Redwall by Brian Jacques

Title: Redwall
Author: Brian Jacques
ISBN: 0-441-00548-9
333 pages
Ace Books, 1998 edition

Description:

'Redwall' is set in a world reminiscent of medieval Europe, with the exception being that this world is inhabited solely by rodents of all varieties. Within the walls of the famous Redwall Abbey, situated at the edge of Mossflower Wood, there lives a young, bumbling and awkward mouse named Matthias. Matthias is but a young mouse, but one whom the elders of the abbey have taken a liking to. One day word comes to the abbey that Cluny the Scourge, an evil rat with a legion of ill-willed underlings, has made his way towards the abbey and plans to take it for himself. Matthias and his woodland friends must take it upon themselves to protect the abbey from Cluny and his hordes.

Matthias, as well as all of the other mice in the abbey, are familiar with the legend of Martin the Warrior, a mythical figure revered by all the creatures of Mossflower Wood. The young Matthias soon learns that the sword of Martin is buried somewhere beneath the abbey. In order to protect the creatures of Redwall Abbey and turn back Cluny the Scourge, Matthias must find the sword and channel his inner Martin; the fate of Redwall lies in his hands.

Review:

The first in a long and extremely popular series of books, 'Redwall' is a fairly good example of a children's epic. Long for a tween book at nearly 350 pages, Jacques does well to keep the chapters short (some less than three pages) and the language simple. Herein lies both the weaknesses and the strengths of Jacques 'Redwall'; it is very simple for kids to follow but lacks any real depth. The plot is very formulaic and follows the inevitable turns of the traditional hero story; almost to a fault. The lack of depth and character bothered me (as an adult) but has obviously not turned away most children. The mark of truly great children's literature is that it can also be greatly enjoyed by adults, and 'Redwall' does not quite fit that bill.