Star Wars: Han Solo – Imperial Cadet

When we were introduced to Han Solo in Star Wars: A New Hope, it was clear that this was a fascinating character. He moved from being a self-centered smuggler to a galactic hero during the course of the film. It was an incredible origin story even though he was not the main character. His growth over the next two films helped to solidify him as one of the greatest cinematic characters of all time.

I thought his origin tale had already been told. There was no need to see any of his early adventures on the big screen. I was wrong. Solo is the best Star Wars movie since the original trilogy and I would love to see a sequel. That’s probably why I was drawn to this book.

The only problem with it is that he seems like he’s already the character we love. He cares about other people and even risks his life to save a superior officer. Was he always a good guy? If so, doesn’t that diminish the character growth we saw from him in the original Star Wars trilogy?

I don’t think so. Even though we know he became the best pilot in the galaxy and an incredible hero, it’s nice to see how his life led him up to that point. He joined the Imperial forces simply to learn how to fly. He battled the evil empire in his own way from the very start. Even when he rushed headlong into saving the officer, he was going against orders.

Han Solo had a personal mission when he started this journey. He thought he was going to save the love of his life. Little did he know that he was destined for so much more. And lucky for us, we can come along for the ride too.

My List of 2020 Reads – all the books I’ve read this year (continually updated)