List of Star Wars reference books

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Star Wars is an American epic space-opera media franchise, centered on a film series created by George Lucas. This is a list of the many reference books that have been published to accompany the films, television series, and the Expanded Universe of books, comics and video games.

Contents

Reference books

A Guide to the Star Wars Universe

Visual Dictionaries

The visual dictionary series is a series of reference books based on photographs (usually taken from films or TV productions or shot at the unused props) about characters and elements from Star Wars media. They are published by DK Publishing.
Note: The updates of the books are listed right below them.

Essential Guides

The essential guides are more adult-oriented and descriptive than the Visual Dictionaries. They are published by Del Rey.

First Generation

The first generation of books (except for to Alien Species and, possibly, to Episode I) had covers with cartoon-like illustrations of the subjects and was known to use non-specific terms. They are listed below. It included data about the prequel trilogy only since The Essential Chronology.
Note: The second book was known for a number of picture errors, such as confusing the Imperial and Victory classes of Star Destroyer.

  • The Essential Guide to Characters (1995), by Andy Mangels
  • The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels (1996), by Bill Smith
  • The Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology (1997), by Bill Smith
  • The Essential Guide to Planets and Moons (1998), by Daniel Wallace
  • The Essential Guide to Droids (1999), by Daniel Wallace
  • The Essential Chronology (2000), by Bill Hughes
  • The Essential Guide to Alien Species (2001), by Ann Margaret Lewis
  • The Essential Guide to Episode I (renamed "The Ultimate Guide to Episode I" and later canceled), never written

Second Generation (New)

The second generation of books had covers with the standard Star Wars logo, stills from the films (or artwork based on them) and with the word "New" evidenced in the title. They are listed below. It included data about Episode III only since The New Essential Chronology.

  • The New Essential Guide to Characters (2002), by Daniel Wallace.
  • The New Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels (2003; stylized as "The New Essential Guide to Vehicles & Vessels), by W. Haden Blackman
  • The New Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology (2004, hardcover edition published in 2014; stylized as "The New Essential Guide to Weapons & Technology"), by W. Haden Blackman
  • The New Essential Chronology (2005), by Daniel Wallace and Kevin J. Anderson
  • The New Essential Guide to Droids (2006, eBook edition published in 2013 and hardcover edition published in 2014), by Daniel Wallace
  • The New Essential Guide to Alien Species (2006), by Ann Margaret Lewis and Helen Keier

Third Generation

The third generation of books had new covers featuring specific artwork and title characters. They are listed below. It included data about almost every Legends piece of media.

  • Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force (2007), by Ryder Windham
  • The Essential Atlas (2009), by Jason Fry and Daniel Wallace
  • The Essential Guide to Warfare (2012; also available in eBook format), by Jason Fry and Paul R. Urquhart
  • The Essential Reader's Companion (2012; also available in eBook format), by Pablo Hidalgo
  • The Essential Characters (canceled, release planned for 2016), by Daniel Wallace
  • Monsters and Aliens from George Lucas (1993) by Bob Carrau
  • Galactic Phrase Book & Travel Guide (2001; also known as "Galactic Phrase Book and Travel Guide: Beeps, Bleats, Boskas, and Other Common Intergalactic Verbiage"), by Ben Burtt

In-Universe

Some of the essential guides have also an in-universe counterpart, as they are written from an in-universe perspective. They are listed below, among with their fictional release dates and authors.

  • The Essential Guide to Alien Species, by Mammon Hole
    • The New Essential Guide to Alien Species, by Mammon Hole
  • Galactic Phrase Book & Travel Guide (6 ABY), by Ebenn Q3 Baobab
  • The New Essential Chronology (36 ABY), by Voren Na'al
  • Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force (40 ABY), by Tionne Solusar

The Making of Star Wars

The Making of Star Wars is a series of reference books about the so-called "making of" of the films and the video games of the franchise. They are published by various publishers, including notable names.
Note: The refurbishments of the three original trilogy books are listed right below them.

The Art of Star Wars

The Art of Star Wars is a series of reference books based on paintings and artwork (mainly concept art). They are published by DK Publishing.

Incredible Cross-Sections

The Incredible Cross-Sections books are a series of reference books focusing on cross-sections of buildings and vehicles. They are published by DK Publishing.

Inside the Worlds of

The Inside the Worlds of books are a series of reference books focusing on accurate cross-sections of buildings featured in the films. They are published by DK Publishing.

  • Indiana Jones: The Ultimate Guide (2008), by James Luceno

The Official Star Wars Technical Journal

The Official Star Wars Technical Journal was a 3-volume reference publication about organizations and places in the Star Wars universe. It was published by Starlog Communications International, Inc.

Ultimate Star Wars

Miscellaneous reference works

Essays and commentary

  • A Galaxy Not So Far Away: Writers and Artists on 25 Years of Star Wars by Glenn Kenny, editor.
  • Sword Fighting in the Star Wars Universe by Nick Jamilla.

Roleplaying gamebooks

Saga edition

Previous editions

The Clone Wars: Decide Your Destiny

The Lost Jedi

References

  1. ↑ "Unlock the Magic of Star Wars". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 102. Ziff Davis. January 1998. p. 178.
  2. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Owen K.C. Stephens; Christopher Perkins (June 2007). Star Wars Roleplaying Game: Saga Edition. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4356-2.
  3. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Owen K.C. Stephens; Gary Astleford (December 2007). Starships of the Galaxy. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4823-9.
  4. ↑ Thompson, Rodney (February 2008). Star Wars Gamemaster Screen. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4936-6.
  5. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Gary Astleford; Eric Cagle; Robert J. Schwalb; John Snead; Patrick Stutzman (May 2008). Threats of the Galaxy. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4781-2.
  6. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Sterling Hershey; John Jackson Miller; Abel G. Peña (August 2008). Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4923-6.
  7. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Sterling Hershey; Owen K.C. Stephens; Peter Schweighofer (September 2008). Force Unleashed Campaign Guide. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4743-0.
  8. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Gary Astleford; Robert J. Schwalb; Owen K.C. Stephens; J.D. Wiker (November 2008). Scum and Villainy. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-5035-5.
  9. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Patrick Stutzman; J.D. Wiker; Gary Astleford; T. Rob Brown (January 2009). The Clone Wars Campaign Guide. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4999-1.
  10. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Sterling Hershey; Gary Astleford (March 2009). Legacy Era Campaign Guide. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4356-2.
  11. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Eric Cagle; Patrick Stutzman; Robert Wieland (May 2009). Jedi Academy Training Manual. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-5183-3.
  12. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Sterling Hershey; Owen K.C. Stephens; J.D. Wiker (July 2009). Rebellion Era Campaign Guide. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-4983-0.
  13. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Gary Astleford; Eric Cagle; Daniel Wallace (September 2009). Galaxy At War. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-5221-2.
  14. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Sterling Hershey; Patrick Stutzman; Robert Wieland (November 2009). Scavenger's Guide to Droids. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-5230-4.
  15. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Eric Cagle; Gary Astleford; T. Rob Brown (January 2010). Galaxy of Intrigue. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-5400-1.
  16. ↑ Thompson, Rodney; Gary Astleford; Owen K.C. Stephens (April 2010). The Unknown Regions. Wizards of the Coast. ISBN   978-0-7869-5399-8.
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