Star Wars is a big deal in our household as I’m sure it is in many other nerdy homes. As such, I try to keep a lot of Star Wars books around in hopes that my kiddos will grow up loving the franchise as much as I do. We have picture books, chapter books, and soon we’ll be getting early readers, too. And now we have two more books to add to our collection courtesy of becker&mayer! kids!
These are the kinds of books that make great gifts whether it’s for a birthday party, holiday, or just because. They’re the kind of books that will engage kids and let them explore the Star Wars universe that they love so much. They aren’t necessarily heavy in content but they’re essentially an experience in their own right. Kids have to engage with these books to read them.
Between the ‘in universe’ features of Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner’s Guide and the ‘who would win?’ dynamic of Star Wars Battle Cries: Creatures vs. Aliens, kids will have a lot of fun with these books!
Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner’s Guide
If your little Star Wars fans enjoy all the fantastic ships and technology from the series then they may just love Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner’s Guide. This is the second version of this book and it ties into the new trilogy with Rey and Chewie being the primary crew for the Falcon. Even so there are also a number of nods to the standalone film, Solo, as well as an older version that focused more on the original trilogy and Han Solo.
Each page – including the front cover – features an open window with cut-out images of the Millennium Falcon. With each successive page readers are introduced to new areas and functions within the ship. Numbered text boxes highlight features throughout while ‘in universe’ notes are added to the guide by previous owners (like Han Solo and Lando Calrissian) and passengers (like Leia Organa and Hondo Ohnaka).
Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner’s Guide is a fun little book full of little tidbits and lore. It’s also durable. Though it’s for older kiddos it’s essential a giant, over-sized board book. You still need to be careful with the cut-out pages but it’s definitely prepared to hold up to inquisitive hands. Kids who aren’t that technically minded may not find it that appealing but for kids who like to build models and read about how things work, this ‘in universe’ owners manual will match well with their Millennium Falcon models, toys, and LEGO sets.
Just make sure to keep a tissue handy when reading it with your kids. Because, if you’re like me, the final note from Han Solo included on the last page will absolutely wreck havoc with your emotions.
Authors: Ryder Windham and Cole Horton
Illustrators: Chris Trevas and Chris Reiff
Release Date: November 17, 2018
Publisher: becker&mayer! kids
GoodReads | Amazon
Star Wars Battle Cries: Creatures vs. Aliens
The littlest of Star Wars fans are bound to love sound books but who says the bigger kids need to be left out? Star Wars Battle Cries: Creatures vs. Aliens is a book with press-button sound effects meant for the older crowd. It reads almost like a kid-friendly, book based version of the Superfight card game asking the same question over and over: who would win in a fight?
Written by the prolific Star Wars scribe Pablo Hidalgo, Creatures vs. Aliens pits various intelligent aliens against vicious, largely unintelligent creatures. The result is a sort of stat book outlining the abilities, strength, and other attributes of different species before pitching them against one another. Each pairing features a two page spread focusing on the alien and creature separately before moving on to a second two page spread with a hypothetical meeting.
Your job as the reader is to look at the alien, the creature, the scenario, and then decide who would win. If you’ve got imaginative readers this could be a whole lot of fun. It’s also a fun way to get kids talking. However, be warned that if you’re kids aren’t into that aspect of the book there isn’t much more to it than the sound effects. Well, that and the adorable, original drawings!
Star Wars: Creatures vs. Aliens is a fun book and great for the right kind of reader. And if nothing else who doesn’t love pressing buttons and making roaring sounds?
Author: Pablo Hidalgo
Illustrator: Scott Park
Release Date: April 23, 2019
Publisher: becker&mayer! kids
GoodReads | Amazon
English