Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

The stories included in this collection are all adaptations of episodes of The Clone Wars animated show. While the stories here are told from the perspective of one character (leaving out any scenes from the shows where that character wasn’t present), the stories follow the shows pretty closely, even down to 80% or more of the dialogue. I was able to read along as I watched the episodes.

I read 6 of the stories, but found very few enhancements or *significant* additions to the stories. For example, in the first story, which is a retelling of the first episode of the show, we get Yoda’s musings on the nature of clones and individuality. But the additions, for me, didn’t add to my understanding of Yoda, or the event in the story, or the larger Star Wars universe in a significant way. I was supremely disappointed. I was hoping for NEW stories with favorite characters from this time period in the saga.

Initially I thought this might be a good fit for readers who have never seen the show. But if a reader’s only context is the movies, they might be lost as they encounter Clone Wars-only characters and contexts. The episodes referenced are from seasons 1, 3, 4 and 5. Your mileage may vary if you are brand new to the Clone Wars TV show stories.

I think the best reader for this book would be someone who enjoys novelizations. Reading about favorite moments from the show can be enjoyable for some who loved the series and are familiar with the characters and major events. But readers who are hoping for new content may be disappointed.

This book is comprised of 11 short stories, each one a novelization of an episode or arc from The Clone Wars (except one, more details later).

The authors are a mix of returning writers (Jason Fry, Zoraida Cordova, Rebecca Roanhorse and others), with newcomers to the galaxy such as Preeti Chhibber, Yoon Ha Lee and others, including Dave Filoni’s wife, E. Anne Convery.

Picking 11 arcs out of the entire series must have been nearly impossible, but the choices were made to highlight specific characters, Yoda, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Asajj Ventress, Maul, Dooku, etc. and they work well in general.

As novelizations themselves, they add another point of view, sometimes new information but in general all were very good.

The exception to the rule is “Bug”, Convery’s tale about a small outcast girl who befriends a Dathomir witch on the run after the coven’s destruction, which I found fascinating.

In short, this is a very good collection of stories, if you’re a fan of the characters or the TV series you definitely will not be disappointed.

The last story in the book, “Bug,” was apparently not included in the advance copies, which is a shame since it is the only original story, and it’s a good one. This Clone Wars anthology, intended for middle grade children, consists mostly of retellings of Star Wars: The Clone Wars episodes.

That doesn’t mean there’s little new here to enjoy. Most of the stories offer a new take or some new insight. In “Dark Vengeance,” for example, we are treated to Maul monologuing about his favorite subject, Obi-Wan Kenobi. “Kenobi’s Shadow,” a retelling of “The Lawless,” gives us a real glimpse at the anger – teetering toward the Dark side – Obi-Wan feels at the climactic event of that episode. It’s a perfect thematic accompaniment to Maul’s chapter. Other stories give readers a look at Yoda’s musings on the clones, Padme’s struggle to voice the war’s toll on the Republic, and Ventress’ search for direction after Dooku’s betrayal, just to name three.

As I mentioned previously, the last story in the book, called “Bug,” is original, and it’s probably my favorite of the bunch. It concerns the events of the episode “Massacre,” but the story is very much its own tale. If you’re a fan of the Nightsisters and Dathomir, you won’t want to miss it!

The audio version of this title is a great listen, as many actors from The Clone Wars series voice their respective characters’ chapters.

All in all, this is a nice collection of stories for younger readers, and would be a nice introduction to the prequel era or The Clone Wars series. However, there are things to make longtime fans smile, too.

Excellent Book for any Clone Wars Fanatics, The Book retells stories that are directly from the clone wars show. Overall still an amazing book perfect for any star wars fan!

Stories are based on episodes from the show narrated from characters perspectives (ex. Mauls perspective from when he was found by Savage Opress). Im really disappointed since I was expecting new stories, there was such much potential wasted.