The World According to Star Wars: The New York Times Bestseller on Fathers, Childhood, Rebellion, and Redemption

by Cass R. Sunstein

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER FULLY REVISED & UPDATED, WITH A NEW EPILOGUE "Delightful." ― The Economist There’s Santa Claus, Shakespeare, Mickey Mouse, the Bible, and then there’s Star Wars. Nothing quite compares to sitting down with a young child and hearing the sound of John Williams’s score as those beloved golden letters fill the screen. In this fun, erudite, and often moving book, Cass R. Sunstein explores the lessons of Star Wars as they relate to childhood, fathers, the Dark Side, rebellion, and redemption. As it turns out, Star Wars also has a lot to teach us about constitutional law, economics, and political uprisings. In rich detail, Sunstein tells the story of the films’ wildly unanticipated success and explores why some things succeed while others fail. Ultimately, Sunstein argues, Star Wars is about freedom of choice and our never-ending ability to make the right decision when the chips are down. Written with buoyant prose and considerable heart,  The World According to Star Wars  shines a bright new light on the most beloved story of our time.

Genres: Nonfiction, Star Wars, Philosophy, Audiobook, History, Pop Culture, Politics

235 pages, Paperback

First published May 31, 2016

About the author

Cass R. Sunstein is an American legal scholar, particularly in the fields of constitutional law, administrative law, environmental law, and law and behavioral economics, who currently is the Administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs in the Obama administration. For 27 years, Sunstein taught at the University of Chicago Law School, where he continues to teach as the Harry Kalven Visiting Professor. Sunstein is currently Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, where he is on leave while working in the Obama administration.

Reviews

[Amy H. Sturgis · Rating 1 out of 5]

There's a word for this kind of book: opportunistic. There's another one, too: disappointing.

"Shameless" also comes to mind.

This work has two main ingredients. The first includes sections of brief, shallow, and uninspired analysis of Star Wars; listen to a random episode from any of a dozen Star Wars fan-produced podcasts, and you'll received better informed and more thoughtful discussion of the complexity of and big ideas behind that galaxy far, far away. For that matter, all of the subjects in this book have been discussed elsewhere in previous books with far more depth and insight. There is not one square inch of new ground covered here. Not one. If my undergraduate students produced some of the rushed and shoddy commentary offered in this book in their rough drafts, I'd advise them to go back to basics, do their research, and try again.

The second main ingredient in this work is even more insulting. In certain sections Sunstein offers a brief statement about Star Wars, following by a tortured segue that leads to a subject he actually knows something about, and then a long commentary on that other subject. By throwing in a reference to Star Wars at the beginning and ending of what were obviously independent and unrelated pieces, he seems to assume Star Wars fans will be duped into overlooking the fact he's simply getting another publication to his credit by rehashing his previous (and clearly non-Star Wars-related) work. This is not, as the title claims, The World According to Star Wars; it's The World According to Sunstein with Occasional Mention of Star Wars to Lure Fans into Buying a Book Unrelated to Their Interests.

This is the kind of work that gives media studies a bad reputation.

Sunstein isn't even a fanboy. No, knowing what "a Boba Fett" is does not make one a hardcore enthusiast, as he asserts. I could walk into my local Target right now and buy a Boba Fett t-shirt, desk lamp, and bedspread. I think it's safe to say that Boba Fett is mainstream and accessible to a wide segment of the general population.

I should have guessed how useless this work was by the repeated mentions of it as a "light" book by various Star Wars podcasts and reviewers. This isn't just light, though. Compared to other commentaries and analyses out there in the Star Wars literature, it's intellectually weightless.

I read it so you don't have to. Now go forth and enjoy something better!

[Paige · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm so mad about this book. I listened to the audiobook and I don't usually take notes, but I just had to this time. Let's just do bullet points, because it's easier and I'm mad.

•Mispronunciation:
This guy messed up SO MANY names and places. It would be super easy to get them right, simply watch the movies or google how to say it. It was honestly inexcusable. A partial list of mispronounced words:
Qui-Gon, Padawan, Calrisian, Padme, Tatooine, and, UNBELIEVABLY, C3PO.
•The author had this smug attitude and kept implying that he knows EXACTLY how the whole series turns out. At one point, he flat out stated that Rey is a Skywalker. Not only is there no way to prove this, but I find it highly irresponsible to publish stated as fact. He continually put in phrases like "it'll happen, just you wait", and things like that.
Speaking of smug, apparently this guy used to work in the Obama administration, and he name dropped Obama every chance possible. It was too much.
•The book is basically a bunch of bullet points, with little to no analysis of Star Wars. The analysis that is there is not new or fresh. I have read/seen/heard virtually all of this all over the Internet over the years. I've had in depth, at length discussions with friends and relatives about many of the topics covered, and for that matter, many topics that weren't (but that I hoped would be). It honestly felt like a rip off.
•After the bullet points, it dissolved into I don't even know what. It read like the guy knows a lot about constitutional law and behavioral science, and he wanted to talk about that. He then would say "which is like in Star Wars when..." This isn't what I wanted from the book. I wanted the book to take something from Star Wars and say "which is like when this thing happened (in real life)..."
•It was a bait and switch. It felt like I was lied to. I wanted a book about how Star Wars has shaped the world. What I got was a bunch of rambling about things I didn't care about with a Star Wars reference sprinkled in every so often.
•Also some bullshit about Vader being the best character by far and "no one else even coming close"? Excuse me, that's bullshit. You can't make a claim like that in a franchise with such a rich cast of characters. Tell me that Leia Organa didn't have a massive cultural significance. Try to tell me that Han Solo doesn't have a massive and devoted fan base. Go ahead and say that Yoda isn't one of the most instantly recognizable characters ever made. Tell me Chewie isn't iconic. I was offended, honestly. It felt like to elevate Vader's significance, he was putting down the other characters, and the great thing about Star Wars is that there's no need to do that because they are ALL GREAT.* They can shine individually without dragging down the others.

In short: fuck you, dude. Star Wars is the shit.

*obviously except for Jar Jar

[Chris Leroux · Rating 2 out of 5]

Imagine your most annoying fanboy friend trying to convince you that Star Wars is awesome. That’s this book. Sunstein touches on a number of random topics in an effort to prove his points; the most bizarre section involves his other apparent passion: constitutional law. There's also a Skrillex quote thrown in for good measure, in the book's oddest aside. There’s nothing concrete here that fanboys don’t already know, and there’s no content compelling enough to convince non-fans to give the franchise another chance. I love Star Wars, but this book is less than 200 pages and was a beating for me to get through. It’s essentially a book written for everyone that will appeal to nobody.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great little unexpected book. I was expecting just a history/lore of the franchise, and it is that, but there is also a lot here that reminded me more of But What If We're Wrong? Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past, than of George Lucas: A Life. There are some pretty interesting chapters discussing why it became a phenomenon that are more analyzing human behavior than the movies, some philosophy of free will, as well as the politics of strict constitutionalism and Scalia. It doesn't sound like it should all go together, but it does very well.

[Viktória Larišová · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was everything, all the time, and all over the place. Opportunistic at best, plain and pure author self-praise at worst. Jesus why.

[Viktor Stoyanov · Rating 2 out of 5]

След последното Star Wars кино исках да си оправя вкуса с някоя по-стойностна книга в тематиката. Да не ми е това споменът за завършек на сагата.

Не се получи с тази. Не можах да видя оригинална идея, или обяснение на феномена. Камо ли някакво поучително сравенение с междучовешки отношения, за каквито книгата има претенция. Напънът за обяснението на конституционно право през Star Wars повече ме забавлява, отколкото да ми даде експертиза по темата. Оценявам положително единствено чистия, ясен език на разказване, колкото и скучен да бе, или скачащ от една тема в друга.

Някакви препоръки за качествено четиво от Star Wars света?

[Anna Smithberger · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really solid look at Star Wars in our world and at our world through the lens of Star Wars. Enjoyable, and pretty quick. I only have one small bone to pick with Mr. Sunstein and that is: ATTACK OF THE CLONES IS BY FAR THE WORST OF THE STAR WARS MOVIES PHANTOM MENACE ISNT GOOD BUT IT ISNT THE TRAVESTY OF EPISODE II. ATTACK OF THE CLONES IS PAINFUL TO WATCH AND HAS BY FAR THE MOST AWKWARD DIALOGUE.

There.

[Valentín Muro · Rating 3 out of 5]

I deeply enjoyed revisiting the Star Wars Universe with such a refreshing view. What made the book a bit like Return of the Jedi is that for moments it feels as if it has too much filler, and the pacing can feel a bit slow —even more so if we compare it with the exhilarating pace of the movies!

In any case, it makes for a great read —and a great gift— in spite of these things.

[Jeronimo Oliva Velez · Rating 3 out of 5]

From a galaxy far far away, a good book about the conections beetween the World and Fantasy but not brilliant and Star Wars always demands perfection.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

~Disclaimer: I got this book for free in a giveaway~

Kinda conflicted. I went back and forth from 2 stars to 3 stars. And ultimately decided on 3 stars FOR ME. AKA someone who has not read extensively about the Star Wars universe, but is a fan of the films.

If you are well read skip this book. It will offer you nothing.

Moving on......

This book really isn't as focused on Star Wars as it wants you to believe. It is clearly a cash grab. But it starts off good. The first bit I actually enjoyed as it talked about the behind the scenes of Star Wars and about the Hero's Journey aspects of Star Wars, but after that it felt apart and was a bit of a drag for me to read.

I just felt this book was more a general book with Star Wars examples thrown in to justify the title. It had some interesting things to say, but I was put out with the whole misleading premise. I suspect there are better books out there that touch on these topics and most certainly better books for Star Wars fans. I did like that this one made references to the most recent Star Wars films....even if there wasn't a lot.

[Betsy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just okay for me - not bad, but not really good either. The author comes across as a watered down Malcolm Gladwell. And I kept thinking throughout the book, "I really wish Gladwell was covering this instead of this guy..." Even though I'm not a diehard fan (I like to watch the movies every couple of years just to enjoy the story again), there wasn't a ton of new information in this book for me. It didn't seem like this guy was much of a diehard fan either, which made this book seem like the author was just looking for a way to make a buck.

[Kat V · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nobody likes Star Wars more than I do but this is vastly overstating its importance to the world already and it has me rolling my eyes before I get past the introduction. Money-grabbing and opportunistic, there is no new information here and very minimal analysis. Also- loving Episode VII is a trash take by people who have never read a real Star Wars book. Skip this. 2 stars

[Correen · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I took my son to see Star Wars, many years ago, I did not see anything but a captivating story with fantastic technical breakthroughs and great sound. This book taught me much. The reviews written by others tell the story better than I can.

[Liquidlasagna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cass Sunstein is one of the weirder writers out there

He's said so much crazy shit over the years, he's actually enjoyable reading.

one review that sticks in my mind said something like, imagine if someone never watched star wars, and never had an original thought, this would be the book.

All the bad reviews you see here are quite true... and it's sad to think that Sunstein just takes his own opinions, and squishes them through the lens of Star Wars [or even The Wizard of Oz] and comes out with what he claims are facts.

Honestly, if Sunstein wrote a book on the Philosophy of Star Trek, and you noticed that 90% of the book is the author's interpretation of the US Constitution, and trying to tie it into Shatner and Nimoy, would you be impressed?

Would you be impressed with him trying to hijack Starfleet for his own wacky bugaboos?

I think i'd rather read a Freudian interpretation of Star Wars....
others might prefer having their eyes poked out with a fork

Heck, watch Joseph Campbell talking about the Mythology of Star Wars, at least Lucas admitted to ripping off some of his ideas, and though i cringe at Campbell comparing the Greek Myths and everything else under the sun through the lens of Star Wars, at least it's a very decent television series of Campbell dealing with the film.

Honestly, lunatics on reddit have better things to say...

The book should simply be called

The World According to Cass Sunstein,
or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and added Star Wars in the Title so this Turd would Sell

---

Wikipedia says it all
that he's a complete nutcase

In one breath he's saying the movie Star Wars is all about Freedom of Choice, and in another breath he's saying that Freedom of Speech is dangerous.

And then he thinks that that the coronavirus is something that most people shouldn't worry about it, and don't change your travel plans.



Exhibit A:
Sunstein published frequently during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. On February 28, 2020, nearly a month after the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sunstein wrote for Bloomberg Opinion that "a lot of people are more scared than they have any reason to be" and that they have "an exaggerated sense of their own personal risk". He argued that "most people in North America and Europe do not need to worry much about the risk of contracting the disease." In his view, there was "no adequate reason" to change travel plans or other socioeconomic behaviors, since they risk "plummeting stock prices".

Exhibit B:
Conspiracy Theories and government infiltration

Sunstein co-authored a 2008 paper with Adrian Vermeule, titled "Conspiracy Theories," dealing with the risks and possible government responses to conspiracy theories resulting from "cascades" of faulty information within groups that may ultimately lead to violence... They go on to propose that, "the best response consists in cognitive infiltration of extremist groups", where they suggest, among other tactics, "Government agents (and their allies) might enter chat rooms, online social networks, or even real-space groups and attempt to undermine percolating conspiracy theories by raising doubts about their factual premises, causal logic or implications for political action."

The authors declare that there are five hypothetical responses a government can take toward conspiracy theories:
(1) Government might ban conspiracy theorizing.
(2) Government might impose some kind of tax, financial or otherwise, on those who disseminate such theories.
(3) Government might itself engage in counterspeech, marshaling arguments to discredit conspiracy theories.
(4) Government might formally hire credible private parties to engage in counterspeech.
(5) Government might engage in informal communication with such parties, encouraging them to help.

Sunstein and Vermeule also analyze the practice of recruiting "nongovernmental officials"; they suggest that "government can supply these independent experts with information and perhaps prod them into action from behind the scenes," further warning that "too close a connection will be self-defeating if it is exposed."

Sunstein and Vermeule argue that the practice of enlisting non-government officials, "might ensure that credible independent experts offer the rebuttal, rather than government officials themselves.... This position has been criticized by some commentators who argue that it would violate prohibitions on government propaganda aimed at domestic citizens.

......

Right there, you get an instant foul taste in your mouth for the author
loopy as they come

[Neil R. Coulter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Cass Sunstein is the rare academic who can communicate with any reader. His writing style is conversational and easygoing, without falling into, on the one hand, trendy blog-speak or, on the other hand, academic jargon. His writing is clear and truly a pleasure to read.

I also loved the content. Sunstein's musings on the meanings of Star Wars make a perfect companion volume to Chris Taylor's excellent How Star Wars Conquered the Universe. Taylor's book is more detailed, and better for the "true fan." Sunstein's book is more tangentially about Star Wars itself and doesn't go into much behind-the-scenes detail about the films.

Because I've spent so much of my life thinking about Star Wars, there are few perspectives I haven't thought of before. But Sunstein did help me see the movies from some different points of view. For example, I now see an interesting idea of government progressing through the trilogies that I hadn't noted previously. The prequel trilogy shows the failure of the Republic/Jedi. The original trilogy shows the failure of the Empire/Sith. And now Episode 7 shows a kind-of Empire and a kind-of Republic/Rebellion, which makes me wonder if the purpose of the new trilogy will be to say something much different about the ideal government. In these days as we see the European Union beginning to (perhaps) crumble, matched by dissension between states and the federal government in the USA, I wonder if Star Wars will become more relevant than I'd first thought as I watched (and was disappointed by) The Force Awakens last year.

I like Sunstein's point that one of the main points of Star Wars is personal choice. Everyone has free will, even though everyone is obsessed with talking about destiny, prophecy, and inevitability. Thus, it doesn't even matter whether Anakin is "the chosen one," or even what that means, because Anakin charts his course not according to inevitable prophecy but according to each choice he freely makes along the way. At the end of the first 6 movies, it really doesn't even matter which character you identify as having been "the chosen one." Is it really Anakin? Could it have been Obi-Wan? Luke? Yoda? Even Palpatine? You could reasonably construct a way to view any character as the chosen one, but what you're left with is the truer idea that each character has made a series of choices that led all characters to the conclusion that happened.

This relates to another idea Sunstein hinted at, that the "main character" of the story might shift from one character to another. So while most fans would affirm that The Big Story focuses on Skywalkers (either Anakin or Luke), Sunstein intriguingly suggests that perhaps we could view this as the Han Solo story instead. This transforms Han's final act in The Force Awakens from what initially seemed to me to be a boneheaded move (Could you honestly not see what was about to happen, Han??) to the culmination of Han's journey. His experience with Luke prepares him to make the same sacrifice that Luke made at the end of Episode 6. Luke let down his guard and believed wholeheartedly in the goodness buried somewhere in his father. In the same way, Han allows himself, against all logic and odds, to believe in Ben's goodness. Without Luke's example (discipleship?), the Han of Mos Eisley cantina would never have reached that noble end. So maybe these movies are really the story of a Solo becoming a believer, and maybe that was the true purpose of the Jedi--not to be distant, powerful protectors of nameless citizens, but to be humble examples, showing beings throughout the galaxy the right way to live.

Well . . . to be honest, I don't trust the filmmakers to think about the story that deeply, and I assume the new trilogy will conclude with explosions and bad guys dying and everything continuing more or less as it has. But I would love it if the next two movies would challenge viewers with some of these different perspectives and potential meanings.

Anyway, you can see how Sunstein's book really got me thinking. It was surprising and refreshing. I recommend The World According to Star Wars to any fan, whether die-hard or casual. It's well worth the time and may lead you to some interesting places.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting book about the movie franchise Star Wars. The author Cass Sunstein is both a professor of constitutional law and a fan of Star Wars. The two things do not seem to go together well, but Cass makes them work. This book was published in 2016 before the last two movies in the series were released, so Cass did not have the benefit of seeing how the conclusion. I think the book would have been a little more well-rounded if Cass had had the benefit of waiting for Episode 8 and 9.

In the first few chapters, Cass made many, many arguments about how Star Wars' A New Hope was the best movie ever made. He explains how movie executives limited the number of theaters that received the movie when it was first released. He also explained that the movie became a huge box office success, mostly as a result of word of mouth reviews by average people (before tweets and Facebook). Most mega-Star Wars fans know the story of the making of the movie. But do they know how Star Wars can be compared to the Supreme Court justices who make court ruling that have the potential to impact the US Constitution? I have to admit that the chapter on constitutional law was pretty deep, as was the chapter on rebellions, which discussed protests and uprisings that seemed to have been pulled straight from last week's headlines.

The best chapters are the ones where Cass talks about family relationships and redemption and the meaning of Star Wars. Most of Cass' writing has a real, breezy, casual flow. But I think the book title may be a little misleading. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone who is expecting a straight Star Wars book. Anyone who is interested in thinking outside the box might enjoy the book. I happen to be reading his wife's book The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir, so I feel like an I am getting a little different perspective on the personal lives of this truly fascinating couple.

[Luke Johnson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was kinda surprised that "The World According to Star Wars" actually has very little to do with the world according to Star Wars. Instead, it's a lot to do with Sunstein expressing his own opinions about why Star Wars is so popular and what he feels is the over-arching themes of the films. Sometimes I agree with him, the vast majority of the time I don't. I consider myself a pretty die hard SW fan though I don't follow it as religiously as I did twenty years ago when I was a teen and had money to burn on comic books and merchandise.

If TWAtSW really did live up to the title why does Sunstein waste so much time recounting early drafts from Lucas that never panned out into the movies we know and love today? Why are we, once again, POINTLESSLY ranking the films. Why are going on about theories that Jar Jar Binks is an evil Sith Master controlling Palpatine, Dooku, and Anakin Skywalker from behind the scenes? Why are we talking about the Star Wars: Infinities comic books put out by Dark Horse Comics which, though fun at times, tell us "butterfly effect" stories when a major scene from the films gets changed with one of our heroes not surviving? This is irrelevant. This doesn't have any effect on the world we live in today.

Also, why are we spilling so much time about themes present in the films? Yes, they exist, and Sunstein even gets a few right in my opinion (namely fathers and sons). But if you were to ask me why SW has become such a large part of the American (nay, Earthly) Experience is because it is a classic story of Good vs Evil, just like the Bible or Folklore and Fairytales. The good guys wear white and the bad guys were black just like a classic Western movie. The only one who mentions this theme is Newt Gingrinch. And speaking of politics, Sunstein use to work in the Obama White House, so expect a fair amount of Obama ass kissing.

But if all that isn't bad enough - why the FUCK are we talking about Star Trek in a Star Wars book? So Star Wars fans do yourself a favor, and don't waste your time.

[Sarah Kline · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is great for someone with a short attention span, topics are discussed only for a short amount of time so its impossible for them to become boring. Every chapter was interesting and detailed enough to be the start of it's own book, but the ideas were contradictory and confusing. It was nearly impossible to "get into" the book because of the regularly changing topic. It felt like someone took a bunch of online Star Wars fan theories, a sprinkle of fun facts and just a pinch of misleading chapter titles, shoved it in between two pieces of cardboard and called it a book.
Though this book starts with a thesis, it's hard to see how any of the details support the original idea. Topics were interesting by themselves but were hard to understand and follow. Cass R. Sunstein, the author of this book didn't give enough time or space for any topics or discussions to develop. He brings up topics like Islam, the bible, feminism etc. and how they relate to Star Wars, and although it was interesting to read it was ruined by lack of organization and structure. If you love reading about Star wars and learning things you may not already know about it, then this book is great! I'd recommend reading 1-2 "sections" per day at most, if not the confusing ideas will bleed together and give you a head ache. Good luck and may the force be with you. (trust me you'll need it.)

[April Poole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book blew me away. It was absorbing, intelligent, passionate and well researched. I didn't intend to read it (it's a gift for someone) but after reading the introduction I was hooked. The research and socio-political analysis are impeccably researched, and fascinating. The author's passion for Star Wars seeped off every page, and reminded me of how incredible it really is. Even as a casual Star Wars fan, I was invigorated and absorbed into the history and analysis of the movies. If you like Star Wars even a little bit or find its success and backstory interesting, this is the book for you. I truly can't recommend it highly enough.

[Crïs November · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nunca he sido muy del mundo de Star Wars pero he acabado con ganas de ver todas las películas y descubriendo mucha más historia de la que pensaba que tenían las trilogías. Sin duda, salir de tu zona de confort y aprender sobre aquello que desconoces te hace abrir la mente y descubrir un mundo fabuloso. Además, la forma en que está escrito no se hace en ningún momento aburrida y tiene puntos hasta de humor. Muy recordable para toda persona que ame Star Wars y aquellos que como yo han querido aprender a través de sus páginas.

[Hillary Copsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first part, when he's basically giving you the history of Star Wars getting made and becoming a hit. The parts talking about the gap between Lucas's initial vision and the final product were interesting. The back half of the book is rambling and sometimes, he's stretching to make a point.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

It reads a little like a textbook for a fun college course you wish had existed, and that is not meant as a complaint or insult. Interesting and occasionally thought-provoking.

[Lucas · Rating 3 out of 5]

A World According to Star Wars was a very well written book. Cass. R Sunstein, the author, did a great job of connecting the Star Wars films to real life. I enjoyed the book and found it fascinating that some aspects of Star Wars are very closely related to pop culture and the modern world. Despite these facts, I thought that the book had too much information crammed into such a small book. Because the book was not very long, it felt as though the amount of information was inappropriate for it's size. However, I did like the book and would recommend it to any die hard Star Wars fan because it truly opens you eyes to some of the very significant messages hidden away in the Star Wars films.

A World According to Star Wars is a nonfiction novel that explains some of the ideas in the Star Wars movies. Sunstein, a big Star Wars fan, published the novel in 2016. It was very informative and I think that Sunstein did a great job of explaining a fictional series in a nonfiction book. He revealed that many of the fictional elements of Star Wars were based upon events that took place in the real world. Sunstein has a unique style of organizing his writings. He had long chapters broken up into smaller sections. I thought that this was an interesting way of breaking up large chunks of information and making them smaller and easier to handle, even though it felt that sometimes the information was crammed into a small section.

(Blue Section)

[Zach]

The World According to Star Wars.
I selected this book because it was written recently. Often summer reading lists included only books written a long time ago. I am familiar with the Star Wars films. I liked the book because it covered topics like politics, parent-child relationships and Star Wars symbolism. Sometimes it was a humorous book which lightened the mood when discussing things like father-son relationships. Sometimes parents and kids don’t talk for a long time. The author says not to do this because you will regret it later. George Lucas the creator and of Star Wars was not on good terms with his dad because he did not go into the family business.

The author uses the fictional story of Star Wars to explain real world situations and events. The main plot is that all can be forgiven between family members no matter what. To prove his point, the author includes facts and trivia about the making of his favorite Star Wars movies and stories from his own family life. He also uses quotes from the movie. The book showed me that Star Wars has many veiled messages about politics, life, humanity. “There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us.”, Martin Luther King Jr.

[Eddie Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like this book was meant for the older audience. What I mean by this is that there were a lot of times in the book where there were jokes that I did not get. Also, the word choice in the book was astonishing. I had to look up the meaning of so many words it was ridiculous. In the book I also liked how the author made connections with Star Wars and real life. I've never read a book that connected a movie to real life, it was very cool. After reading this book my perspective about Star Wars changed a little because of the connections being made to life on Earth. Overall this book was a good book to read.

The thing I noticed most in this book was word choice. Like I said in the previous paragraph, I don't think this book was made for a younger audience. I found some words that I didn't know and didn't even know how to pronounce. This made the book kind of difficult to read. But, it also made the book very interesting because it helped me see life in a different way using connections from Star Wars. Also, I couldn't really understand the flow of the authors words and I got a little frustrated but I kept reading. In conclusion, word choice was the only about this book that made it difficult to read but besides that this was a fairly good book. (Yellow Section)

[Jacob Bassin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jacob Bassin
Ms. Lotz
Section Yellow
23 August 2018
When I picked this book I thought that it was going to be about how George Lucas came up with Star wars and how it related to the real world. After reading it, it was just okay. It didn't do a good job of keeping me focused and engaged in the book. It was very off track and very repetitive.

It did not have a good central idea. You’d think that this book would purely be about Star Wars, but it felt like most of the book was about politics. Around 30-40 pages were purely about politics. Around 10 pages were about Harry Potter. It felt like the author only talked about the very beginning and the first movie when there is so much more he could’ve talked about so much more. There was 6 other movies to talk about at the time and he only talked about the beginning. It was interesting when it talked about Star Wars, but it didn’t feel like it was that often. I did not enjoy reading this book.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so good I feel that it should get a medal. The book was interesting throughout. If you have never seen star wars then you would not be so interested. But if you love star wars then you will love this book. The facts were funny and interesting. Like some of the quotes were from the original script where r2d2 actually talked. Some of the quotes were from George Lucas himself.

I also really liked the style of writing he used. He usually only used facts and it was like a persuasive essay. He would give a quote or oppinian then use fact to back it up. Like at one point in the book he started to talk about the fact that the movie A New Hope wasn’t supposed to succeed but it did. It was actually one of the top grossing movies in the entire franchise. He backs that up with hard facts and many quotes from actresses and actors from the movie.

[Lars Pedersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun short read. Don't expect new revelations or lore about the Star Wars universe. Rather it is a mixture of curious facts about the movies and description of how they relate to the world around them, supplemented by the authors own interesting reflections on them.
Recommended if you like Star Wars or the works of Cass Sunstein.

[Logan Ferrero · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall, this book was just fine. Although, it had a lot of information packed into a book
and I think some of it wasn’t necessary. I didn’t like how the author had too many complex
words that were hard to understand and boring. For example, words like “ostracized” or
“marginalized.” If I rated this book out of 100, I would rate this book a 77 out of 100.
One literary style I noticed from the author was how he separated different topics with a
mini title. I think this is a good strategy and format he used, and it was very organized. I give
kudos to him for that. Another thing I noticed was he put his personal opinion into the book. I
think that is a good kick to put into your book. People like hearing what people have
to say.

[J.J. Lair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short book but still redundant. He raises interesting questions like is a benign dictator better than the chaos of democracy? Is the original script better than revisions before the final? If not why is our original Constitution not subject to revision? What is magic or slight of hand?