In the first sentence of her introduction to the new book Star Wars Everyday, Ahsoka Tano voice actress Ashley Eckstein says that the Star Wars franchise has endured “for more than 50 years” since the release of the original film (it’s only been 45 years, but the point stands, and I guess I can’t hold it against her that nobody checked her math).
The title of Star Wars Everyday: A Year of Activities, Recipes & Crafts from A Galaxy Far, Far Away (from publisher Insight Editions) also bothered me at first– surely Everyday Star Wars or even Star Wars Every Day would have worked better– but Eckstein manages to make that make sense in the same introduction. Nitpicking aside, this book is a guide to making Star Wars part of your everyday life, just in case you’re not already fully immersed in the George Lucas-created universe on a daily basis in the way many fans are, myself included.
For this collection of “activities, recipes, & crafts,” Eckstein has partnered with food stylist Elena P. Craig (Cooking with Deadpool) and entertainment writer Kelly Knox (Star Wars: Be More Obi-Wan) to come up with an extremely impressive collection of projects to keep oneself– and, perhaps more likely, one’s Star Wars-minded family– busy with themed crafting and cooking throughout the year. Naturally, the book is divided by month from January through December, and each month is given a motif like “Hope,” “Love,” “Discipline,” “Friendship,” and “Celebration.” Now, I definitely don’t consider myself the craftiest person in the world, but when I first started flipping through the pages some of the projects contained within Star Wars Everyday immediately started jumping out at me as things I might actually like to try. Case in point: the “Sarlacc-O’-Lantern,” which is of course nestled within the October “Dark Side” section of the book. This ingenious idea allows you to transform an ordinary pumpkin into the Great Pit of Carkoon, where the infamous, deadly Sarlacc monster dwells in Return of the Jedi. Unfortunately Halloween season has just ended for 2022, but rest assured I’ll be trying this one out come next fall.
There are also plans for a great-looking Death Star piñata, a sweet Ewok birdhouse, and even a Grogu paper-bag puppet that I’m positive will have kids giggling both during and after its construction. On the food side of things, there are recipes for Bantha Surprise Burger Bites, Salacious Crumb’s Bake Shop Cupcakes, Hoth-sicles for those hot summer days, and tasty-looking Yoda Punch. And Eckstein punctuates all these projects with mindfulness activities that will have Star Wars fans finding new ways to center themselves and relieve their own stress. Beyond the inventiveness of the contents, Star Wars Everyday is also populated by incredibly attractive photos (credited to Ted Thomas) depicting all the yummy goodies, and idealized, colorful versions of the finished crafting projects– I have a feeling my attempts aren’t going to be quite as nice when they’re complete, but I’m going to take a stab at them anyway! All in all, I’d say Ashley Eckstein, Elena P. Craig, and Kelly Knox have really done a commendable job of putting this book together– I can absolutely see families, kids, or even childless adults diving into Star Wars Everyday for tips and suggestions on how to bring more Star Wars into their lives for many years to come– and I’ll be sure to share photos of my Sarlacc-O’-Lantern next Halloween!
Star Wars Everyday is available now wherever books are sold.