TRISS - A REVIEW OF THE 15TH REDWALL CHRONICLE (Brian Jacques in general)

Member Name: stephenrastin

Product:	Brian Jacques in general
Date:	05/12/02 (60 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: lovely characterisation, page-turning adventure

Disadvantages: maybe a little too long for younger readers

I must confess from the outset that when I sat down to read "Triss", the fifteenth instalment in Brian Jacques' epic "Redwall" series of books, I knew next to nothing about the whole phenomenon.
The sum total of my knowledge was that it was set around an abbey populated by forest creatures with human characteristics and that there is some kind of "Redwall" fan club that attracts an anorak following among 12 year-olds who, let's face it, by now should be learning to swear along to their Eminem CDs and weild baseball bats as they deal Temazepan on their local housing estates.
Cynical? Me? Of course I am, this is the age of So Solid Crew not the Secret freakin' Seven so can someone please explain to me why "Triss" was the most enjoyable children's book I've read in ages, anything by Eoin Colfer excepted?
If we cut the story down to its' composite characters it sounds bloody ridiculous: a female warrior squirrel whose swordplay makes Zorro look clumsy, a sea otter whose boatmanship reduces Chay Blythe to the level of a novice on your local boating pool, a hare whose gluttony would keep several so-called celebrity chefs off our TV screens and busy in their kitchens (now there's a pleasant thought!), a vengeance-crazed ferret princess who speaks like the sea captain from The Simpsons and a pirate fox whose unfortunate mishap has left him with a stick-on tail!
To borrow a phrase from a certain car insurance TV ad - "stupid, absolutely stupid"!
But - and here's the crux of the matter - Jacques is a master storyteller who weaves three initially separate storylines in and out of each other, gradually drawing them together until the fates of Triss the squirrelmaid, Scarum the hare, Princess Kurda and Plugg the pirate captain are inextricably linked with those of the inhabitants of Redwall Abbey and of the Abbey itself.
Central to the story's abiliy to draw you in is th
e fact that the characters gradually become embedded in your mind as human beings rather than woodland wildlife as they enact an epic adventure that is part Spartacus, part Tolkien and definitely no parts Enid Blyton or Beatrix Potter.
In many ways "Triss" is pantomime on a grand scale: there's adventure, laughter, romance and tears,you get to cheer the good guys and boo the bad, though the evil here is sharply honed rather than cartoonesque.
I didn't expect to enjoy "Triss" but was more than pleasantly surprised - oh well, one "Redwal" book down, another fourteen to go. Wot wot!!!!

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