emperor’s Royal Guards are still an imposing sight in their solid red armor and robes. In Rogue One, the guards are doing what they do best – guarding Darth Vader while he is inside his healing chamber.

The original 1983 Kenner Emperor’s Royal Guard figure (shown here) is still fairly easy to find but so are the later versions, including the 2005 Revenge of the Sith edition. Every version of these guards is pretty good, so it may come down to if you want a cloth or rubber robe, or simply whatever you can find at a reasonable price.

Photo by Rebelscum.com

Another character to debut onscreen in 1977 but not made into an action figure until much later is John “Dutch” Vander, aka Red Leader. Most recently he was part of Hasbro’s Black Series toy line. He didn’t get to do a lot in Rogue One but for longtime fans seeing him back on the big screen – even momentarily - was reason to celebrate!

It wouldn’t be Star Wars without the beloved droid duo of R2-D2 and C-3PO showing up somewhere, and in Rogue One they appear for just a moment on Yavin 4 before the big battle. Both characters have been made as action figures many times over, starting in 1978, and are usually widely available.

Photo by Rebelscum.com

With the exception of the Episode 1 and 2 versions, and a red arm for his The Force Awakens edition, C-3PO figures usually look pretty much the same as in Rogue One. R2-D2 has had many versions that highlight specific features and gadgets he uses but again, they all pretty much work for Rogue One play.

Although the C-3PO isn't nearly as shiny as other versions, one of the easiest ways to get both droid characters would be the 2014 "Mission Series" 2-pack (seen here).

There’s no wrong way to play Star Wars so use whoever and whatever you can find to recreate Jedha in a dirt pile or Scarif on your next visit to a beach. Have fun and, as always, may the Force be with you!

Got a favourite character from Rogue One you’d like to see Hasbro make? Comment below!