There is a brand new history book in Star Wars. Continuing the tradition started in The Jedi Path, Book of the Sith, The Bounty Hunter Code and the Imperial Handbook, The Rebel Files: Collected Intelligence of The Alliance broadens fans understand of this pivotal period in the Star Wars saga. Dan Wallace brings together all of Hendri Underholt’s (the archivist for the Rebel Alliance under the direction of Mon Mothma) work into one volume.
The book is broken up into four sections, “Organizing the Rebellion” encompasses sections one and two. The first giving us the beginning players from before the formation of the Empire, through what’s seen in Star Wars Rebels and right up to the events of Rogue One. Part two brings readers through all the events of Rogue One and to end of A New Hope. Section 3 is called “Regrouping”, focusing on the Rebellion’s life after the destruction of the Death Star. It integrates a great deal from the Star Wars ongoing comic from Marvel into the continuity and leads readers through the loss of Hoth base. Section 4 is called “Counterattack” and chronicles the operations leading to the downfall of the Emperor on the second Death Star.
One the highlights in this book is the background information on events we’ve seen on screen or that was only alluded to. The Rebel Files also features margin notes by Mon Mothma, Leia, Admiral Ackbar, Poe, Holdo (soon to be seen in The Last Jedi) and more. The best notes in the book are those by Leia and Holdo. They give readers an insight to just how difficult it has been for the Resistance to get any traction in the New Republic on the threat the First Order actually poses. This tie in to the sequel trilogy makes it a perfect read before the release of The Last Jedi. On top of that, the book also helps make sense of the shift we see in Mon Mothma, from the time of Rogue One, to her more pacifistic leanings in the post Return of the Jedi era.
The layout of the book is beautiful, with massive splash pages, giving fans looks at the lay out of Scariff, Hoth base, elite stormtroopers and so much more. As the book’s being sold now, it comes in a deluxe formant. The imaging unit shows the Death Star plans and there are also five different inserts. The book will be available in hardcover in 2018. If there is one criticism, it’s that the book could be longer, with more depth about how things came together in the early days, connected with Rebels and the aftermath of the second Death Star’s destruction, which there is nothing on. But on the plus side, we actually learn how and why the Bothans are involved in stealing the plans for the second Death Star. In all, The Rebel Files is rated 4 out of 5 stars.
This review was completed using a copy of The Rebel Files provided by Wunderkind PR.
You can find the author Matthew Rushing at The 602 Club Podcast, Aggressive Negotiations: A Star Wars Podcast or Owl Post: A Harry Potter Podcast.
Author: Matt Rushing
Matthew Rushing is the host of Trek.fm‘s The 602 Club and co-host of TheNerdParty.com‘s AggressiveNegotiations: A Star Wars Podcast. He can be found on Twitter @mattrushing02.