The Empire Strikes Back turns 40 this year, and Del Rey books is celebrating by releasing a new Star Wars anthology. Titled From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back, the new collection will feature 40 stories from 40 different authors, all of which will tackle the events of Episode V from different perspectives. The company released a similar collection when A New Hope reached the same milestone, dubbed From a Certain Point of View: A New Hope.
According to StarWars.com, the POVs showcased in this new anthology will include a range of background characters, including unsung heroes, franchise villains, and even a few droids. (These are definitely the droids we’re looking for.) Since the movies primarily follow Luke Skywalker, these stories will offer a new way of looking at the story fans know and love, and the lineup of authors promises some exciting tales.
Hank Green, Mark Oshiro, R.F. Kuang, and S.A. Chakraborty are among the many well-known writers whose work will appear in the anthology. Here’s the full list of folks making contributions:
"Austin Walker, Hank Green, Tracy Deonn, Martha Wells, Mark Oshiro, Seth Dickinson, Tom Angleberger, S.A. Chakraborty, Mike Chen, Adam Christopher, Zoraida Córdova, Delilah S. Dawson, Alexander Freed, Jason Fry, Christie Golden, Rob Hart, E. K. Johnston, Lydia Kang, Michael Kogge, R.F. Kuang, C.B. Lee, Mackenzi Lee, John Jackson Miller, Michael Moreci, Daniel José Older, Amy Ratcliffe, Beth Revis, Lilliam Rivera, Cavan Scott, Emily Skrutskie, Karen Strong, Anne Toole, Catherynne M. Valente, Django Wexler, Kiersten White, Gary Whitta, Brittany N. Williams, Charles Yu, Jim Zub."
With so many big names, readers can expect exciting things from this collection, and that’s not the only thing they’ll have to anticipate in honor of The Empire Strikes Back‘s anniversary. In addition to the anthology, Star Wars will also be presenting “Empire at 40,” which will showcase interviews, editorials, and listicles on its official website.
The anthology is available to preorder now, and if the ability to dive back into one of the franchise’s most beloved stories isn’t enough to pique your interest, the contributors are reportedly having any proceeds they’d make from the collection go toward First Book, a nonprofit organization promoting education and literacy.
With new Star Wars stories that support a good cause, there’s really no reason not to add this to your wish list. From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back hits shelves on November 10.
Everything is coming up Empire this year. In addition to the anthology, Disney will also be releasing the film in 4k to cinemas in the United Kingdom, part of a plan to get moviegoers back into theaters after it’s safe to do so again. That sounds like fun, although there will never be anything that tops finding out Darth Vader was Luke Skywalker’s father for the very first time, like this 1980 audience:
May the Force be with you.
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.
Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels
h/t Variety