Whereas Anakin's journal was kind of lacking any depth and was really just another novelization of the movie, this book really gets into Amidala's character, her motivations, and what makes her tick. It clears up all the questions about when she's the queen and when she's Padme, and she lets us into her past a little. The reason this only gets four stars, though, is that I still don't understand the whole "Journal" premise -- why write a series of books from the viewpoint of a character whose story we already know well? Additionally, I feel that the author, while she has a very firm grasp of the Star Wars characters, lacks an understanding of the way the SW universe works. She keeps referring to "the galaxies," though last time I checked SW only takes place in one.Overall this is a well-written book for those that want to get to know the queen better, but it is still just another retelling of TPM.