Genre: Fantasy
Author: Brian Jacques
Redwall Abbey stands as a symbol of peace and goodwill to all woodland creatures, a testament to the lasting peace brought to Mossflower Forest by Martin the Warrior, legendary hero to the oppressed, so many years ago. In this tranquil peace, young Matthias the mouse yearns for adventure and excitement, and soon he will have more than he bargained for, when the cruel and merciless rat Cluny the Scourge and his brutal army arrive at the gates, demanding unconditional surrender- or death.
The peaceful inhabitants must quickly learn how to defend their home and their lives, or Redwall will become a fortress of evil, with the whole forest once again under its tyrannical rule. In the perilous days that follow, the spirit of Martin the Warrior comes to Matthias in a dream, starting Matthias and his friends on a cryptic hunt for clues inside the Abbey in search for Martin's lost sword of legend, forged from a falling star. But with Cluny's army battering at the walls, its a race against the clock to find a way to stop the horde before its too late.
Alex's Opinion:
Seriously, everybody at my grade school read this book, and the others in the series (of which there are something like 20+), and loved them. Unfortunately, now that i'm in college, I ask friends if they have read this book, and they say no, and ask "What are they about?" And I have to embarrassingly explain its about a bunch of little woodland creatures living in the forest, going on adventures and vanquishing evil, all the while realizing how childish it sounds, and ending lamely with "But they're epic!!"
Well, i'm saying right now, they are totally epic. The author, Brian Jacques, wrote this series originally for blind children, and its imagery is very immersive and easy to visualize, making the journey to an exciting new world effortless.
The characters in this book, and the whole series, are dimensional and believable, with truly epic good guys and truly sinister bad guys, and the end of every book is always an epic and gratifying showdown between good and evil. Most of the books, including Redwall, have a riddle component, which the main characters try to solve throughout the story, which I quite enjoy. All around, great book, but if i'm being honest, my favorite books in this series are probably "Pearls of Lutra" and "The Taggerung"
Who would like it:
Fantasy lovers should really enjoy Redwall, and the portal it opens to the rest of the series with its well developed and detailed "universe". My favorite part of most of the books, including this one, is an epic build up to an epic final battle, which I think everyone enjoys. Lastly, this is a book that can be enjoyed by most anybody, a strong grade school reader to adults, however there is a non trivial amount of murder with full imagery to go along with it, so take that into account.
Buy:
Amazon Paperback
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