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threebluesocks 's review for:
Mariel of Redwall
by Brian Jacques
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
It is a Redwall book :)
I especially like to revisit this one because it's got a really good balance of classic Redwall elements- evil rats, Abbey mice, badger lord, Long Patrol, mysterious riddle, random other scary animals. Mariel is actually one of my favorite characters in the series; I love how straightforward she is and how that works as both her main strength as well as her main weakness which is actually punished in the events of the story (though maybe not as much as I would have liked). I also like her relationship with her father (I think it's cute to see a strong bond between a parent and their grown child in a Redwall book) and with both Dandin and Tarquin on their quest. Unfortunately, Durry is sort of the odd one out in that group. I like him, but he needs just a bit more to really make him stand out in my opinion.
Durry isn't the only character who needs something more, though. Redwall books don't normally have more than one or two (or a handful, on rare occasions) of really unique characters; most fit the pretty generic molds: wise mentor, troublemaking children, young Abbeymouse with a bond to Martin, cheerful hare, etc. In this book, that especially feels like a problem for the sections at the Abbey itself. Even the main characters present during the Graypatch vs Redwall conflict are all pretty generic "peaceful and wise creatures who are somehow good at fighting" mold, and the strategies used by the attacking rats as well as the conflicts/infighting withing that group and within the Abbey group have nearly all been seen before. The rescue mission near the end of the book was really the only addition to that formula that stood out to me.
However, I enjoyed the way this book had its multiple conflicts intertwining and affecting each other. Mariel's group is the one I would consider the "main" story, but Gabool's POVs are super useful in establishing his character and the sort of world the searats come from. This is helped by the POVs of the other captains which I always found fun despite how interchangeable the captains and crews are. And then there's the chapters at the Abbey, the ones within Graypatch's band, the ones from Thyme's group, Pakkatug's little bits, and the few from Rawnblade... I love a book that gives lots of POVs, and it's neat to see where choices from one group end up affecting another group even if the two never directly interact.
I especially like to revisit this one because it's got a really good balance of classic Redwall elements- evil rats, Abbey mice, badger lord, Long Patrol, mysterious riddle, random other scary animals. Mariel is actually one of my favorite characters in the series; I love how straightforward she is and how that works as both her main strength as well as her main weakness which is actually punished in the events of the story (though maybe not as much as I would have liked). I also like her relationship with her father (I think it's cute to see a strong bond between a parent and their grown child in a Redwall book) and with both Dandin and Tarquin on their quest. Unfortunately, Durry is sort of the odd one out in that group. I like him, but he needs just a bit more to really make him stand out in my opinion.
Durry isn't the only character who needs something more, though. Redwall books don't normally have more than one or two (or a handful, on rare occasions) of really unique characters; most fit the pretty generic molds: wise mentor, troublemaking children, young Abbeymouse with a bond to Martin, cheerful hare, etc. In this book, that especially feels like a problem for the sections at the Abbey itself. Even the main characters present during the Graypatch vs Redwall conflict are all pretty generic "peaceful and wise creatures who are somehow good at fighting" mold, and the strategies used by the attacking rats as well as the conflicts/infighting withing that group and within the Abbey group have nearly all been seen before. The rescue mission near the end of the book was really the only addition to that formula that stood out to me.
However, I enjoyed the way this book had its multiple conflicts intertwining and affecting each other. Mariel's group is the one I would consider the "main" story, but Gabool's POVs are super useful in establishing his character and the sort of world the searats come from. This is helped by the POVs of the other captains which I always found fun despite how interchangeable the captains and crews are. And then there's the chapters at the Abbey, the ones within Graypatch's band, the ones from Thyme's group, Pakkatug's little bits, and the few from Rawnblade... I love a book that gives lots of POVs, and it's neat to see where choices from one group end up affecting another group even if the two never directly interact.