Tales of Enlightenment

Star Wars: The High Republic

by George Mann

A hardcover collection of Star The High Republic stories from the pages of Star Wars Insider , written by New York Times bestselling author, George Mann.

A collection of tales set centuries before the birth of Anakin Skywalker featuring Jedi Knights during the era of the glorious High Republic. In addition to six original stories, this collection also includes behind-the-scenes interviews with authors as well as a guide to Phase II of The High Republic publishing initiative.

Genres: Star Wars, Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction, Anthologies, Adult

96 pages, Hardcover

First published April 2, 2024

About the author

George Mann is an author and editor, primarily in genre fiction. He was born in Darlington, County Durham in 1978.
A former editor of Outland, Mann is the author of The Human Abstract, and more recently The Affinity Bridge and The Osiris Ritual in his Newbury and Hobbes detective series, set in an alternate Britain, and Ghosts of Manhattan, set in the same universe some decades later.
He wrote the Time Hunter novella "The Severed Man", and co-wrote the series finale, Child of Time.
He has also written numerous short stories, plus Doctor Who and Sherlock Holmes audiobooks for Big Finish Productions. He has edited a number of anthologies including The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction, The Solaris Book of New Fantasy and a retrospective collection of Sexton Blake stories, Sexton Blake, Detective, with an introduction by Michael Moorcock.

Reviews

[Jonathan Koan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has 6 short stories, all set on Jedha during Phase 2 of "The High Republic". All of the stories take place in the "Enlightenment" Bar where Keth Cerapath, Piralli, Moona, Kradon, and others have discussions with different patrons and strangers, including prospectors, Jedi, Path of the Open Hand members, and more. There's also a shootout and other exciting events that happen before, during and after the events of the "Battle of Jedha".

Speaking of which, if you really enjoyed George Mann's audiodrama/script "The Battle of Jedha" you might get the most out of this book.

The stories themselves were interesting, but not particularly necessary to the grand scope of the High Republic.

There are also some intereviews at the back of the book. I was most fascinated by George Mann's interview, as it seemed to provide the most behind the scenes information on publishing. However, the rest of the interviews didn't particularly add much, and to me seem as if they are present purely to padd the page length of the book, as without the interviews and information on the High Republic books, this would only be about 60 pages.

As mentioned, there is some information included about all of the High Republic books, and can be helpful if you need a quick reference. The best part of this is a two-page spread with the list of all the published titles in Phases 1 and 2 of the High Republic (although it curiously leaves out "Tales of Light and Life", "Tales of Enlightenment", and "Edge of Balance: Precedent", all the other titles are present).

Overall, the book is a nice short story collection, and has some artwork (although none of the artwork stands out as fantastic or amazing) and works more as a reference guide and a way to make sure you have all the High Republic stories. Its good for completionists, but I wouldn't recommend to casual readers. 6 out of 10.

[Lena · Rating 4 out of 5]

The short stories are pretty standard Star Wars stuff, but I give +1⭐ for the implicit Cippa Tarko mention in the Lydia Kang interview. You gotta stay loyal to your Glup Shitto!

[szara · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5
Nicely written collection of short stories all taking place in a bar on Jedha. It was a really pleasant read but it is an extra material filling into the bigger story, I'd say it is necessary to first read "Battle of Jedha" audio drama and the Marvel High Republic comicbook series for phase II to truly get what is happening here and have the emotional impact that's mostly build in these main stories.

[Candice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collection of short stories set in Phase 2 of the High Republic. It's a good idea to either read these at the end because there are spoilers in some of the stories for the books, or follow the reading order on Youtini that will tell you how to read them in chronological order. I also enjoyed the interviews at the end, especially since I love hearing more about the authors behind Star Wars.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rather than a series of stories, it's a series of inter-connected stories featuring a set cast, taking place in the background of a particular era of The High Republic. I can't say it rocked my world in any way, and while I can admire the writing, it wasn't as entertaining as I hoped it would be.

[Vivianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 étoiles

[Sid · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 stars.

[kel · Rating 4 out of 5]

the end i have tears in my eyes

[Rob Haug · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just a short two part intro to phase 2 of the High Republic offerings. It is simply a lady telling a story in a bar (called Enlightenment) on Jedha. Worth the small investment of time.

[☮ morgan ☮ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Where there is darkness, the light may one day come to shine."

[Kurt Lorenz]

New Prospects, ☆☆☆☆
A Different Perspective, ☆☆☆
The Unusual Suspect, ☆☆☆
No Such Thing As A Bad Customer, ☆☆☆
Last Orders, ☆☆☆☆
Missing Pieces,

[Mike S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tales of Enlightenment is a collection of six short stories set during Phase II of the High Republic (set about 150 years before the destruction of the Starlight Beacon by the Nihil). All of the stories are set on Jedha (which was first introduced in the movie Rogue One) in a bar called Enlightenment. The stories all involve a group of regular patrons of the bar interacting with people visiting the bar before, during, and after the events of the Battle of Jedha.

The hardcover version of the book is just under 100 pages. The short stories take up about 2/3 of the book. The last 1/3 includes interview snippets and background information on some of the authors who have contributed to the High Republic stories, short synopses of the Phase I and II novels, and a listing of the chronological order of the Phase II and II books. There are also a lot of illustrations, so even though the book is about 100 pages long, there is much less than 100 pages of text, so it is very easy to read. Most people will likely be able to finish it in a day or less.

Ultimately, I would not classify this as a must-read. The stories are fine but are very much filler stories that do not advance the main storyline of Phase II much at all. The writer interviews and bios are okay, but nothing to write home about. The chronological listing of the novels is helpful if you are one who gets the physical books and wants to put them on a shelf in chronological order.

[ashlabooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Tales of Enlightenment von George Mann

Im Magazin "Star Wars Insider" hielt die zweite Phase der Hohen Republik mit George Manns "Tales of Enlightenment" Einzug. In diesen Kurzgeschichten ließ der Autor die Leser in die Geschehnisse rundum die Bar "Enlightenment" auf Jedha und deren Stammgäste eintauchen ✨

Der Inhalt:

Alle fünf bereits erschienen Kurzgeschichten ("New Prospects", "A Different Perspective", "The Unusual Suspect", "No such thing as a bad costumer" und "Last Orders") sind hier mit einer exklusiven Bonus-Geschichte ("Missing Pieces") versammelt. Dazu wurden Interviews mit den neuen Autoren der zweiten Phase sowie ein umfassender Guide zur "Quest of the Jedi" abgedruckt.

Meine Meinung:

Wie schon in den "Starlight Stories" der ersten Phase lohnt sich der Band für alle, die den "Star Wars Insider" nicht beziehen. Die Geschichten sind kurzweilig und unterhaltsam. Das Geschehen der zweiten Phase erweitern sie um eine persönlichere Perspektive, die sich innerhalb des anschaulichen Mikrokosmos "Enlightenment" abspielt. Die Aufmachung als Hardcover mit farbigen Zeichnungen der heiligen Stadt ist definitiv gelungen. Die Interviews liefern interessante Fakten und neue Blickwinkel auf die Beiträge der Autoren. Der Guide zur Zweiten Phase lohnt sich dagegen nur für Neueinsteiger, die einmal alle Werke im Überblick haben wollen.

Fazit:

Eine gelungene Kurzgeschichtensammlung, die spannend, humorvoll und emotional zugleich ist. Es lohnt sich, sowohl zum Einstieg als auch zur Vertiefung der Hohen Republik.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every person in a bar has a story. It's just a lot of them are really dull. Even in the Star Wars Galaxy.

This collection of short stories fleshes out the characters of the bar Enlightenment a bit, in stories that are fine enough on their own, but don't add a whole lot to the High Republic Phase 2. I actually expected a bit more development of the characters, but several of the stories use them as springboards for one-offs from characters never previously encountered. While it's interesting to see how the stories intersect with the Battle of Jedha and a couple other elements of the storylines, it's all pretty mundane.
There's also some author interviews to give a better sense of the new Phase 2 writers, which is fine but pretty vanilla. It does also provide some guidance to the various books in the first two phases in terms of time and order which is nice. Ultimately, this is a nice enough addition to the High Republic Phase 2 but not something that feels required.

[Jac Filer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun, but brief collection of tales told in and about The Enlightenment Bar on Jedha. The six stories are laid out in chronological order, and orbit the events described in The Battle of Jedha. I recommend reading (or better--experiencing the audiodrama) The Battle of Jedha first. Not only will you avoid key spoilers contained in these stories, but you'll meet the regulars at The Enlightenment, who are brought even more fully to life in this collection.
While all of the tales contained in this book are enjoyable, some felt like they leaned more on setup and cut the main narrative short. This was especially true of the stories recounted by once-and-done visitors to the taproom.
Still, it is a lively way to revisit some memorable characters and even tie up a couple of loose ends from the main High Republic story arc.

[Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like the idea of these stories -- a series of narratives following patrons of a bar in Jedha while all the crazy events of the High Republic books takes place. None of the stories were particularly great, but they were fun reads to kill 10-15 minutes. I really like the bartender, Kradon. Also, note that you definitely should not read this until after you have finished all of the Phase 2 novels and comics, as there are some big spoilers. Hopefully Titan/lucasfilm continues to collect these stories from the Insider magazine.

[Jesse Kade Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much like Starlight Stories this is a book in two parts. I loved that this collection of short stories focused on three regulars at a bar, it was like Star Wars v Cheers. If I am being honest I enjoyed this set of tales more than Starlight. As for the get to know the authors and their background section, I preferred SS to this. This was just a few interview articles and some basic background. It wasn’t bad by any means, I just prefer the style of Ss to TE for this section.

[Ben Kendall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant short stories that help to flesh out the world of Jedha during the time of The High Republic Phase II; they really add to the "lived-in" feel of Star Wars, and you get the sense that Jedha City is the epitome of this, with centuries of cultures, religions, and ways of life co-existing side by side.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent anthology. I loved the little bar with a gang of characters featured in Battle of Jedha. I'm also a fan of George Mann's writing. Honestly, each of these short stories was the perfect bite-size. It was a great way to continue to get to know the characters and also get glimpses of the broader Phase II story through these everyday people at a bar. I'm so glad I read it.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories are somewhat decent and actually all feature the same characters. I do think the illustrations on the edges could have had more stuff such as character illustrations. It just looks like an empty cantina. After the six stories, the remaining third of the book is interviews with writers about Star Wars and specifically The High Republic. Insightful, but nothing super surprising.

[Kai Charles(Fiction State Of Mind) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gorgeous hardback collection of the High Republic Phase 2 stories. There is also a sixth story you can only get in this collection. There also is a wonderful reading guides and reprints of various articles from SW Insider.

[Topher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading even more about Enlightenment and the bar patrons that had made up Keth’s life

[RoadLZRD · Rating 4 out of 5]

The heart and soul of the Jedha arc. I could read 100 more tales from the Enlightenment bar!

[Sanny · Rating 4 out of 5]

GOT EMOTIONAL BCS OF A CHARACTER NAMED KETH CEREPATH 🥹🥹🥹🥹 HE HAS MY HEART GEORGE MANN WHEN I CATCH YOU

[Hayley Hobbs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bar stories. I do love Phase II of The High Republic.

[Braden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of cool few short stories in between the high republic series. Each were a few pages so left wanting more of course.

[Zucc 2020 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This shit made me sad, man. I miss my bro so much😭

[John Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

6 short stories. Made me tear up.

[josie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another happy landing. Really well written short stories, loved seeing the progression throughout.

[Jazmin Castro · Rating 4 out of 5]

KETH CERAPATH YOU WILL BE REMEMBERED (i spent a lot of this book ugly crying)