Excellence....pure excellence

Shatterpoint was by far the best Star Wars book I have read to date. This was an excellent "coming out" for The Man, The Myth, and the Jedi legend known as Mace Windu.

The supporting characters, are comical and lovable without being annoying (think Jar Jar) and showed impressive skills.

I am not sure what rock I was hiding under, because I found out about the book quite by accident, but I was excited to get a chance to read it, and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT.

Of course there's only so much you could have discerned about Mace through the movies, so it was very refreshing to see the true nature of the character, what motivates him, and that he admits he likes to fight and isn't always about the deep questions and yoda'isms!! (No disrespect to Master Yoda intended).

To see Yoda whip up on Count Dooku in the lightsaber in Episode II was cool, but I must say, I hope we get to see a bit of Mace and his Vaapad in Episode III!! To see Samuel L Jackson whip some serious a** would be great wouldn't it?!?!? Mace likes to fight, so lets see it, eh George?

It is a very grown up, albeit dark story, but exciting nonetheless. I checked it out at the library, but I am ordering a copy for myself today!

Beyond Any Previous Star Wars Title

Shatterpoint. Holy [smoke]. This wasn't just a typical Star Wars novel. This wasn't just a good Star Wars novel. Instead, it was truly great literature. Matthew Stover tells a dark and convincing tale of war. Not Star Wars war, but realistic war. Stover's story is more than pure narrative--it is a sophisticated philosophical and sociological examination of human behavior under stress, using the darkness of the jungle, of the force, and of those scarred by conflict as complex and powerful metaphors for one another. Written without moral absolutes, Shatterpoint had me constantly reevaluating my own sense of right and wrong. One character's troubled rejection of moral relativism is set against a backdrop where no person, place, or action is untarnished by the darkness.

The narrative shifts back and forth between third person action and first person journal entries recorded by Mace Windu. Windu himself grows out of an essentially empty character from the movies to become interesting and thoughtful. The differences between his philosophy and that of the NJO era jedi is compelling. One major difference between the this book and the NJO era is the realism in which their conflicts are written. Mace Windu is shockingly powerful but is defined by his ever present limitations. The "minor" war seen in Shatterpoint scars everyone involved, creating a planet full of morally bankrupt, dangerously callous men, women, and children. By contrast, the NJO war, in which the Yuuzhan Vong have conquered half the galaxy, seems to be a walk in the park in comparison, with the unconquered half still operating essentially as it did before the Vong arrived. I'm not saying that the NJO story isn't still mostly good. Shatterpoint is just much more mature, thought provoking, and worthwhile.

Three days after finishing Shatterpoint I'm still haunted by its images and meaning. Star Wars has never felt so real or been so significant. If George Lucas were able to bring this kind of story to the prequels they would be infinitely better.

Excellent and well thought entry to the star wars saga

Shatterpoint is what Star Wars is all about. It is entertaining, immersive, and creative. But furthermore, it successfully uses the escapist sci-fi universe of SW as a vehicle from which to examine philosophical issues of life, morality, etc. Shatterpoint is the only star wars novel I have read, other than Timothy Zahn's work, that adds real depth to the star wars vision.

I think that the central theme of the story has to do with the conflict between the morality/compassion/order of civilized humanity (exemplified through the way of the Jedi) and the cold moral ambiguity of nature itself (which leads to the passion and cruelty of the dark side). The story explores the role of the Jedi as keepers of peace and guardians of moral civilization, and then challenges it by forcing the Jedi into a situation of chaotic and brutal war. In war, the only rules that apply are "survival of the fittest", and "kill or be killed". War occurs when the instruments of civilization fail to resolve conflict. Shatterpoint examines the struggle and dilemma of being morally good in a situation where the rules of civilized society no longer apply.

The issues and themes examined in this book are serious and mature. I would not recommend it to younger audiences. This book makes somewhat of a departure from the usual feel of a star wars story in that war and battle are not portrayed as thrilling adventure, but rather as brutal/painful/dark. there is more reality and maturity here than in the usual star wars fare. The book also does a good job of fleshing out the character of Mace Windu, making him much more human and fallible than the nondescript invincible Jedi master that we've seen in the films. At the same time, the Mace we see in this book does complement his onscreen portrayal very nicely. The personality brought to the character by Samuel L. Jackson does shine through in Shatterpoint. The entire story is pretty much Mace's show. Anyone wanting a story where all of the prequel's main characters are involved should look elsewhere. Yoda is present only briefly, Anakin and Obi-wan are only mentioned a couple times, and Padme is completely MIA. There are a couple appearances by Palpatine, and although they are brief, they emphasize just how successfully Palpatine has pulled the wool over the Jedi's eyes. Mace has nothing but respect and admiration for the future emperor, and both he and Yoda show absolutely no indication of suspecting Palpatine of being a villain. Their ability to see into the Force is clearly diminished, and the chaos and hopelessness faced by the Jedi in Shatterpoint is a fitting prelude to their coming defeat.