Brian Jacques Day 2014 Discussion Topic

[TW]

Nothing seems to draw me in to another world like Brian's stories. My first was Marlfox, but it was Martin the Warrior that cemented his books in my heart. The end of that book showed me that the best things in the world are impermanent and that's why they are the most important. I had been reading Redwall books for some years when I came across a couple of Brian's interviews. I was astounded that so many of his ideals for stories were the same as mine. Like him, I was disappointed that so many novels now are focused on such things as teenage angst and children going through divorce. No magic or imagination, just dull reality. Not to mention I agree full heartedly on his quote in my signature. I never got a chance to meet him, but I still miss him just as much as anyone else. May the stories of Brian and Redwall live on for all time. I think these two videos are appropriate.

EULALIA!

[Blazemane]

Back in 2011, after I'd heard that Brian Jacques died, I ended up writing a sort of free-form essay about it. I think some of the information in it is outdated (like which books I haven't read--by now, I haven't read none of them), and at least one thing is just plain inaccurate (Brian Jacques never does the word "flapjacks," does he?), but here's what I had to say, anyhow:

Spoiler

About a year ago, I posted a journal asking about the point of fiction. If characters don't truly exist and their lives and adventures truly constitute no real happenings, accomplishments, victories, etc., then what does a fictional character's life, and the story in which it happens, really matter?

I did essentially calm down, acknowledging we can learn about our own lives through the lives of those fictional characters, as well as slowly and gratefully accepting the fact that as long as stories can be enjoyed innocently, they are a blessing simply for that reason.

A few days ago, I learned later than most that Brian Jacques had died. This may sound callous- and perhaps that's one of the lessons I need to learn here- but I was surprised to find myself grieved (though even then, only subtly) by the news. I didn't know the author on a personal level after all.

But I think I've begun to piece together why his passing struck me the way it did.

For me, things started in 4th grade. My school took part in the Accelerated Reading Program. In this system, students pick books from the library at school, read them (well... naturally), and then, should they choose, take a computerized quiz about those books' contents. Each quiz was worth a certain number of points, and as one accumulated points throughout the school year, they would receive prizes of increasing awesomeness: at 12.5 points, maybe a bookmark, at 25, pencils and certificates, at 50 points (and I'm actually pretty sure of my memory on this one) a free book, at 100 points, a party at the end of the year, more free books, and so on. There was also a team element to the program, since an accumulation of points by an entire class could earn them a pizza party at one level or an ice cream party at another.

Some relatively long or challengingly written books- the kind your teacher might read to you in elementary school over the course of a month or so- reached up to 9 or 10 points. There were some book series, such as Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, where each entry was worth 5 points. Below these still were a large number of books worth 1 to 2 points, or perhaps even 0.5. Reaching 100 in a year, then, was... difficult.

One day our class visited the library like it did every week for a half an hour and I came across a distinctively large hardcover with an illustration of some sort of ferocious looking animal peering out of thick grass. The plot seemed interesting, but what really caught my attention was the amount of AR points available from the book's quiz, which I'm inclined to say either amounted to 17 or 14.

So my first exposure to the series was the Outcast of Redwall. And what an introduction. Sunflash the Mace- an enslaved badger- escapes his oppressors along with a hawk. Together, they scour the woodlands of a good number of villains. Eventually, he takes his place as leader of Salamandastron and later comes to the inevitable confrontation with his vengeful former master, Swart Sixclaw. Meanwhile, Brian Jacques puts together an understatedly profound look at the nature of evil and redemption through the story of Veil, who, raised in likely the most peaceful and benign location in all of Mossflower, somehow succumbs to the nature of his vermin father. After he attempts murder and gets himself exiled, he is still followed by Byrony who absolutely refuses to give up the hope of seeing his potential good win out in the end. And then, when both plots come crashing together, Veil finally does redeem himself by saving Byrony's life, dying for his troubles.

To me that was astounding.

Redwall books have been accused of being formulaic (I myself have made that claim, but have since had to rethink), and perhaps there are those who think the stories, intended for children, are in the end, adolescent.

No. Epic.

There were, of course, other books in the series, and satisfied with the massive AR point grab which came from taking the quiz, I moved on ahead. But I was intrigued by more than just the points. I wanted more readable awesome. I suppose that was the point of the Accelerated Reading program all along- that we'd pick something up one day and find out we didn't want to put it down.

I read the books and talked with other people on the playground about the confusing nature of molespeak- a dialect which had caught me so off guard when I first read Outcast that I had a hard time realizing not all Redwallers are moles, and even realizing what the moles were saying (and Outcast of Redwall was still epic). The people on the playground agreed on molespeak's confusing properties.

But at some point, I came to understand it. It was a bit like discovering a new language, or deciphering a code. And then came time to speak it around other people, getting them to wonder what they'd just heard.

In 5th grade, I finally picked up Redwall itself. This book is a classic. Matthias is not the warrior type. In fact, few in the Abbey are. Because of what I believe to be the most desperately accounted and cruelly lead siege in the entirety of the Redwall series (though I speak without the knowledge of a few books), Matthias is forced to become the hero the abbey needs, and likewise, everyone else in Redwall rises to the occasion. So the mouse took down a snake, and even after that, Cluny's death managed to be more vindicating for me as a reader.

Another great thing about Redwall- Matthias, in order to become the warrior he was, must logically have had it in him all along from the time he was tripping on his tunic and inverting his words, and certainly before he ever touched a sword. It isn't as though the life lesson of individual potential for heroism has never been covered by other authors, but I've come across few stories that have covered it so well.

I think somewhere after that I read Mattimeo, and perhaps Marlfox. I'm not sure. The order would be so much fun to remember, but I suppose it doesn't matter that much.

It's either in 6th grade or 7th grade that the AR program switches to a different reward system. At the end of the year, 100 points still means a party and all, but prizes are handed out at the end of the year. My library would set up items on various tables in an aesthetically impressive arrangement, and assign points to the items. A student would then take the amount of points from their yearly accumulation and exchange them for the amount of points listed on the items.

The first year this happened, I got a boombox, mostly due to points from Redwall books- now I'm guessing Mossflower, Lord Brocktree, and perhaps The Long Patrol.

Me and my younger siblings set the boombox up in our room. The inanity of the things we documented with the tape recorder can't quite be accurately described, but a summary of significant selections would first and foremost include a pretend radio show, complete with between-song announcements, selections ripped from actual radio broadcasts, interviews with one another, and even some cringe-worthy original song recordings- an act that provoked the recording of satirical singing from older siblings who heard our work. Then there was an elaboration of the "elephant in my pajamas" joke into a full fledged story with a T-rex and an elephant named Hbiksbukidah (Sp?).

Later years with the AR program would bring a mini-air hockey table, silly putty, and a number of things I can't even remember, but nothing was as entertaining as the boombox.

That's just one set of memories, and there's so much more to account for. I recall reading Martin the Warrior over Thanksgiving break while munching on sunflower seeds and wondering if they're more trouble then they're worth.

Me and my younger sister happened to be reading The Legend of Luke at the same time, and naturally we raced to see who would finish first (fortunately, we each had separate copies). I won after being some 20 pages behind. I felt special.

There was a time our power went out in a winter storm and didn't come back for around 2 and half days. We kept the house warm with the fireplace. I decided to re-read Redwall. At night, with no functioning light bulbs, I read by the fire, or else by candle light. The fact that I was reading a story about Redwall Abbey under such conditions made for a truly unique and spectacular experience. I had mixed feelings when the power finally came back.  

I began reading The Long Patrol on a day I was sick and decided to stay home from school. It was in this book that I first came across the term "flapjacks" as a synonym for pancakes. And the fact that a squirrel would want pancakes in the Redwall continuity- a dish whose modern prevalence made its existence in a Redwall book seem like an anachronism to me- was fascinating.

(Of course, I recognize now that most of the dishes in Redwall do exist in this day and age. It was because of the series that I finally ate a turnover (I know, I know). I have to make Hot Root soup some day. Of all the food Jacques wrote about, this always sounded the most appealing to me.)

On a summer retreat with my church's Youth Group, I stayed awake long enough to witness Martin defeating Tsarmina in Mossflower. The next morning, when I finished the book and read that it was Gonff who married Columbine, and not Martin, I was once again confused, and actually a little miffed. I thought I had read of their marriage in another book in the series, but obviously that couldn't have really happened. I only came to read Martin the Warrior later, and the tragedy of Rose's death added some more sense to Martin's solitary lifestyle.

...Would any Redwall or 24 fans kill me if I say I see a lot of similarities between him and Jack Bauer? Well then, I probably shouldn't say it.

 But that's another aspect of this series that's so important- I don't just have memories of the times I read the books. The books left an incredible amount of things to think about in and of themselves.

There are so many blood-pumping accounts of heroes rising inexorably against the cruelty and tragedies directed at them- Taggerung, Triss, again Martin and Sunflash the Mace, Luke the Warrior, Ranguvar Foeseeker, Felldoh (the last three all dying in their respective efforts), the captives of Slagar the Cruel, etc.

In that list and in other accounts, there are the inspiringly strong leaders- unnamed as of yet in my opinion would be Lord Brocktree (the title character of what I'm fairly certain is my favorite book in the series, although Triss and Rakkety Tam are strong contenders), Matthias, Lady Cregga Rose Eyes, Constance, and the like.

And what truly brings these characters to life are the struggles they had and the moments that ended them.

I was awe-struck by Sarobando and Bragoon dying paw-in-paw waiting for "sunny slopes and quiet streams" after covering the escape of their charges. I was both galvanized and saddened by Felldoh being overwhelmed while wailing on Badrang. Romsca's slow befriending of Abbot Durral, her efforts to protect him and her final moment of confiding in him that she wished she could have been good was another striking example of the power of right over wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed Lord Brocktree's fight with Ungatt Trunn because of the brute power of both contenders. In fact, I was a bit apprehensive before and during the time I read it, because I knew Ungatt Trunn truly was a challenge for the badger, which shows not only how effectively Jacques could characterize, but also how engaged I became with the protagonists.

Arven the dibbun became Arven the Warrior became Arvin the Abbot. Tansy threw the Pearls of Lutra into the sea. Deyna would not ultimately be kept from his family. Rakkety Tam defeated Gulo the Savage. With a sharpened shield.

These are the stories I lost track of time in, that made me forget where I was when I read them, and that gave me another world to look into.

People say an author can influence you, or even change your life. I always believed it. Now I get it. My life, for all the events and reasons listed above, and still more I haven't brought to mind, would not have been the same without the works of Brian Jacques.

And that, quite simply, is the reason I miss him. When a person facilitates that large a portion of your growing years, it's hard not to be appreciative.

There is one last moment in the series I wanted to mention. The other day, searching the web for information about Brian Jacques, I came across a website selling a musician's settings of various poems from Redwall books. Intrigued by the title of one poem from Taggerung ("The Stars and the Moon"), I looked the poem up. But then, in curiosity, I continued reading. Soon after that poem in the book, Deyna has his final confrontation with Vallug Bowbeast, but not before the vermin fires an arrow into Cregga Rose Eyes' chest.

A while later, in the middle of a feast in her honor, the badger dies while listening to a Long Patrol marching tune. Her death is described as thus:

"As the drums on the hardee gurdee boomed out and Redwallers pounded the tabletops to the jolly marching air, Cregga went back in her mind. She was young and strong, her sight was perfect, and she was striding the dusty flatlands at the head of a thousand young marching hares, carrying her enormous axepike. No day was too long then, no march too tiresome. Like smoke, a dust column rose in a plume in their wake on that high far-off day, long long ago. She hummed the jaunty tune, reveling in the summer heat, glad to be alive and so full of strength. Smiling and nodding to her trusty officers, every one dashing and perilous, the sight of their faces delighting her. Sight. What a glorious gift it was. Blue skies, the sun, like a golden eye, watching over white mountaintops, green valleys, clear meandering streams. The misty figure of Boorab's grandsire appeared before her on the march and threw her a gallant salute with his saber blade.

'All present an' correct, marm. Where to now?"

Cregga heard herself saying, 'Into the setting sun, over the hills and far away.'"

Firstly, did I mention yet that Jacques is an incredible writer?

Secondly, this brings up one more point, a point that was part of the reason I finally lost it when I read this passage.

I am a Christian. I believe in God and his redeeming power, and I believe there is a heaven, and that there will one day be a new Earth. I can't speak to Brian Jacques' faith, but it seemed he too believed in Jesus Christ.

We will continue to have his books. New readers will come across them. But I think Brian Jacques' continuing story is not what he left behind, but what lies ahead. I know that not everyone believes in heaven. And I certainly don't seek to force my beliefs on anyone. But for my part, I think the biggest comfort for those who knew Brian Jacques- his family and friends- and even for us fans who have comparatively little to grieve over, is that Brian Jacques is truly in a better place.

At least as far as I can estimate.

[close]

[Captain Tammo]

So long old friend, you made a lot of people very happy.

[HeadInAnotherGalaxy]

So long old friend, you made a lot of people very happy.

Aye!

[Dawnwing]

I checked out Redwall for the first time just before falling extremely ill the summer I turned 14.  (Lyme Disease and Ehrlichiosis, a related but rarer and more deadly disease, at the same time.)  It was bad enough that they were considering hospitalizing me, just that they couldn't think of anything they could do to treat it better in the hospital that I was getting at home.  I stayed sick for pretty much the entire summer and it was absolutely miserable.  My mind was totally awake, but I was too sick to do things most of the time, even watch TV.  Occasionally I'd feel well enough to read a couple pages, though.  Everything was just vivid enough for me to picture, even during the times I didn't feel up to reading. 
Redwall got me through that summer, and I am extremely grateful to Brian for that.

[Captain Tammo]

A very moving story, dawnwing! I wish Brian could see us today. I think he'd be thrilled to see the thriving forum!

[The Skarzs]

Seems everyone has something to thank Brian Jacques for.

[Wylder Treejumper]

Thanks for wonderful memories Brian! May you live on forever in your books and the minds of your fans. Forward the buffs, true blue and never fail, wot!

EULALIA!!!

[HeadInAnotherGalaxy]

AYE!
REDWALL!

[M.A.R.T.I.N(band)offical]

Brian Without your work M.A.R.T.I.N would never be what they are now,and for that we than you. r.i.p ps say hi to the rev and paul for us.

[MeadowR]

Thank you to Brian for creating such a book series that can bring enjoyment for a teen me and then a 20-something me! The characters and adventures are also helping to inspire me to draw more again, so even more thanks to Mr Jacques! Woo!

[willruth]

 

  Brian Jaques was the greatest author I have and ever will know.
  Thank you for giving me many seasons of enjoyment up to this day!!!!!!

[MartinTheWarrior]

I have read every single one of his books at least 5 times, read them every day, and have 6 Redwall posters on my wall, no joke. I am soo obsessed with Redwall, and I am in the process of writing my very own Redwall book, and if I think it is good enough, then I think I might just have to try to publish it with Brian's families permission. Brian Jaques is my role model because he inspired me to start writing books, and I just want to thank him from the bottom of my heart, which was broken when he died.