Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge: Traveler’s Guide to Batuu
Set your course for the edge of the galaxy to the planet Batuu, where you’ll be immersed in the alluring offerings of a mysterious outpost and thriving port that is a haven for scoundrels, rogues, and smugglers.
Upon arrival, you will have access to an authentic, in-world environment unlike anything you have ever experienced before! This official guide to Batuu is written completely in-world, as if you are a visitor from another part of the galaxy looking for recommendations on where to eat, shop, and sightsee while on your trip to this exciting location.
Whether living your adventure in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge or simply being an armchair traveler, this in-depth literary companion will delight any fan of Star Wars.
Author: Cole Horton
Page Count: 144 Pages
Published: 21st July 2020
ISBN: 9780760366745
Publisher: becker&mayer!
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge: Traveler’s Guide to Batuu is the brand new, definitive guide to Galaxy’s Edge, published by becker&mayer! Other books from the same publisher include On the Front Lines, Propaganda, and the recent Book of Lists. Cole Horton, under the in-universe pseudonym of “Eloc Throno,” authors the book, and it has illustrations from veteran Star Wars artists Chris Trevas and Chris Reiff.
One thing I liked about this book off the bat is the design. It has a good handbook feel, which is appropriate given that’s essentially what it is for Black Spire Outpost. The Aurebesh on the cover also helps add to the immersion, and the inside of the book is pretty dedicated to maintaining that immersion as well. Little details like the “about the author” being about the in-universe author instead of the real one are neat and add to the experience in little ways. Another small thing a lot of people probably wouldn’t even notice but I appreciated is using photos of background extras and normal civilians for the section about the different species you might see on Batuu, as opposed to standard hero shots of significant characters.
Right from the opening of the book, there’s a gorgeous and comprehensive galaxy map that covers every single planet mentioned in the book, at the park, or in any of the many other tie-ins. The artwork in the rest of the book blends well with the photography of the actual park, to the point that it can almost hurt to see things like aliens walking around the outpost when they haven’t figured out how to pull that off in real life yet. It can also be a bit sad to see concepts initially announced for the park but seemingly dropped to save money, like the bounty hunter Harkos.
If you’ve been following along with the park and all of its publishing tie-ins already, there probably isn’t going to be much information in this book that you don’t already know (aside from one or two interesting teases), but it’s still a great compendium of all the facts and pieces of history that you can learn from the different sources. If you aren’t a die-hard and you haven’t been following along closely, then it’s great as an introduction or just as a book to carry around the park with you if you want to learn more about different things you can see. I wish the book had come out before I took my trips there last year so I could have carried it around with me.
Ever since I visited the park, I had been hoping for a Visual Dictionary-style book to flesh it out more, and this more or less accomplished that for me. I still wouldn’t mind something more comprehensive down the line, but this book is a great overview of all the information that you need for your own trip to Batuu.
Reviewed for Fantha Tracks by guest contributor Numidian Prime.
@NumidianPrime
- Hardcover Book
- Horton, Cole (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 144 Pages - 07/21/2020 (Publication Date) - becker&mayer! books (Publisher)
