Something luminous arrives on January 5th as The High Republic finally kicks off. Not only do we finally get Light of the Jedi but we also get the first middle grade book of the project, A Test of Courage by Justina Ireland. We’re in a brand new timeframe in the Star Wars galaxy but then again, what could possibly be more Star Wars than four teenagers getting themselves into trouble?
Young Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh’s mission isn’t all that exciting: she’s escorting Avon Starros (a senator’s daughter) to the Starlight Beacon for the space station’s dedication. What seems like a simple mission quickly goes very wrong when the Nihil secretly sabotage their ship, leaving Vernestra, Avon, Jedi padawan Imri, and Honesty (an ambassador’s son) stranded on an uninhabited jungle planet. It’s going to be, like the book’s title suggests, a test of courage for them all to survive this hostile world.
Ireland continues on the grand tradition of the middle grade Star Wars books going hard. She pulls no punches when it comes to the effect of grief upon young people especially when they are stuck in a tricky situation and don’t have the time to grieve. Grief becomes especially potent when combined with a Force user… and a desire for revenge. Often times, we don’t give kids enough credit for being able to comprehend difficult subjects in their literature but Ireland certainly does.
All four of the kids in the book are great but Vernestra and Avon stand out in particular. Vernestra is all of sixteen years old but was also recently granted the title of Jedi Knight at a far younger age than most of her peers. It creates a fascinating dynamic between her and Imri who’s only two years her junior and something that hopefully gets explored more in future stories. Jedi already have a lot of responsibility but to add knighthood on top of it? That’s a lot to put on any teenager’s shoulders. In contrast, Avon’s fun and a bit mischievous even though she’s also got her own burden to carry as a senator’s daughter. Her joy for figuring out how things work is infectious even as she doesn’t always know the right thing to say. She feels like the sort of character that fans of Jaina Solo might appreciate.
While older readers may be planning to read every High Republic book they can get their hands on, younger readers whom this book was written for might not be. The good news is that A Test of Courage can certainly be read alone. There are references to the catastrophe but they’re easily understood through context clues. The book gets to tell its own story in a new era of Star Wars. If someone is planning to read the other High Republic books, reading Light of the Jedi first might be wise given how A Test of Courage ties in to its larger narrative.
A Test of Courage is one of those standout middle grade books that fans of all ages are likely to enjoy. Fingers crossed that there are plenty more books like this to come and that we get to see these kids again. (Are you picking up on a pattern with these reviews yet?)
Thank you to Disney Publishing for providing an early copy of the book for review purposes.
