So has anyone read the original books? I really want to but im scared, that at this point in my life they may ruin the movies and all my nostalgia.

The novelization of Star Wars is a little different. It was written by George Lucas and has some variant description of some elements. The Death Star is describes as having towers around the equator, one of which opened its "roof" and pulled the Falcon in.

The other two are more direct versions of the movies and have very few differences. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

The heir to the empire trilogy is pretty good, but has been contradicted by the prequel trilogy in references to clones and the details/history of the clone wars. I think I remember reading that they were written for people who had watched Star Wars as a kid and then grown up, as opposed to the child friendly prequels. They shouldn't mess up your Nostalga.

Unfortunately after that the quality gets quite mixed. You could probably get away with just reading the Timothy Zahn and Michael Stackpole books, although I recently reread the Stackpole Rogue Squadron series and it hadn't aged as well as I would have hoped. It does introduce some very interesting characters and will probably entertain a new reader though.

The novelization of Star Wars is a little different. It was written by George Lucas

Alan Dean Foster actually was the ghostwriter. Lucas had no time (or the ability) to do it himself.

I don't think you can go wrong with the novels of the Original Trilogy. Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan wrote ESB, and Lawrence Kasdan wrote RoTJ.

As Star Wars fans, we are just going to have to deal with the likelyhood that most of the EU stuff is going to be displaced by Episodes VII-IX. Since that is the case, it is easier for me to enjoy things that contradict "canon", like Zahn's books. In fact, after more than 20 years of attempting to read SW novels, the only ones that I really like (and keep in my library) are the Original Trilogy, Zahn's books and Stackpole's books.

That's just me, though.

I don't think you can go wrong with the novels of the Original Trilogy. Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan wrote ESB, and Lawrence Kasdan wrote RoTJ.

As Star Wars fans, we are just going to have to deal with the likelyhood that most of the EU stuff is going to be displaced by Episodes VII-IX. Since that is the case, it is easier for me to enjoy things that contradict "canon", like Zahn's books. In fact, after more than 20 years of attempting to read SW novels, the only ones that I really like (and keep in my library) are the Original Trilogy, Zahn's books and Stackpole's books.

That's just me, though.

It makes me sad that so much good writing will be nullified... but oh well. I expect that EU media placed in the Rebellion era and earlier will remain largely untouched with only some minor or bearable retcons.

I agree with everyone that Timothy Zhan's books are all excellent. I haven't read any of Stackpole's books yet but I consistently hear that they are good. I recently read "Death Star" which was a pretty interesting book that I really really enjoyed.

Skip the movie novelizations. You know those stories. If you are here, this is much more of interest to you:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_X-wing_(book_series)

Book 1:

Rogue Squadron by Michael A. Stackpole

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogue_Squadron_(novel)

$7.19 on Amazon right now: http://www.amazon.com/Rogue-Squadron-Star-Wars-X-Wing/dp/0553568019/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1379077832&sr=8-2&keywords=Rogue+Squadron

I have gotten all X-Wing book series, and i prefer the Rogue squadron novels (i think by Stackpole) over the Ghost Squadron books, even if i really like Piggy and Janson as characters.

I also just finished reading the Thrawn trilogy which is really nice. But i am kind of a Pilot Geek so i prefer Everything that turns around Starfighters and Wedgie Antilles XD

I just began to read the new "Mercy Kill" book but idk yet if it will convince me.

(Spoiler alert)

The original Characters must be really old by then and i amreally used to them. Even if Stackpole and to a lesser extend Zahn make them die at a good pace in the old books, i liked reading about them... I hope the book will not turn into a "Space Cowboys" or "RED".

I grew up reading the EU novels and playing the video games just as much as watching the movies. I'm not sure my enthusiasm for star wars would have been anywhere near as strong with just the films, the universe feels rather limited and not very well fleshed out without the EU.

That said, once the novels got to the New Jedi Order I pretty much lost interest, but there are plenty of books before that point. The only one I rememer really disliking was Planet of Twilight which pretty much put me to sleep the whole way through

After the New Jedi Order (Vong) stuff there is the Legacy series which is quite good. The same level of stakes of the NJO series, but pure jedi on sith style action (I'll say no more). It's similar in structure where it's a long series of books released in chronological order. There is a semi-unrelated to the overall plot one in there that fills in the history of the Falcon too.

I have gotten all X-Wing book series, and i prefer the Rogue squadron novels (i think by Stackpole) over the Ghost Squadron books, even if i really like Piggy and Janson as characters.

I also just finished reading the Thrawn trilogy which is really nice. But i am kind of a Pilot Geek so i prefer Everything that turns around Starfighters and Wedgie Antilles XD

I just began to read the new "Mercy Kill" book but idk yet if it will convince me.

(Spoiler alert)

The original Characters must be really old by then and i amreally used to them. Even if Stackpole and to a lesser extend Zahn make them die at a good pace in the old books, i liked reading about them... I hope the book will not turn into a "Space Cowboys" or "RED".

You mean Wraith Squadron. And as for Mercy Kill, don't worry too much about the age of the characters; there are very few of the original squad actually in Mercy Kill. They've got a mostly new team.

I've been reading Star Wars novels for 20 years, and there have been precious few that I didn't enjoy. I actually recently re-read the Rogue Squadron and Wraith Squadron series (thanks to X-wing for convincing me to pull those off the shelf again), and they're just as good as I remember them.

The only novels I wasn't a huge fan of were the ones right around the Darksaber time period. Children of the Jedi, The New Rebellion, Planet of Twilight (blech!), The Crystal Star.....none of those really did it for me. Of course, it's been 15 years since I picked those books up, so I might have to go re-read them now to see if I can pin down what I didn't like about them.

Without too much in the way of spoilers, I will say that I truly enjoyed the Legacy series, right up until the end. So anti-climactic.....

Ultimately, my favorites are the Han Solo trilogy: The Paradise Snare, Hutt Gambit, and Rebel Dawn. I've read these many times over the years, and they've one of the first recommendations I make to people wanting to get into Star Wars novels, along with anything by Zahn and Shadows of the Empire.

I could talk on this subject all day, so I'll leave it at that. For now.

I was really disappointed by the Legacy series, honestly, particularly tying it all in to the stupidest thing that ever surfaced in Clone Wars aside from George's Hutt-based homophobia. Better than the Caedus stuff though.

Skip the movie novelizations. You know those stories. If you are here, this is much more of interest to you:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_X-wing_(book_series)

Book 1:

Rogue Squadron by Michael A. Stackpole

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogue_Squadron_(novel)

$7.19 on Amazon right now: http://www.amazon.com/Rogue-Squadron-Star-Wars-X-Wing/dp/0553568019/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1379077832&sr=8-2&keywords=Rogue+Squadron

I second this.

I like all the X-wing books. Allston has a bit more humor in his books, which I am partial to. I dig the character development from both authors. Apparently Allston cried while writing one particular scene in Iron Fist . I cried, too -- so moving!

One other medium you might want to consider are the X-Wing Rogue Squadron comics, which are excellent.

I highly recommend the Han Solo trilogy by the recently passed AC Crispin. They are my Favorite SW books and have read them several times.

Skip the movie novelizations. You know those stories. If you are here, this is much more of interest to you:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_X-wing_(book_series)

Book 1:

Rogue Squadron by Michael A. Stackpole

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogue_Squadron_(novel)

$7.19 on Amazon right now: http://www.amazon.com/Rogue-Squadron-Star-Wars-X-Wing/dp/0553568019/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1379077832&sr=8-2&keywords=Rogue+Squadron

I second this.

I like all the X-wing books. Allston has a bit more humor in his books, which I am partial to. I dig the character development from both authors. Apparently Allston cried while writing one particular scene in Iron Fist . I cried, too -- so moving!

Well i was disappointed by the end of the Zsinj war. i don't wanna spoil it all here, but he lacked some balls there to just finish it off once and for all if you ask me. Also i guessed how it would end pretty much at the beginning of the last book because of this. You're right about the humour. Allistons books are as one might expect with the freely operating Wraiths much less narrow-focused than Stackpoles books. I am so happy they will release Janson as a pilot with the GR-75 because he was my absolute favorite. But i liked Stackpoles books and his focus on Corran horn still better. I can't really explain why though but i think he just stuffed out the space combat scenes better. And he didn't hesitate to sacrifice some of the rogues, but preserved the important ones till the end.

But i am with you, just watch the movies for the original trilogy and read the X-Wing Books they are really really worth it!

(By the way does anyone have the paint schemes of Rogue squadron when they were officially not flying for the New Republic when they were based on that space station, before they liberated Thyferra from Ysard? I just can't put them together just by reading the books. I found this ones:

http://swc.fs2downloads.com/sshot.php?subdir=Misc/Brand-X/&page=1&images=0&sort=ALPHA_ASC

But the pictures are kinda dark and you just see them from one side so it would be impossible to repaint some X-WIngs like that. By the way look at Inyri Forges and Tycho Celchu's X-Wings, they just look so badass i bet some Star destroyers just autodestructed when they saw them XD)

I highly recommend the Han Solo trilogy by the recently passed AC Crispin. They are my Favorite SW books and have read them several times.

I have not yet read those and i will definitely do it, thanks for the advice!

one warning though if you can either avoid karren traviss' books or go into them knowing that at some point she will show up with a 357 magnum point it at a characters head and gleefully pull the trigger. she continues to do so in the Halo novel universe.

one warning though if you can either avoid karren traviss' books or go into them knowing that at some point she will show up with a 357 magnum point it at a characters head and gleefully pull the trigger. she continues to do so in the Halo novel universe.

After the controversy over her mandalorian stuff, Ive thought about reading them to see how good they are, but didn't know where to start.

(By the way does anyone have the paint schemes of Rogue squadron when they were officially not flying for the New Republic when they were based on that space station, before they liberated Thyferra from Ysard? I just can't put them together just by reading the books. I found this ones:

http://swc.fs2downloads.com/sshot.php?subdir=Misc/Brand-X/&page=1&images=0&sort=ALPHA_ASC

But the pictures are kinda dark and you just see them from one side so it would be impossible to repaint some X-WIngs like that. By the way look at Inyri Forges and Tycho Celchu's X-Wings, they just look so badass i bet some Star destroyers just autodestructed when they saw them XD)

Excellent link! Thanks for sharing. I've seen the Fate of the Galaxy site several times but somehow missed the Rogue Squadron repaints. I think Rhysati Ynr's color scheme is suite! But Ooryl's is probably the best ever! I'm only partially joking -- wouldn't it be cool to have a white/gray X-wing with some kind of cool design that could only be seen with a black light?

I just started reading the X-Wing series. The nice thing is that there's a great used book store near us & I got each book for $.75.

Read the Thrawn Trilogy a few months ago. I think I also need to go and read the Jedi Academy series.

The X-Wing books and comics are really great - a lot of the pilots from X-Wing are pulled from them. Actually, it makes me a bit sad that Ten Numb is from the really awful Rogue Leader comic spinoff, but his ability and Pilot Skill are so much higher than the much cooler character Ibtisam.

If you want a good read that is quick, easy, and stars our favorite smuggler, The Han Solo series by AC Crispin is pretty good. It tells of Han from child to entering the cantina before episode 4 when we first meet him on screen. They will probably all be contradicted by the proposed "Han Solo movie" but they are still good. Also it is totally corny, but sets up the planets Dathomir and Hapes for the rest of the EU, so The Courtship of Princess Leia is one of my guilty pleasures.

All the star wars novels I've tried have been unreadable for me. I do like the dark horse comics though...

So has anyone read the original books? I really want to but im scared, that at this point in my life they may ruin the movies and all my nostalgia.

I read "A New Hope" the week before the movie came out. I burned through it in a day. If I recall correctly, there wasn't anything that ruined the movie. In fact, I think the book was written off the screenplay, so both were remarkably similar.

I read the next two books as soon as they came out. I can't say any of them were disappointing. And they sure built up anticipation for the movies!

Ah, and in the middle of all this, Alan Dean Foster wrote Splinter of the Mind's Eye. You certainly don't here much about that story. I don't even know if it is considered part of the EU. I think it was put out before all the writers started collaborating to get continuity across all the stories. I won't get into details, but things happened in that book that were made questionable by events in The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi.

If you like audiobooks YouTube has them all and they are free to listen too.