Rating: 
Summary: There is more to this story than there was in the movie.
Review: Star Wars Attack of the Clones novelization is an excellent read. Thirty six pages into the book and the movie's screenplay hasn't even begun!
There are a lot of extras in the book that diehard fans won't want to miss which were not covered in detail in the movie. Learn more about life on Tatooine with the Lars family and the circumstances surrounding Shmi Skywalker's kidnapping and subsequent rescue attempt. Meet Senator Amidala's sister, Sola and their parents Ruwee and Jobal on the lush world of Naboo. Gain more insight into Padme's character. Discover why she chose a career in politics and the emotional torment she must endure as she wrestles with her feelings for Anakin Skywalker. Enjoy the love plot between Anakin and Padme and allow yourself to reflect on how something seemingly so right can have such grevious consequences for their inner circles.
Glimpse Anakin's inner anguish, not just for Padme, but for his mom, Shmi and take a glimpse into his friendship with the Republic's Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. Who's voice was that yelling out for Anakin to stop his hateful actions during his moment of rage and anger? And the reprecussions that disturbance has on Master Yoda's understanding of the Force.
Although the action sequences in the movie are far superior to the books narative, the extra commentary provides more information and excitement which Star Wars fans relish. Attack of the Clones is an enjoyable read describing the making of legends - good and bad. I recommend it!
Rating: 
Summary: Bob scores again!
Review: To put it as basically as possible, this is the novelisation of "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones", based on the story and screenplay by George Lucas, as told by fantasy author R. A. Salvatore. The novel based on the previous movie, "The Phantom Menace" was written by fellow fantasy writer Terry Brooks, and I'm not entirely sure why he was not enlisted to continue creating the books for this on-going saga. Unless he was busy with his own work, it was a big mistake not to have him also write "Attack of the Clones", not just because of his clear, concise writing style, but simply because when he wrote "The Phantom Menace" he added little details and hints that I expected him to follow up in the next two books.
In his place, Salvatore does an adequate, but hardly exceptional job. Let's face it, neither one could be called a truly great novelist, but Terry Brooks had a simple yet detailed style that perfectly matched the Star Wars genre, exploring several of the ideas (the nature of the Force, the beginnings of Anakin's fall), simplifying the somewhat complicated and politic-driven storylines, and beautifully creating the visual splendour of the movie in his articulate detail. Salvatore does little more than recap what happened in the previous book, add some background scenes that were not present in the movie (such as Shmi Skywalker's kidnap and an episode set at Padme's family home) and transcribe all the dialogue of the movie into written form. There is no personal touch, no deeper insights into what makes these characters tick, and no understanding presented on who all these political parties, diplomats, senators and governments are and what they actually want. The prequels are a lot more complicated than the simple goodie/baddie format of the originals, and whilst Brooks sorted me out on all the opposing groups, Salvatore didn't quite unravel the plot lines satisfactorily.
But this isn't to say that I wasn't completely baffled by all that was going on: for the few that don't know "Attack of the Clones" is set ten years after "Phantom Menace." Anakin is now twenty, studying under the mastery of Obi-Wan Kenobi against a backdrop of political turmoil. The Republic is facing a crisis as more and more systems abdicate from its leadership to join a Separatist movement under the belief that the Republic is corrupt. The nervous Republic is now at a milestone: to create an army to defend itself, or to try and keep the tentative peace between the two factions. On the Republic's side is Padme Amidala, no longer Queen of Naboo, but the planet's diplomat to the Senate, and the Jedi Council, both of whom reject the idea of a Republic army and instead support a peaceful resolution.
But after an attempt on Padme's life, the two Jedi are once more brought back into her life and assigned to insure her protection: Anakin to accompany her back to her home planet, and Obi-Wan to investigate the scanty clues provided to them via the assassin that narrowly failed in taking Padme's life. Whilst Anakin and Padme explore their own romantic inclinations toward each other, and Anakin grapples with nightmares concerning his mother, Obi-Wan is discovering a clone army that was seemingly ordered by a long-dead Jedi, a bounty hunter that served as the DNA donor, and the heart of the Separatist movement lead by the mysterious Count Dooku that suggests the Dark Side is at work.
Just as in the movie, the weakest part of the story is the truly awful love story between the two protagonists. Salvatore had the opportunity to improve the insipid dialogue, but unfortunately we're still left with lines such as "I'm haunted by the kiss you never should have given me," and "I've been dying a little bit each day since you came back into my life." Urgh. On the other end of the scale, the highlight of the movie were the remarkable special effects and battle sequences, which are inevitably more fun to watch on the screen then to read about in the book. Salvatore must realise this too, considering most of the action packed third-act is dealt with swiftly in the book, without much detail or description.
As mentioned, there are other sequences of back story that are reasonably interesting, such as the details of Shmi's kidnap, but I couldn't help but feel that in Brook's hands, these would be more poignant and meaningful. In his version of "Phantom Menace" he would often add in bits of detail that were there either for intrigue alone, or as a small nugget of information that would be mined later on - for instance, he described a scene in Anakin's youth that had him tend to a wounded Tusken raider. Salvatore mentions it in his book (testifying that at least he read the previous installment), but doesn't go any further with it than that. I couldn't help but feel that Brooks had plans for this little sequence - perhaps it would have added to Anakin's fury, or left him vowing never to help untrustworthy strangers. There are other moments of foreshadowing or clarifying in Brooks's story that just isn't captured here.
All I can hope for is that they reclaim Terry Brook's to write Episode III, for as it stands, "Attack of the Clones" is an okay read and clear-cut novelisation, but does nothing to extend the story, universe or saga in any interesting, original way. Maybe I'm being a mean. Salvatore had a job to do, and he did it, making this a good book for young readers to better understand the movie-story. I just wanted a bit more.
Rating:
Summary: Redemption of faith
Review: While George Lucas has every right to do as he pleases with his Star Wars universe, it seems, based on this novelization of the upcoming movie, that he has acceded to some of the rants of the fans. We see much less Jar-Jar Binks, no mention of midi-chlorians, and TONS of battles.The story begins ten years after The Phantom Menace (TPM). Palaptine is still the Supreme Chancellor, having circumvented term limits through some inventive politics, and is embroiled in a major crisis. The main point of the book, in my opinion, is the same as that in TPM, to display the machinations of Palpatine on his path to becoming Emperor. While we don't see him appear as Darth Sidious with the frequency he did in TPM, this is due to superior maneuvering requiring less direct involvement. Much of the story focuses on the budding relationship between Anakin, the Padawan learner of Obi-Wan, and Padme Amidala, now the Senator from Naboo. Anakin has been given his first solo mission, that of protecting Padme, thus forcing them into close, unsupervised contact much of the time. While their interactions seem more at place in a grade school, this might be explained away due to their collective inexperience. Obi-Wan, meanwhile, is investigating an assassination attempt, and he discovers some truly remarkable things. Along the way he also has some deadly encounters. The final stages of this story center around what he has discovered on a secluded planet. And we get to see a truly epic scale combat involving many jedi. I thought the ending came a bit suddenly, without the resolution of TPM, but this might simply be setting the stage for the next film. I couldn't put down this book, especially during the last one-third or so. The action is just too engrossing. If you're willing to overlook the many typoes and grammatical errors you'll have a great experience reading this book. And if you are more dedicated than I and wait for the movie first, please read this book afterward, as it is a great novelization of a movie.
Rating:
Summary: Better than the movie?
Review: Yes! Then again most books are! But if your a big Star wars fan then this is a must read. This book will take you deeper into the story of the man/machine Anakin. As Salvatore wrote me when he signed my book refering to this story, "A glimpse into the shadows of his soul." Indeed!
Rating:
Summary: Better than the movie?
Review: Yes! Then again most books are! But if your a big Star wars fan then this is a must read. This book will take you deeper into the story of the man/machine Anakin. As Salvatore wrote me when he signed my book refering to this story, "A glimpse into the shadows of his soul." Indeed!
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