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justthatstarwarsbookgirl's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
3.0
I REALLY, REALLY enjoyed this book!! It was very fun and exciting to read, I didn’t want to put it down/couldn’t put it down even though it’s a nonfiction science book, and I’m not very big into science itself as a topic. The book had a lovely introduction page written and explained very clearly how this book mainly if not always focuses on the material from the movies alone, which completely made the book more understandable. The book is a good, average length, not too daunting and overwhelming, not providing too much information but providing at the same time an abundance of facts and information to enjoy reading and think about the subjects. The book had a clean looking cover beautifully and simply laid out with bright and darker contrasting colors. I immensely enjoyed the related quotes at the beginning of almost every section, however some of the quotes I don’t remember so I’m thinking they were assumptions of lines potentially spoken because usually I remember every line spoken and if I don’t remember one that’s highly unusual for me. The book was extremely concise, with the information and facts laid out clearly and easy to understand the concepts presented. I like how the book was separated into different sections of information, with the darker toned pages separating each section urging you forward with the reading, and with a clear chapter list. The book made the subjects and topics of Physics easy to understand and easy to grasp even for those who haven’t studied Physics on a larger scale/level. I enjoy how even when a subject/topic and aspect of Star Wars is explained that it won’t work in real life as depicted in the films, the author attempts to explain a way or method that that aspect of Star Wars could work in real life. I also like how the author is completely down-to-Earth and realistic about each topic in the book and its possibility of existing here on Earth. The author writes in a very personable and relatable way and tone of voice. The appendix’s of both Star Wars and Physics terms were explained very clearly and in great detail to foster better understanding of terms, places or things you aren’t familiar with. I liked how there were two separate appendix’s for both of them each. I enjoyed how most of the terms were described beyond just a couple of sentences. Some of the only criticisms I have include: that where it explains where each subject/topic takes place in the Star Wars Movies some of the descriptions of the scenes and characters are inaccurate/far too broad and could be worded differently and include more characters and specification to focus more on a specific scene that the topic/subject represents, as well as that some of the character’s last names weren’t included in snippets where they were featured and I thought to be thorough they should’ve been written, but overall the book is very extremely thorough for the subject (Physics) which it is based on. Lastly, some of the subject’s names and descriptions, such as the name of The First Order and New Republic, weren’t mentioned/laid out as clearly as they should’ve been, or referenced properly in their wording. Overall I REALLY enjoyed this book, it was one of the first in a long while that I truly couldn’t seem to put down even with the subject matter not being my usual type as described, I was thrilled to purchase this book from the thrift store and take it home to read. It’s a beautiful book inside and out and I flew through the pages, absorbing the information quickly. Others on Bookstagram would call this book a “guilty pleasure” for me, one of my first of those within the books I’ve read lately. I LOVE this book. Only rated 3 stars due to the probability that I won’t pick it up again to reread, but will definitely keep as a very unique book in the range of Star Wars books in my large collection.
abbymorris13's review against another edition
2.0
Good for revising A Level physics, bad after a physics degree. You need to be really into star wars, as this reads like a revision guide and gets a bit repetitive!
expat37's review against another edition
3.0
A fun little jaunt through a universe that really wasn't intended to stand up to actual scrutiny. Enjoyable, but I do wish there was significantly more depth!
kb_208's review against another edition
3.0
I was pretty excited to read this book, but I have to say that I was rather disappointed. There is a lot of good information on a large number of topics, but I feel that each one only touches on the subject and doesn't offer too much substance. I thought it would be cool to see how some of this technology might be possible in the future, but they don't go quite so deep on that for many of the subjects.
As far as readability, for those that are not physics or science majors like myself, it is quite easy to understand. The book does do a great job at explaining the various technologies in the forms of plasma vs. light. Those were quite informative. Prior to this I have read Michio Kaku's "Physics of the Impossible" and "The Science of Star Wars", so many of these topics I have read about before and these here don't go as in depth as those.
It's a good fun book overall, but I just wish it had dove a little deeper into some of these technologies that we take for granted in these wonderful films.
As far as readability, for those that are not physics or science majors like myself, it is quite easy to understand. The book does do a great job at explaining the various technologies in the forms of plasma vs. light. Those were quite informative. Prior to this I have read Michio Kaku's "Physics of the Impossible" and "The Science of Star Wars", so many of these topics I have read about before and these here don't go as in depth as those.
It's a good fun book overall, but I just wish it had dove a little deeper into some of these technologies that we take for granted in these wonderful films.
neilrcoulter's review against another edition
3.0
This is a fun book for a Star Wars fan. Its main point is more about the question of whether certain things from the Star Wars films are possible in the real universe, and less about explaining the real-world scientific details of how things work. Though I am not at all a scientist, I am curious enough about science that I would have liked a bit more detail about the real-world science that Patrick Johnson mentions throughout the book.
The main topics are: space; planetary science; planet-based transportation; space travel; handheld weaponry; heavy weaponry; the Force; robotics; and other tech. Within each topic, Johnson looks at 4-6 things from Star Wars, explaining how they seem to work within the Star Wars galaxy, what real-world physics concepts they relate to, and whether the Star Wars version would likely be possible in our galaxy.
The Physics of Star Wars is probably best read a little bit at a time--and the short sections within each main topic are great for that. Because I can't help myself, I read the whole thing in just a few days. My 16-year-old son, who loves math, science, and Star Wars, read it before I did, and he enjoyed it a lot.
The main topics are: space; planetary science; planet-based transportation; space travel; handheld weaponry; heavy weaponry; the Force; robotics; and other tech. Within each topic, Johnson looks at 4-6 things from Star Wars, explaining how they seem to work within the Star Wars galaxy, what real-world physics concepts they relate to, and whether the Star Wars version would likely be possible in our galaxy.
The Physics of Star Wars is probably best read a little bit at a time--and the short sections within each main topic are great for that. Because I can't help myself, I read the whole thing in just a few days. My 16-year-old son, who loves math, science, and Star Wars, read it before I did, and he enjoyed it a lot.
gothamvorona's review against another edition
4.0
Honestly a really fun and interesting read! It went through basic physics of a bunch of items so it gave a more generic overview but it was easy to understand if you didn’t understand a lot about physics!
miocenemama's review against another edition
5.0
I love that the author is both a scientist and a Star Wars fan. He compares the physics of Star Wars to real-world physics. While he concludes that much of what happens in Star Wars is not feasible in our world, it is a great way to introduce real-world physics to others. He breaks it down into sections which makes this a fast and relatively easy read. He keeps the explanations relatively simple, although he also introduces equations and concepts that allow the reader to pursue further study on their own. I think a physics class from him would probably be enlightening and entertaining.
quigonchuy's review against another edition
4.0
I was happy to learn that this kind of book even exists. It so cool to me that a scientist/physicist loves star wars and takes the time to compare the star wars tech to our own. I really enjoyed it :)
zoebarnett42's review against another edition
4.0
A must read for stars wars with interests in science