What Are the Best Star Wars Books for a First Time Reader - Star Wars Explained #Shorts

I get asked all the time what are the best introductory Star Wars books for someone who has never tried them out. Lost Stars by Claudia Gray is fantastic and a good way to ease into the publishing world, because it’s a retelling of the original trilogy from basically background characters’ perspectives. The High Republic is a new series that is only two adult novels in so far. They’re fantastic, and it’s a good jumping off point because you don’t need to know any other Star Wars story to enjoy them. If you want to dive into Legends, Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn shouldn’t be missed. It’s basically the reason Star Wars books became such a big deal, and it will fill you in on Grand Admiral Thrawn before he appears on Disney Plus. And my personal favorite Star Wars books are the old Legends X-Wing series by Michael Stackpole and Aaron Allston. So there are a bunch of fast recommendations! I hope that helps!

#shorts
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[btmm]

For people that are fans of Clone Wars, i recommend Dark Disciple because is a directly adaptation of unfinished episodes of the Series that contains the fate of a very important character

[Kruemeleistee]

Lost Stars was a great start and it made me fall into the rabbit hole of Star Wars Novels.

[TheTrueNicklose]

NOTE: If you aren't an expert in the Star Wars universe, you'll be Googling ship names and alien species names a lot. (Speaking from personal experience)

[Frogotron]

Additionally: definitely try at least 1 audiobook as you ca get one for free, and they have very good production quality, and also clone wars fans should definitely consider starting with dark disciple

[waltmanasse-latham]

Light of the Jedi was my first Star Wars book and now I’m hooked! Definitely a great choice

[gavinsmith]

Great recommendations all around. Starting with the High Republic would be interesting.

[CarbonTactics]

Light of the Jedi is great on audible for those interested in giving it a shot. Mark Thompson is a narration genius.

[MCLegoboy]

I've only read one Star Wars book, and that was Dark Disciple. For the Clone Wars fans, while I still view it as nonessential, it is a great story following up on Asajj Ventress and Quinlan Vos, and all the characters' dialogue in the book sounds exactly how they would have been written for the voice recordings of the episodes the novel adapts.
Sadly, this was not the case for the Son of Dathomir comic, which feels very essential, but is all edge with some characters sounding a bit out of place.

[matepolcz]

If the person wants to read only one book: Master and Apprentice, Dooku: Jedi Lost, Force Collector. If a long story: The High Republic. Minimum the adult and young adult novels, and they can try the middle grade books maybe.

[teskinsgundamgarage]

The Replubic Commando series is really good. Some of my favorite quotes came from the.

[ljphoenix]

Read the full Aftermath Trilogy a couple years ago, actually really good, not too complex or niche, a good read for sure.

[JainaSoloB]

If we're including graphic novels, Darth Vader: Lord of the Sith by Charles Soule is one of the very best SW stories imo, and all you need to understand it is to have seen Revenge of the Sith, basically. If we're sticking to books, Bloodline by Claudia Gray is a fantastic political thriller about Leia set between RotJ and TFA💜

[thesharpercoder]

I am pleased to see Alex mention “Heir To The Empire”. That trilogy of novels is what jump started the Star Wars EU, , and the prequel films.

But, I would love to know why he did not mention the non-canon novels surrounding the Ep.3 film, Revenge of the Sith. Depending on your point of view, there are 2, 3, or 4 novels in this series.

There are two novels that tell the Battle of Coruscant and the fall of the Jedi Order. These are “Labyrinth of Evil” and “Revenge of the Sith”. Revenge of the Sith is quite different from the film.

The other two novels can be regarded as a prequel and a sequel. The “Darth Plagueis” novel is a prequel. And, “Darth Vader: Lord of the Sith” can be regarded as a sequel.

I cannot believe Alex did not mention any of these four novels.

[k-dawgwestmore]

I highly recommend checking out the Darth Plagueis novel and the Darth Bane trilogy if you’re more into the Force and the darkside. I’d describe Plagueis as being a Noir/Gangster film set in the Star Wars universe. It’s gritty and cold and is a satisfying slow burn. The Darth Bane trilogy is sort of the Breaking Bad of the Star Wars universe. You follow a protagonist who begins as being somewhat relatable and but becomes more and more terrible as the series goes on.

[camerongodsey]

Would definitely put Kenobi on there.

Very small scale story that doesn’t go crazy with the Jedi or the Force. Easy to jump in and read without any real context, and it’s one of the best books to boot.

[Some_Call_Me_Pietro]

And if you love Clone Wars, Dark Disciple as it's literally a book adaptation of the unfinished Clone Wars arc.

[CT]

I'm a Star Wars reader for quite some time and I still haven't read any of the mentioned. 😂

[DougWilliams]

Agreed on Lost Stars and Heir to the Empire.

[Mikky_y]

Always loved 'Labirynth of Evil'

A great story that leads right into Revenge of the Sith.

[iluvyummywaffles]

Lost Stars, Light of Jedi and new Thrawn books are my fav canon books