An enthralling tale is jam-packed with the things we long for in a great adventure: danger laughter, hairbreadth escapes, tragedy, mystery, a touch of wonder a truly despicable villain and a hero we can take to heart.
Brian Jacques (pronounced 'jakes') was born in Liverpool, England on June 15th, 1939. Along with forty percent of the population of Liverpool, his ancestral roots are in Ireland, County Cork to be exact.
Brian grew up in the area around the Liverpool docks, where he attended St. John's School, an inner city school featuring a playground on its roof. At the age of ten, his very first day at St. John's foreshadowed his future career as an author; given an assignment to write a story about animals, he wrote a short story about a bird who cleaned a crocodile's teeth. Brian's teacher could not, and would not believe that a ten year old could write so well. When young Brian refused to falsely say that he had copied the story, he was caned as "a liar". He had always loved to write, but it was only then that he realized he had a talent for it. He wrote Redwall for the children at the Royal Wavertree School for the Blind in Liverpool, where as a truck driver, he delivered milk. Because of the nature of his first audience, he made his style of writing as descriptive as possible, painting pictures with words so that the schoolchildren could see them in their imaginations. He remained a patron of the school until his death.
Brian lived in Liverpool, where his two grown sons, Marc, a carpenter and bricklayer, and David, a professor of Art and a muralist, still reside. David Jacques' work can be seen in Children's hospitals, soccer stadiums, and trade union offices as far away as Germany, Mexico, and Chile (not to mention Brian's photo featured in most of his books).
Brian also ran a weekly radio show on BBC Radio Merseyside, until October 2006, where he shared his comedy and wit, and played his favourites from the world of opera - he was a veritable expert on The Three Tenors.
When he was wasn't writing, Brian enjoyed walking his dog 'Teddy', a white West Highland Terrier, and completing crossword puzzles. When he found time he read the works of Mario Puzo, Damon Runyon, Richard Condon, Larry McMurty, and P.G. Wodehouse. He was also known to cook an impressive version of his favourite dish, spaghetti and meatballs.
Sadly, Brian passed away on the 5th February 2011.
Hahaha this is my favourite series in the world, with it's nail biting moments loveable characters and steadfast heroes this series has captured my heart for the past 5 years of my young life... The ballads, songs, poems and riddels are beyond amazing and add so much to this wonderful series... I so dearly wish that he could be able to write more and make me shed a tear for a beloved creature who died trying to defend it's home and those he loved most...Mr Jaques has spun many a tale and created such vivid images I strongly believe that his books will remain loved for a very very long time...Oi Serpintly think so...Oi really do...
Best series ever. Jaques manages to make the characters come to life and his food descriptions are unbelievably mouthwatering. The story lines are almost always sweet and clever. Would read every last one of these to my kids.
I have read all but the last couple of books in this series; they have been constant companions through childhood and well into adulthood. These are one of the few books that I have never listened to in audio format, and I will likely keep it that way. There’s something about them that I think would be ruined for me in hearing someone else narrate. The level of description and writing style allow my brain to envision the story as it unfolds so perfectly that I never want to encroach upon that with audio (which is odd because I almost exclusively listen to audiobooks these days).
I love that each book can stand on its own and tells a fun, intriguing tale, while maintaining a consistent thread with the other books. I love that there are points of connection between various books that help peace together the overall history of the world, Brian Jacques created.
Frankly, I loved this series so much that my first cat is named after Matthias. He was a bit of a bumbling idiot when I brought him home at 9 weeks, but grew into himself and is a ferocious hunter!
Yes, this series of books is amazing! The poems and riddles are engaging and keep you guessing until the solution is presented. The action bits are usually fast pace and make you want to jump up and down in hyper excitement. The characters are well rounded and the villains are all deliciously evil. This series is perfect for fifth graders and up. The only problem that I have with this series is that the plot lines are all very similar to each other, therefore, I give this particular series four stars.
This was the greatest childhood book series of all time. Think your kid isn't ready for lord of the rings? give them this. It's the greatest, the characters, the accents, the amazing world building, the disruptions of foods and recipes, the songs and the poetry. It's like I'm already in love with cute animals, by cute animals living epic medieval sagas is like the most specific amazing thing you could possibly ever write for me. And there are so many books here, your kid will not get bored. Read THIS series. *****So many feels****
I actually read the whole series of his redwall books a few years ago. couldn't get my preteenage grandkids (at the time), interested. I greatly enjoyed them! I just today saw they may be made into a movie. Believe me, the books will still be so much better! but I will still watch the movie if it comes out also!
Read every book in the series! One of my favorites for sure. Epic battles, plot lines and twists. The descriptions of the feasts will leave your mouth watering and stomach grumbling. Highly recommended!