Open Mysteries of the Jedi

Mysteries of the Jedi written by Elizabeth Dowsett and Shari Last; published by Dorling Kindersley, New York; 2011.

From the lightsaber duel on the end pages to the bleed pages rife with images from the Star Wars movie franchise, this book is an almost overwhelming source of information.  Can’t remember if a character is friend or foe?  It’s in here.  Want to know all the techniques for fighting with a lightsaber?  It’s in here.  This is not a book to be read in one sitting.  This is a reference book.  This is a book to return to just for reading the captions.

Star Wars continues to be a force for getting boys interested in books.  In just the past week, I’ve talked to the father of two early elementary aged boys that got the original trilogy for Christmas and came to the library for any of the DK or Eyewitness encyclopedia of all things Empire and Jedi.  I’ve had a mother beg me to order more Level 1 reader books about anything related to Star Wars.  I’ve had teenagers sheepishly ask if we have the Star Wars chapter books in.  Hooray for getting books in boys’ hands!  To tie in with this or any of the Star Wars books (fiction or non-fiction), be sure to check out the official website at www.StarWars.com.  There are games to play and content to watch.  It’s full of striking images and information.  In addition, DK has resources related to all of their Star Wars books.   I found an activity book full of puzzles, mazes, challenges and coloring pages (http://us.dk.com/static/cs/us/11/starwars/pdfs/dk_starwars_ActivityKit.pdf).  The materials will appeal to a wide age range.

This book will be checked out often.  I plan to make a display of all Star Wars related materials for this year’s summer reading program.  I hope you will too.  And may the Force be with you.