Books

Book Review: Star Wars: The Ultimate Pop-Up Galaxy by Matthew Reinhart

Denise

Hi everyone!

We received Star Wars: The Ultimate Pop-Up Galaxy from Insight Editions and by paper engineer Matthew Reinhart to review. Reinhart has many very well-reviewed pop-up books including Frozen: A Pop-Up Adventure. His books often can be read by both adults and children (this is his third Star Wars pop-up book). Star Wars: The Ultimate Pop-Up Galaxy can be enjoyed by anyone who is a fan of Star Wars – it even folds out into a 37″x 44″ diorama encompassing the films (make sure to save plenty of space if you want to do that!) – here is my review.

To start, I am a moderate Star Wars fan. I don’t follow the characters and stories closely, my favorite film is still the one I saw in the theater first – the original Star Wars in 1977 (now A New Hope). And I do enjoy the newer films. The book spans all of that, with very well constructed pop-ups that include AT-ATs and more. And not only are there the large pop-ups in the center of 5 pages, but there are smaller ones on each page. For example, on the page that includes two large AT-AT walkers, there are four other smaller pop-ups. Each is behind a written paper “door” that opens up. One of these says “The Search for the Last Jedi” and then it talks about how Luke Skywalker’s hidden location was discovered and that Rey heads to Ach-to, where she eventually begins training. That smaller pop-up has the familiar scene with the stairs, Luke and then Rey with a lightsaber. 

All images here are from Insight Editions, including this one that shows what the book looks like fully opened up. We tried to do it but didn’t save quite enough room – there are directions with the book to open it up. But you also don’t have to open it up fully, you can keep it in book form.

Star Wars: The Ultimate Pop-Up Galaxy is an impressive book with intricate pop-up details. It was fun to discover the different pieces of pop-up artwork. I would recommend it more for adults because it is a little delicate to put back together, but certainly kids can enjoy it as well. It will make a wonderful gift this season for any Star Wars fan.

Here is a video with Matthew Reinhart explaining the various scenes in the book.

 
And more information on the book from Insight Editions:
 
With five intricate and detail-rich spreads that fold out into one breathtaking map of the entire Star Wars saga, Star Wars: The Ultimate Pop-Up Galaxy is the perfect gift for boys, girls, and Star Wars fans of all ages.

—The Entire Star Wars Saga. Featuring all 11 Star Wars movies, including A New Hope, Rogue One, Revenge of the Sith, and the upcoming The Rise Of Skywalker.
—Illustrious Characters. Jedi, Sith, royalty, and rogues are all featured. See Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, Finn, Poe Dameron, Mace Windu, Darth Sidious, General Hux, Supreme Leader Snoke, and more!
—Legendary Locations. See locations come to life, including Geonosis, Mustafar, Yavin, Tatooine, Crait, Endor, and, of course, the notorious Death Star and the fearsome Starkiller Base.


—Iconic Moments. Witness battles and duels from across the saga, including the Jedi’s heroic struggle on Geonosis, the battle of Hoth, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s tragic duel with Anakin Skywalker, and Anakin’s rebirth as the fearsome Darth Vader.
—Famous Vehicles. See the Millennium Falcon, Star Destroyers, X-wings, TIE fighters, snowspeeders, AT-ATs, and other vehicles from the saga.