From Publishers Weekly The cruel fox Slagar steals a group of young woodland animals from Redwall Abbey--and among them is the great warrior mouse Matthias's son, Mattimeo. Slagar's motive is revenge, but as Matthias and a band of Woodlanders pursue their children's captors far across the desert to a horrible slave kingdom, Slagar attempts to destroy the champion Matthias to make his victory even sweeter. This final book in the Redwall trilogy is a truly thrilling conclusion to a swashbuckling, heroic adventure. Jacques's realistically drawn characters are full of personality, from the most humble bankvole to the foppish, lop-eared rabbit and the vicious, back-stabbing fox. The fierceness with which the Redwallers fight back to save their young lends the story credibility within the realm of the animal kingdom, while at the same time taking wonderful liberties with the imagination. Ages 10-14. Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. Read more From School Library Journal In this sequel to the animal fantasy Redwall (1987), and its prequel, Mossflower , (1988, both Philomel), Slagar the Cruel, the fox with a twisted mind, repays the hospitality of his hosts, the goodhearted animals of Redwall Abbey, by kidnapping their children. Led by the young mouse Mattimeo (son of the warrior Matthias, hero of Redwall ), the children befriend their fellow captives Auma Badger and Jube Hedgehog as they march toward slavery in the underground rat kingdom of Malkarris. Meanwhile, Matthias leads a rescue mission that joins forces with the fathers of Auma and Jube, and despite brushes with defeat, their camaraderie and good humor never fail. ln a third strand of action, the animals left at Redwall Abbey are besieged by villainous crows. While the book is long and its cast large, the twists of plot and quick changes of scene sweep readers along a swift narrative current. Some readers, however, will question the unabashed celebration of a warrior code, the sentimental acceptance of battle deaths, and the predictable scoundrels. The characters, compared with those in Wind in the Willows , Watership Down , and the picture books of Beatrix Potter, are bland, remaining far too human to become that mythic hybrid of human and animal. Nevertheless, libraries with an audience for the previous books will want this one, too. --Margaret A. Chang, Buxton School, Williamstown, MACopyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. Read more About the Author "I sometimes think it ironic for an ex-seaman, longshoreman, truck driver, policeman, bus driver, etc., to find success writing children's novels," says Brian Jacques (pronounced "Jakes"). Yet it is all too true. With the publication of his first children's book in 1987, the award-winning Redwall, Jacques' fresh talent has received exceptional praise from reviewers in the United States and England. Newbery Award winner Lloyd Alexander called it "a fine work, literate, witty, filled with the excitement of genuine storytelling. Young people will surely be captivated. I hope they give their elders a chance to share the delights."A well-known radio personality in his native Liverpool--as well as an actor, stand-up comic, and playwright--Brian Jacques is the host of "Jakestown" on BBC Radio Merseyside. Ever the performer, Jacques is well-known for applying his acting and entertainment background to his lively presentations to legions of young fans at schools across the United States and England.Brian Jacques 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.He grew up in the area around the Liverpool docks. His interest in adventure stories began at an early age with reading the books of: Daniel Defoe, Sir Henry Rider Haggard, Arthur Conan Doyle, Sir Thomas Malory, Robert Michael Ballantyne, Robert Louis Stevenson, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and Kenneth Grahame. He attended St. John's School, an inner city school that had its playground on the roof. On his first day at St. John's, at the age of ten, he had an experience that marked his potential as a writer. When given an assignment of writing a story about animals, he wrote about the bird that cleaned a crocodile's teeth. The teacher could not, and would not, believe that a ten year old could write that 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 that he had a talent for writing.Some teachers at St. John's proved to be good role models. As Mr. Jacques recalls:"My favourite teacher was Mr. Austin Thomas. He looked like Lee Marvin. Big Man. A Captain in World War II. He came to school on a big bush bike with the haversack on back. He was a man's man. Always fair. I was fourteen at the time when Mr. Thomas introduced the class to poetry and Greek literature. (Because of him, I saved seven shillings and sixpence to buy The Iliad and The Odyssey at this dusty used book shop.)"This interest in poetry extended to Wordsworth, Tennyson, and Goldsmith.It was also at St. John's that Brian met a teacher, Alan Durband (who also taught two Beatles, Paul McCartney and George Harrison), who, more than thirty years later would bring about a major change in his life.After Brian finished school at fifteen, he set out to find adventure as a merchant seaman. He travelled to many far away ports, including New York, Valparaiso, San Francisco, and Yokohama. Tiring of the lonely life of a sailor, he returned to Liverpool where he worked as a railway fireman, a longshoreman, a long-distance truck driver, a bus driver, a boxer, a bobby (Police Constable 216D), a postmaster, and a stand-up comic.Penguin mourns the passing of celebrated children’s book author Brian Jacques Read more
M**D
Redwall- Mattimeo: A tale of character.
I am loving the Redwall series, and Mattimeo is probably one of my favorites so far. I don't want to spoil any surprises for potential readers, so I will just say that the unexpected journey toward maturity that Mattimeo AND his friends take, held my attention to the very end, and kept me up way too late, trying to finish!I love how their character is developed through the things they encounter, and they are stretched beyond what they ever dreamed they could endure, let alone overcome. This is one of the themes I'm seeing in Redwall (that I particularly appreciate): sterling character is held high, yet imperfect "people" (beasts) are given grace at Redwall to fail and learn and grow from it. Things are attempted, against impossible odds, because it's the right thing to do, regardless of whether there is any chance of succeeding. Our world needs this so desperately today!Character development is rich and effortless in this series! Individuals are so vibrantly portrayed that I have to remind myself that this is fantasy and these are animals and not people that I know. Still, I feel they are friends. I hope many others will come to treasure this series and strive to uphold the universal ideals presented, of goodness, strength of character, kindness, and doing what's right, even against impossible odds.
G**N
Our family loved the Redwall series back in the 1990s
I bought the first 3 books in the series as a gift to a friend for to read with her grand kids.Our family loved the Redwall series back in the 1990s. We started in about 2nd or 3rd grade as read-to books. Very imaginative characters. This is a great way to learn about Medieval times using personification of animals as the characters. Great vocabulary builder. Soon became read alone books for my son, but we still enjoyed reading aloud together as a family due to the engaging story and memorable characters who move forward into the next book. (Violence refers to battles of animal groups - done with a Medieval Times theme.)
J**E
Good adventure for all ages
I'm reading\listening to these in publication order, so this is book three. I liked this story a lot, once again. The audio levels seemed to be more constant than the last one, because I didn't have to do much volume adjusting. My biggest complaint is I found it difficult to understand the newt character, Scurl. Early on, I found Cynthia annoying, but she slowly matured and eventually did less whining. Once again, there are violence--and death--but it's all handled deftly. The author does a good job of showing that violence isn't something to take lightly and that violence always has consequences.I will be continuing on. I already have quite a few of the "full cast" recordings and I'm enjoying the Redwall experience. I do wish Audible would bring back the others, so I can fill in the gaps. If they don't, I'll pick up Kindle editions as I reach the gaps.
J**R
The animals of the Redwall series...
...are clearly living in a post-human, post nuclear apocalypse world where hundreds of years of lingering radiation has led to rapid genetic evolution, giving rise to walking, talking, sentient animals who can fashion clothes and buildings, create and wield weapons, and reason, think, dream, and plan. This leads to thrilling adventures like none the world has ever known.Thank you for coming to my TED Talk, my name is
J**S
ANOTHER EXCELLENT READ AT ANY PRICE
This series is the best read I have found in the last 15 or 20 years!it has drama, it has suspense, it has action, it has sadness, it has happiness, it has humor, there are so many things that this book has going for it! yes it may be classified as a children's book, but I am not the only adult to read & enjoy & be hooked on this series of books.From page one, it grabs your attention & it never lets go till the end...but then it is really not the end because when you begin to read the next book, it too, gets you hooked from Page 1.I highly recommend this book & the series(22 books in all) to anyone, adult or younger, who likes a great story of how the hero saves the day with his charm, his humor & his bravery.
A**N
All the Redwall books are so beautiful and heartwarming
All the Redwall books are so beautiful and heartwarming! This one was no different. It makes you smile, laugh, cry, and angry right along with the characters. I would say Mattimeo has one of the biggest 'evil forces' of the whole series. With small young ones being enslaved, beaten, and starved. But you just have to love reading how the young creatures grow and develop through their journey and struggles. Good conquers evil in the end :-)
J**S
bad. The 'sexual content' is a shy little animal ...
This book is about a young mouse warrior. The violence in it is animals fighting animals--good vs. bad. The 'sexual content' is a shy little animal with a crush on another shy little animal. Nothing graphic, only holding paws! The book is a quest and story about how parent animals leave their peaceful home to try to find their youngsters (the young warrior mouse and his friends) who have been snatched by "slaver" rats.The young ones are intelligent enough to plot how to escape, the parents are wise enough to follow the trail until they find their young ones, have a grand battle with the bad rats and rescue their young ones. The book ends with peace restored and the good animals win! Cute descriptive writing. Love that good wins over bad in the end!
M**Y
Matthias’ tale come to a good end
This closed out the first trilogy of Redwall books. It nearly tied up the take of Matthias and his family and the author could have stopped here and been satisfied. It is our good fortune that he did not and that there are still plenty more tales of Redwall Abby in Mossflower country and beyond!
A**L
Good book
My son is enjoying this he's off the computer a bit now at least
A**3
Mattimeo - Redwall no 3
This was a great read for a young boy beginning to advance into longer and more convoluted stories. Plenty of action and pace.
S**E
Four Stars
Thumbs up!
L**Y
My son loves it
My 9 year old son has been really enjoying this series. It's great on the kindle as his room is overflowing with books as it is!
F**L
Matthimeo
very good book. I love this series. I think this book is good for an age group of 9-12. There are some gruesome bits in the war scenes, but nothing disturbing or too upsetting.
A**R
Five Stars
brilliant read
C**H
Great series of books
Having read the whole series at a younger age, I decided to revisit the series as an adult. They're still entertaining and full of excitement and fantastic characters.
M**R
Noch nicht gelesen, aber...
Ich hab mich wirklich über die Ankunft des Buches gefreut, da ich Redwall schon super fand, aber als ich das Buch ausgepackt habe fand ich es nicht mehr so toll: Die Ecken eingeknickt, überall schwarze Striemen und dazu noch eingedellt.@Amazon: So geht man nicht mit Büchern um!!!Bei jeder Buchhandlung wäre das ein echt schlecht weggekommenes Mängelexemplar.
K**K
Good product, good book
This book came with neat packing. But the book cover was a little foldeded up.all in all for the price I bought this book it was in good.About the story it's a neatly plotted adventure for kids.one of the best by brain...
J**F
A+
A+
K**5
Loved it
I loved it. It is a great continuation of Redwall
A**R
Five Stars
Very pleased. Arrived quickly and in great condition. Appreciate it
R**R
adventure, imagination.
I think I it was really good because it had a lot of adventure, and the imagination of the talking animals. My dad and I loved reading it together.Bintu Bender, 8 years old. Melbourne Australia.
S**Y
Five Stars
very interesting!
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