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News:A Toast to Jakesy

LordTBT LordTBT February 12, 2011
News:A Toast to Jakesy
Contributed by LordTBT at 6:53PM GMT, 12 February 2011

Get Yer Wack
LordTBT 
When sunlight tinges the dawn of the day,
Remember those brave ones now gone.
We who recall them to mind, let us say,
They were perilous beasts every one!
- from Lord Brocktree

It was Christmas, approximately 1995 or 1996, and knowing my tendency to devour books one of the the gifts my parents gave me that year was Mossflower, the Thomas Canty paperback edition.

At almost 400 pages, the size of the book intimidated me initially. I set it aside for almost half the year, until summertime arrived, and I realized there was a novel in my possession I had yet to read, so I cracked it open.

That moment changed my life forever.

The larger than life characters of Gonff and Martin the Warrior leapt off the pages; vivid descriptions of Mossflower Country drew me right into this fantasy world of battling medieval rodents. Approximately 15-16 years later, I still haven't outgrown the stories.

Many people refer to Brian Jacques as their favorite "childhood author." Brian Jacques is and forever will be, my favorite author. There is no other writer I have followed with such passion or fervor; as a youth, the epic battles between good and evil were an adventure, and as an adult, they provided a needed escape from the realities of day-to-day life.

Around the same time I finished reading Mossflower, the internet was a new phenomenon across the United States and many parts of the world. Wanting to find out more about Redwall, using WebCrawler or Lycos I stumbled across the early version of David Lindsay's Redwall.org, shortly before it became the official Redwall website. Dave was conducting a contest: Submit a question for Mr. Jacques, and if chosen for him to answer, receive a Redwall Reader pen. Imagine my surprise when I was notified that my question was accepted!

Through the internet, Redwall fans from all across the globe were united, forming the foundation for the Redwall Online Community. Because of my interest in the Web and Redwall, I taught myself HTML 1.0, and made many friends over the years. Eventually, I started this website out of love for Redwall, and back in 2005 I had no idea I would interact with the many people who make Redwall happen, and the many fans who also share the same love for the series that I do. Frankly, it's been incredible.

In official biographies of Brian, his Liverpudlian past was often referenced, but it wasn't until the early 2000s that some of us realized he had published works prior to Redwall. Hunting down those books was no small task, and their contents revealed a man who truly put deep thought into what he wrote. Brian was more than just an author for children - he was a singer, a poet, a playwright, and a comedian who undoubtedly left his mark on Liverpool and the world.

Bjsign15.JPG
LordTBT 

I consider myself privileged for having the opportunity to attend not just one, but two Brian Jacques book signings - and fortunate that he (and Liz) actually made the time to chat with me at those events.

Brian always said he would never stop writing Redwall as long as his fans kept reading, and I never wanted to quit reading.

Thank you Brian, for not only your contributions to literature and music, but for inspiring a lad who can only hope to one day be as successful as you have. Cheers matey, this one's for you.

EUUUUUUUULLLLLAAAAAAAALIIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

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  • Ronnie Macleaf

    I feel hollow inside without BJ!:( When I´m famous too in the world of authors then I´m going to write some books in memorial to that austonding, great, funny man. Lovely tribute! A TOAST for Brian and his amazing world!!

    by Ronnie Macleaf
  • Thornclaw Braveheart

    Finally:

    1: TBT has used a dialect more than robotic.

    2: We have a proper memorial for Brian!

    by Thornclaw Braveheart
  • Lord Jake the Warrior

    REDWALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!! It was 2007. I was on a school trip to st georges hall in liverpool. One of my classmates had won something, i canot remember. then i met the man who changed my life. the way he told his storys, making both the pupils and the teachers laugh, something i had failed to do for ages. summer, 2009. i had recentely developed a habit of reading a book a day. my mum, in a desparate attempt to quell my reading habits, thrust Redwall, The Bellmaker and The Long patrol in my hands. I read Redwall in three weeks and instantly fell in love with the characters. I owe 2 years of my life to Brian, 2 years of laughthing, crying, and singing with Redwall. Thank you. So long.

    by Lord Jake the Warrior
  • Maudie Thropple

    I wish i had a chance to meet him someday, *sigh* I remember my first redwall book was "Outcast of Redwall" I was 9 i think. I didn't want to read it at first, i thought it would be boring. the size was nothing, after all, i had just read "little women" in two days! But, I eventually read it, and now I'm hooked for life! I managed to get Dew into it, but my brothers insist on scoffing at it! that what you get when you read too much star wars.... Anyway, I'll always remember the door you opened to me Mr.Jacques! Wishout you, i never would have started writeing or drawing!!!

    by Maudie Thropple
  • Nitram the Warrior

    Sniffs

    by Nitram the Warrior
  • Brockkers

    Thanks so much TBT! Glad you never gave up on it. I've met soome people who have. It's very sad.

    by Brockkers
  • 74.104.142.158

    This was really good! He was a great man, I'm sure he and his stories will live on in all our hearts. One of the things that's most disappointing to me is that the indefinite chronological gap between Salamandastron and Redwall will never be filled now. I had always hoped that that time would eventually be revisited. But here's to the life of a fabulous man and a fabulous author!

    by Unregistered contributor
  • Cynthia Mac Burl

    Beautiful tribute, I think we all can relate to you about Redwall being an escape from day-to-day life at one time or another. Redwall has become such a friend to my brother and I. Although I cannot speak any other languages but my own,hare, or the british accent, has become second nature to me,so much so that I have an odd mixture of the two when I speak. Here's a hat's off to you Mr.Jacqu... that is to say sah!

    by Cynthia Mac Burl
  • 68.88.207.164

    I wonder.... He said on the book signing that I went to that he always had an extra book in the publisher.... Maybe he got it in at the right time?

    by Unregistered contributor
  • 205.188.117.72

    I got started with Redwall in late 2001 when I was 18. My Mom gave me Martin the Warrior and Outcast of Redwall as gifts when she came back from a trip. It was the Redwall--and Earthsea--books that got me hooked on fantasy.

    by Unregistered contributor
  • 67.142.167.20

    Yeah, Brian Jacques is more than a favorite childhood author. He may always be one of my favorite authors. Heck, even the bookstores don't consider them children's books, because they are always in the regular scifi/fantasy section.

    by Unregistered contributor
  • Bluestripe the Wild

    Neat! It was some family friends from Texas who got me and my family into the series. It started when they were visiting us from out of state. When they left, they gave us three books as a token of their gratitude for letting them stay with us. My family received a copy of "Redwall", "Triss, and "Loamhedge". I remember my mom insisted on reading the book out loud to me. That was the first time I ever read the books, but the first time I saw one of the Redwall books was when I was in elementary school. I, being a young bookworm, was making a routine trip to the library and was looking for a good book when my librarian/bus driver recommended a book to me by the name of "Lord Brocktree". I picked it up and started it, but never finished it, seeing as how I was pretty young at the time. However, I do remember a badger with a sword that saved this funny talking female hare.

    by Bluestripe the Wild
  • Laria Wavedeep

    That was a touching tribute, I must say. Brian Jacques was the one who taught me to read and write. He's been my favourite author for several years now, and he's been such an impact on my life. He deserves the best in heaven :)

    by Laria Wavedeep
    history
  • 69.22.79.163

    Well done, LTBT. I appreciate your passion. (Shieldmaiden is my daughter- I tried to interest her Redwall it back in 2003 but no- she could not be cajoled. She "found" it on her own a couple years later, and it was truly a treasured find.) Mr. Jacques does, indeed, leave a big hole to fill. Now for his followers, you among them LTBT, the task is to fill the hole. RIP Brian Jacques.

    by Unregistered contributor
  • JamesOfVallron

    ....*sniff*...I miss him.....

    by JamesOfVallron
  • Clockworthy

    Three cheers!

    I remember being intimidated by Outcast of Redwall in fourth grade...I didn't get past the first page. Then I found Lord Brocktree a year later and stuck with it. It's hard to imagine there'll be no more feasts, adventures, or places to visit - at least in canon. We as fans simply must keep Redwall alive, through our art, stories, and memories.

    by Clockworthy
  • Prard'ras'kleoni

    Here here! This is the article I've been waiting for.

    by Prard'ras'kleoni
  • Arvanna the Rogue

    What a lovely tribute! Brian Jacques will be greatly missed. I am still struggling to come to terms with his passing.

    by Arvanna the Rogue
  • 99.70.231.24

    It was my Mother and my eldest brother that first brought the world of Redwall into our house, and here it is bound to stay until we move. I'll always remember it, the first time when my Mom suggested I read Redwall for a book report; I think I was about 10 years old. She told me that it was about stoats and other vermin fighting mice that lived in an Abbey. I, however, immediately refused, saying (and, to my embarrassment,demanding)that I would only read a horse book for the report. And so I did, and in the process, shutting a door that would be opened to me again a year later. This time, I would go through it. It was summer, and I had another book report to do. Because I had already read and re-read the books that I had, I was craving, almost, something different. So, again, my Mother described the Redwall books to me, and this time (possibly because I was more mature)I took the book she handed to me. After settling down in a chair outside, I opened the first book of the Redwall series: Redwall. It was just the right kind of book for me; full of adventure, battles, and with very life-like animals characters. So I had stepped through the door that led to the world of Redwall and have never taken a step back. I convinced my younger sister to read them once she was of the age, and she is enjoying them as much as I am. Now all I have to do is convince my older brother . . . . I think he'll enjoy the books, like millions have.

    Thank you, Mr. Jacques, your books have been a sanctuary for me, and always will be.

    by Unregistered contributor
    • Prard'ras'kleoni

      I think we all understand that craving for new worlds and adventures (at least, all of us redwall fans).  :) Dune is another great series, different, but great (not quite as good as Redwall, but nicely unique).

      by Prard'ras'kleoni
    • Danielgbryant

      There is always the option of breaking the canon and creating "original" fan fiction. =)

      by Danielgbryant

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