Star Wars fans have reawakened all over the globe: little ones seeing light saber fights for the first time and old ones getting buckets of nostalgia and glee. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” is swiftly breaking box office records, already overtaking “Titanic” as the second highest-grossing film of all time domestically and threatening “Avatar’s” number one spot with every movie ticket purchase. Children (and adults) are getting toys and accessories of BB-8, light sabers and action figures of their favorite characters.
Yet sometimes the movies aren’t enough: you want more story, more good guys and bad guys, and more space wars. Star Wars episodes leave you wondering about the characters’ histories: What has our heroine Rey (or our hero Luke) been doing on that junk of a desert planet? What was Han Solo up before transporting Luke and Obi-Wan to the Death Star? And what about the best pilot in the Resistance, Poe Dameron, or authoritative General Leia Organa?
Thankfully there are enough available Star Wars books to satisfy that need, whether you want to read a continuation of the stories or nonfiction books on art, backgrounds or filmmaking.
For more story, books in the expanded universe, or Star Wars “Legends,” can provide tons of space adventures set before, during and after the films. While “The Force Awakens” technically made the expanded universe non-canon (while before they were very much a part of the saga’s universe), the 
books are worth a read. With so many novels to choose from, it can be daunting as a beginner: many recommend starting with Timothy Zhan’s “The Thrawn Trilogy” or some of the adventure collections like Brian Daley’s “Adventures of Han Solo,” a trilogy about the scoundrel which takes place ten years before “A New Hope.” The Heartland Library Cooperative also has the novelization of “The Force Awakens” by Alan Dean Foster.
For nonfiction books, look no further than the multitude of visual guides and dictionaries, comics, making-of books, and even some Shakespearean retellings by Ian Doescher. In Recent Releases, we have “The Art of Star Wars, the Force Awakens,” “Star Wars, the Force Awakens: the Visual Dictionary,” and “Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know.”
If younger generations feel like the old movies are outdated and just for their parents, books like Alexandra Bracken ‘s “Star Wars: A New Hope The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farm Boy” enrich the story in a voice geared more toward those born in this century. There are also the popular Star Wars Origami series by Tom Angleberger and the Jedi Academy graphic novels by Jeffrey Brown. For this month, the children’s area at the Sebring Public Library has a Star Wars display.
Also check our ebook options through OverDrive! The Tampa Bay Library Consortium includes; Ian 
Doesher’s “Star Wars: William Shakespeare” series; many expanded universe novels; and even some Star Wars philosophy books.
Keep an eye out for more Star Wars material, as the Heartland Library Cooperative is sure to get more. May the force be with you.