May the Fourth – The Phantom Menace

Since today is May 4th, I wanted to do some recommendations based on the plots of the Star Wars series.  Please note, these will all be YA books.

Star Wars Episode I The Phantom Menace

To me, this is a coming of age story where we see apprentice take over for master and take on a new apprentice.  It’s very much about new beginnings.  Here are my YA recommendations:

• Madame Tussaud’s Apprentice by Kathleen Benner Duble – this is exactly the story of a master taking on a new student.  There are a lot of the same themes of rebellion, tragedy, and both the student and master learning from each other.
• Fawkes by Nadine Brandes – while this isn’t a master and apprentice situation, Fawkes is the story of Thomas Fawkes, son of the famous Guy Fawkes.  Thomas struggles to fill his father’s shoes as Obi Wan learns to fill Qui Gon Jinn’s.
• Dark Breaks the Dawn by Sara B. Holland – again, this is not a traditional master and apprentice story.  However, we see Evelayn struggle to understand her powers and learn to trust that she is ready to fill her mother’s role as Queen of her people.  Furthermore, we see themes of student surpassing the master as Evalyn (like Obi Wan), learns she is capable of more than her mother.