"Padawan" by Kiersten White

Padawan (July 26, 2022) by Kiersten White.

*This is a standalone​ novel.*

There was a time when Obi-Wan Kenobi wasn’t a Jedi Knight. Once he was a 16-year-old Padawan learner, more than an initiate, but not yet a Jedi. His path seems unclear on Coruscant. He feels like he’s failing as a Padawan, which means he’s failing Jedi Knight and Master Qui-Gon Jinn, which would make sense why they never go out on missions. Obi-Wan can’t even manage to meditate properly, though he’s excellent with lightsaber forms (not that Qui-Gon has had him doing anything beyond basic forms). Whereas the other Padawans that he grew up with as initiates seem to balance well with their Jedi Masters, Obi-Wan wonders why Qui-Gon would choose him when they are not well-matched. When Obi-Wan discovers a long-forgotten planet mapped along a wall by Orla Jareni, a Wayseeker, Obi-Wan believes that this is the mission he’s been waiting for. The Force has guided him to it, but that might be more Obi-Wan’s wishful hoping than actual guidance by the Force. The ship is ready, and he has A6-G2 (or Aces or Aysix) along. Qui-Gon gave his permission for the mission, but he’s nowhere to be found the day they’re to set off. It’s against protocol, but Obi-Wan, rigid rule-follower, sets off without Qui-Gon. After going through a rather violent asteroid belt, he breaks the planet’s atmosphere and winds up on Lenahra. There are a dozen young people inhabiting it, along with gobblers, rolling avalanche critters that are unexpectedly furry and possible killer trees. When Obi-Wan is alone, a gobbler is practically tame and the trees and furry, rolling critters leave him alone. What incites them to be hostile? What causes a planet to randomly create a sinkhole that tries to take you down? Obi-Wan plans to investigate. There are drawings in a ship that the dozen Lenahrans say they’ve never stepped foot in, as their ancestors disallowed going in it, but the drawings are telling. Obi-Wan comes to the realization that his time with the ragtag group of Lenahrans - like leader Audj and her brother, Casul, Zae-Brii, who can take on another’s face, and Shush, Trill and Whistle, the latter three who must usually remain in water unless they want to experience much pain - is at an end. He prepares to slip away and sneak off in secret, but something will prompt him to remain. If there’s a threat, how will the planet respond?

            It’s the power of White’s writing that prompted me to buy this book, for I admit that I am not much of a Star Wars fanatic. Reading Obi-Wan’s story through White’s prose makes him more relatable. Discovering that a character wasn’t always the calm but fierce, totally-connected-to-the-Force guy he appears as a Jedi Knight makes readers feel like they, too, have a chance to ... also become Jedi Knights. (Maybe that’s a stretch.) I did find the pacing to be swift, the characters varied in appearance, gender orientation, etc., and the world-building to be intricate enough while still giving readers space to fill in other details with their own imaginations. Aces could easily become the fans’ next favorite droid. It’s a rollicking adventure, and while there are run-for-your-life runs, the one ultimate battle may leave battle-hungry fans wanting. There isn’t as much lightsaber work as I would expect from a Star Wars novel, so if I think that as a fantasy reader and not as a hardcore fan, take that how you will depending where you fall on the fandom scale. And, as always, may the Force be with you!

            Favorite lines: “No offense, sky trash, but you weren’t really my type. You have too much hair. And also too little. You’re very confusing, visually.” --Casul to Obi-Wan