Li'l Orphan Boba

This young-reader series gives us insight into the events of young Boba Fett's life.
WARNING: Minor Spoilers

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Why, oh why, do these things come out in hard cover? The $10 price tag is sure to turn away many potential readers.

Then the writing might turn away the rest.

My main complaint about books for young readers is that they are so often written "down" to the kids. Not only is the sentence structure simplistic and the word choice limited in the extreme, but also the ideas and themes rarely touch upon anything requiring even a modicum of thought. It's no wonder the Harry Potter books sell like hotcakes; kids are hungering and thirsting for writing with imagination and style, something that challenges while being fun, and does not pull punches when it comes to real life troubles and ambiguities.

This book suffers from the dumbing down syndrome. Here's a passage to give you an idea:

     Boba knew about friends from books.
     Lots of books are about friends. Friends having adventures, making discoveries, or just hanging out.
     Sometimes Boba pretended to have friends. (Pretending is a form of wishing.)

That's too bad, really, because Bisson has done a clever job at setting up circumstances in such a way that it's believable for Boba Fett to be able to fly a starship, travel the galaxy, and have adventures. The first 92 pages of the book follow the plot of Episode II very closely, but from young Boba's viewpoint. We find out that Jango has been teaching Boba all about the bounty hunter's "craft" and how to fly the ship, etc. We also know that Jango has entrusted his knowledge to Boba in the form of numbered sayings, called Jango's code, that Boba recalls when needed. Finally, Jango has put his entire Code into a black book which Boba manages to retrieve after burying his father on Geonosis. The rest of the story follows Boba as he escapes the planet and goes looking for Lord Tyranus among the moons of Bogden. There's plenty of adventure as Boba learns the hard way not to trust anyone and to be wary when things seem to be going well.

This book set the stage for a great series of adventures. I am looking forward to the next one, hoping that once Bisson is freed from having to follow the plot of a film he will loosen up a bit and let the writing flow.

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Not yet published. From Starwars.com: "Boba Fett is alone -- orphaned by the actions of the Jedi. Continuing his father's legacy, Fett steels his resolve to survive and follow in his father's footsteps. Bounty hunter Aurra Sing delivers young Fett to Count Dooku, the mysterious benefactor who hired Jango. Young Fett assumes that Dooku will help him, but the renegade Jedi has his own dark agenda. What Boba discovers on that war-torn world known as Raxus Prime will change his life. The Clone Wars continue to spread across the galaxy, and Fett is caught in their crossfire. His adventures will lead him from the refuse heaps of the galaxy to firefights among the clouds. "

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Interviews & Articles

June 26, 2002 - Official Site announces Boba Fett #2

StarWars.com reports the title of the latest Boba Fett story is Crossfire. It is due out in November. You can read the article on the official site here.

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January 31, 2002 - Official Site announces Boba Fett series of YA novels + MORE

StarWars.com has just updated with summaries and cover images of several new YA novels in the Jedi Apprentice and Jedi Quest series as well as a new series about young Boba Fett -- #1 The Fight to Survive. You can read the article on the official site here.

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