#recorder's queue

“Years are rarely referred to in my books; instead, seasons mark the passage of time. So, it is forty seasons, and more, since I commenced to write of Redwall, the enchanted world I discovered. What an enormous privilege it has been to share my brainchild with readers worldwide! I am certain that in the hearts and minds of all my readers, no matter how young or how old, they consider it, as I do, a flowing, timeless saga--from Mossflower’s green acres, with its ancient abbey standing fast on the dusty path of the woodland fringe, to Salamandastron, mountain sentinel of the seas on the far western shores.

My chief delight and satisfaction is annually to desert the world of modern technology. When winter fades and spring blossoms into summer, I feel an overwhelming urge to travel back once more. Mouse Warriors and Badger Lords come striding through the realms of my imagination, accompanied by their companions: comical hares, rustic moles, faithful otters, and all manner of diverse creatures. Questing, feasting, singing, and battling to defend good against evil.

Forty seasons now, and forty seasons hence, if fate and fortune permit, I will still be inviting you all to continue the saga of Redwall. Come with me, my Warriors, off on the trail of high old adventure!”

The following is a selection of statements taken from comments on an announcement of Jacques’ passing posted on MetaFilter Feb 7, 2011.

“Jacques came to our school library when I was in junior high and exclaimed over the many tiny dioramas of rabbits and mice preparing to go off on medieval quests -- and preparing the feasts he described in such lavish detail -- we had made to honor his coming. (For my sisters and me, this was basically re-creating our outdoor play with small animal dolls in smaller boxes; he so informed our imaginary worlds.) I remember he was incredibly gentle, read the voices of his characters wonderfully, and did a trick where he wiggled his ears.”

“I still think about Redwall Abbey. I think about scenes from those books all the time. They are an inextricable part of my internal life, in that way that only books you read as a kid can be.”

“He spoke at my elementary school library in the 80s. He was the first author I'd met in the flesh, and I was in awe. He was so gentle and sweet with us, and he will be missed.”

“I loved those books when I was a kid. I remember getting my younger brother into them, and reenacting vaguely Redwall-ian stories with Beanie Babies. And nerding out one day and putting all of the books into chronological order - not based on when they came out, but based on the chronology within the books. Next time I'm home, I'm breaking them out again.”

“Jacques introduced me to badgers and stoats, made me hungry with descriptions of epic rodent feasts, and taught me the difference between a mole and a vole.”

“These books were a big part of my childhood. My brothers and I would fight over who got to read the next one first.”

“I was into model trains, and in fourth grade I made a scale model of Salamandastron, its battlements and the surrounding countryside. It was about the size of a coffee table. When Brian Jacques was doing a signing at the local Barnes and Noble my grandpa helped me cart the entire thing into the store so he could sign it. I remember his eyes got huge and he looked delighted and amazed by my project. I walked on air for weeks. As a child, I lived in the world his books gave me - I learned to love good food, intentional community, architecture, the wilderness - many of the things that make me who I am today - by reading his adventures.”

“His books were a real 'gateway' for me, from children's lit into fantasy. Great, deep memories of childhood and wonder.”

“I think what really stands out to me was the heroism - the real heroism and time and again the lesson in choosing what was right over what was easy. I won't forget Matthias and his lady love Cornflower and the terrible Cluny the Scourge. Or Martin and Rose. Those books really had a hand in forming my young character.”

“I believe that I've read Redwall more times than any other book.”

“Mr. Jacques, thanks so much, for the riddles I could never solve, for making me perpetually hungry, for making a universe that just kept opening up on itself. I always hated finishing a super good book and knowing that I'd never find out what happened to all of the characters. But as soon as I closed a Redwall book, I could start on the next one, reading about the last protagonist's children or ancestors or friends. The feeling of having experienced a truly infinite, rich and fully realized world never failed to delight me.”

“I read these books like crazy as a kid, even fashioning myself my own Gullwhacker to keep under my pillow. Mariel was a big inspiration to a painfully shy and often frightened young girl.”

“They [Redwall books] were the only thing my bookphobic older brother would read, and he kept telling me to read them. I read the first page of Redwall when I was pretty small, and stubbornly decided I wouldn't like it, so refused to read any more. And then I was forced to read one of the series for a Brownie reading badge and, surprise surprise, adored them.”