Police detective Dell Spooner is suspicious of robots, following an accident in which he lost an arm. If that’s an example of Naboo’s vaunted brand of craftsmanship, no wonder the Empire wiped it out.Chicago in the year 2035, where the use of robots as human servants has become widespread. In 20 minutes, I couldn’t piece together the Naboo Starfighter properly - and the edges had ugly little white bumps from where you punch out the paper. The back cover shows elaborate renderings of six ships and vehicles, but when you turn to the actual flat paper sheets inside, they look like somebody drew them with fat-tipped magic markers all the borders are blurred.

Avoid like an Imperial torture droid, however, the wretched Micro-Vehicle Punch-Outs. And if you hunger for simple picture-book showcases of Phantom‘s elaborate production design, take your pick of the Queen Amidala Paper Doll Book (all the outfits! all the wigs!) or The Ultimate Star Wars Episode I Sticker Book (conveniently re-stickable).

I can’t vouch for the dishes’ taste, but the witty pictures of ”Greedo’s Burritos” and ”Han-burgers” made me laugh more than all of Jar Jar’s jokes put together. Too much pseudo-art-historical pretense for you? Have a laugh instead with The Star Wars Cookbook: Wookiee Cookies and Other Galactic Recipes, by Robin Davis. In fact, it’s the Illustrated Screenplay that yields the best extra-cinematic snippets: It includes scene fragments deleted from the film, such as two droids watching the action early on as one declares, ”I’m not made to think.” What’s the deal with Shmi Skywalker, mother of the little boy who’ll grow up to become Darth Vader, announcing that her son was immaculately conceived? No explanation as in the film script, she simply declares, ”There is no father.” And what’s a ”midi-chlorian,” explained vaguely in the movie as a life-form found in the cells of Jedi that helps them channel the Force? You won’t find specific answers. Nobody reads film novelizations looking for Shakespeare, but did this instant best-seller have to stick so close to straight transcription, especially since Brooks was supposedly given some latitude to improvise? Despite huffing on the jacket about ”rich detail and insight” there’s precious little of it. What about bigger readers? They won’t find much nutrition in the Brooks book.

I robot the illustrated screenplay