Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back landed in theaters on May 21, 1980, marking this year as the film’s 40th birthday. To celebrate, 40 writers have written 40 stories “reimagining” the film in an anthology arriving this November, just as Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View did with A New Hope.
Entitled From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back, as StarWars.com announced, the book will feature tales retelling the film “through the eyes of background characters—heroes, villains, droids and creatures.”
Here are the 40 authors who will be presenting an alternate take on the classic film:
- Tom Angleberger
- Sarwat Chadda
- S.A. Chakraborty
- Mike Chen
- Adam Christopher
- Katie Cook
- Zoraida Córdova
- Delilah S. Dawson
- Seth Dickinson
- Tracey Deonn
- Alexander Freed
- Jason Fry
- Christie Golden
- Hank Green
- Rob Hart
- Lydia Kang
- Michael Kogge
- R.F. Kuang
- C.B. Lee
- Mackenzi Lee
- John Jackson Miller
- Michael Moreci
- Daniel José Older
- Mark Oshiro
- Amy Ratcliffe
- Beth Revis
- Lilliam Rivera
- Cavan Scott
- Emily Skrutskie
- Karen Strong
- Anne Toole
- Catherynne M. Valente
- Austin Walker
- Martha Wells
- Django Wexler
- Kiersten White
- Gary Whitta
- Brittany N. Williams
- Charles Yu
- Jim Zub
A previous sneak preview provided a few synopses:
- Tracy Deonn’s story “delves into the dark heart of the Dagobah cave where Luke confronts a terrifying vision.”
- Seth Dickinson’s story “interrogates the cost of serving a ruthless empire aboard the bridge of a doomed Imperial starship.”
- Hank Green will “chronicle the life of a naturalist caring for tauntauns on the frozen world of Hoth.”
- Austin Walker’s story “explores the unlikely partnership of bounty hunters Dengar and IG-88 as they pursue Han Solo.”
- Martha Wells “reveals the world of the Ugnaught clans who dwell in the depths of Cloud City.”
- Mark Oshiro’s story will “recount the wampa’s tragic tale of loss and survival.”
As StarWars.com announced last week, all proceeds from the anthology will go to First Book, a non-profit that distributes books and other educational resources to a network of educators who work with children in need. Additionally, Penguin Random House will donate $100,000 to the organization, while Disney/Lucasfilm will donate 100,000 children’s books.
From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back will be published November 10, 2020 with Penguin Random House.
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