Mossflower (Redwall, Book 2)

The story begins with an old badger, Bella of Brockhall, welcoming a young mouse into her home to tell a story of the time Mossflower was oppressed by evil rulers and saved by a mouse like her listener. Her story tells about the castle of Kotir which was located in the woodlands of Mossflower.

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Kotir was ruled by a wildcat named Tsarmina who had her father poisoned and brother imprisoned so she could become Queen of a Thousand Eyes. Tsarmina and her followers force the Woodlanders to be slaves, giving most all the food they grow to be stored in Tsarmina’s larder. On a cold winter day, a mouse, Martin the Warrior, was captured by the Kotir patrol, a group of weasels and stoats. Martin was thrown into the dungeon of Kotir with the sword, given to him by his father, broken and hung around his neck. Another woodland mouse, Gonff, who proclaims to be the Prince of Mousethieves and who has a song for every event, was captured the following spring and thrown into the cell with Martin. Together they plan their escape. With the help of the other Woodlanders, mice, badgers, squirrels, and a bird, the Warrier and Mousethief escape and go on a quest to find the former ruler of Mossflower. Upon the return of the heroes to Woodland the final battle takes place with good conquering evil.

This animal fantasy is full of action with the Woodlanders gathering together to battle their oppressor. The animals display camaraderie and support of each other regardless of their differences. Through out the story the young respect the older creatures for their wisdom and cherish their history. Gonff never ceases to bring a smile with his quick impromptu poems and up beat attitude. The story has action, heroes, villains, adventure, and romance. Brian Jacques, the author, wrote Mossflower as a prequel to Redwall. These books are written for children. I have discovered they can also be enjoyed by an adult.

In the classroom the book could be used as an aid in a lesson on multi-culture. It can demonstrate how people of different cultures, race, and background can fellowship together and learn to appreciate their differences and history. The poetry recited by Gonff on every occasion and event can be used to encourage students to write a short poem about an experience they have had. This method would be an interesting introduction to poetry and a fun way to allow children to write and express their selves.

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I've hooked two nephews on this series it is so engrossing.

Stunning landscapes, brilliant characterization, masterly plots, and a wicked sense of humor unite in this epic tale of derring-do and the triumph of good over evil, making it one of the most addictive and memorable books that anyone is

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ever likely to read.

Even tho it is put forth as a young adult type novel I found it enjoyable as an adult

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I found the book Mossflower very interesting. This book takes place in a country called Mossflower during the rule of Kotir long ago. Martin the warrior mouse, a new comer to Mossflower and Gonff the mousethieve are the main characters. Martin is a strong mouse who is very kind and likeable. Gonff

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is a foolish mouse who often gets himself into trouble. Supporting characters include the cruel Tsarmina, queen of Kotir and all the woodlanders of Mossflower. The story tells a tale of Mossflower and how woodlanders defeated Kotir to regain freedom. The woodlanders of Mossflower are forced to pay many taxes and feed the creatures of Mossflower so they end up rebelling against Kotir. While woodlanders figure out ways to defeat Kotir Gonff and Martin get thrown in the prison of Kotir. My favorite character is Gonff because of his humor and sense of pride. By reading this book I learned to fight in what I believe in. I would recommend this book to any middle school student seeking a book filled with adventure.

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This book was about a young mouse named Martin the Warrior. He is captured and is sent to prison in the dungeons of Kotir which is ruled by a wicked wildcat named Tsarmania. Gonff the mouse theif is also captured and together Martin and Gonff escape. Tsarmania is trying to takeover Mossflower

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country. Martin, Gonff, and Dinny the mole set of to find a badger lord to lead them to defeat Tsarmania. They find the badger at a volcano. The badger wont leave without defeating the rats, but he dies in the fight. Martin, Gonff, and Dinny have to go and defeat Tsarmania alone.
I really like this book because it is so descriptive. He descripes everthing with perfect detail. I really like when they meet the bats because they talk funny. I also like when they are talking about what is happening in Mossflower. I also like Gingivire because he was tricked. The little baby moles are also funny because they think they are so strong. I really enjoyed this book because it tells you what happened before there was a Redwall Abbey. Everybody should read this book.

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Still my favourite childhood book and still read at least twice a year.

The story of Martin the Warrior who unwittingly arrives to champion the cause of the woodlanders of Mossflower woods against the evil cat queen Tsarmina.

Prepare to cry during the rescue, expect to laugh at Gonff and prepare to

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have a rumbling tummy when reading the descriptions of the feasts.

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This is a great book! It is the first Redwall book I read, and I was hooked after I finished it! Highly recommended, especially if you are just starting into the series!

The Redwall books are real must reads for people who love fantasy. Brain Jacques is a fantastic writer. The book is wonderfully enchanting in both story and characters.

A long and complicated, yet straightforward fantasy story. Apparently there's an audience for books where the writing is this difficult, but the story is so carefully targeted towards children.

All the characters have their tasks and quests that they must fulfill, and those are well thought out and

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many of the individual scenes are excellently written. But the enemies are woefully incompetent, and this will probably be a real drawback for attracting adult readers. The enemy characters are fine - the Mad Queen of Kotir and the mercenary captain she recruits are particularly effective - but they act as nothing more than a dummy for the good guys to sharpen their swords on. A little more tactical skill and courage would have made their malevolence more compelling.

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I loved this series in Jr.High and High School. These books were friends in the sense that a book can be a friend.

Martin has come upon some woodlanders. Their kingdom has been taken over by evil wild cats. It seems that Martin is their only hope. I reccomend this book to people who like war and mice.

A bit verbose, but a very good "classic" story.

Mossflower has always been my favorite Redwall book. The characters are delightful, the villains both bumbling and menacing, and the adventure suitably varied. It has a bit of a pacing problem, perhaps - Jacques seems a bit too delighted to describe every domestic detail and transcribe every scrap

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of dialect to keep the story moving quickly - but it remains charming.

Occasionally I'm thrown by a bit of the worldbuilding that doesn't quite gel - the relative scale of the animals seems arbitrary and inconsistent, things like cheese show up with no reference to cows, and how does a religion that seems to have no focus beyond a generic reverence for nature end up with cloistered orders and saints to name churches after? But if I can never quite forgive those flaws, I can certainly overlook them.

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In this prequel to Redwall (Philomel, 1987), Jacques describes the epic adventures leading up to the foundation of Redwall Abbey. A band of weasels, stoats, and other unpleasant creatures from Kotir Castle, led by the evil wildcat Tsarmina, is making life unbearable for the animals of Mossflower

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Woods. Then Martin, a young warrior mouse with a rusty sword, appears and inspires them to resistance. Leaving the others to harass Tsarmina, Martin sets out with two companions on a quest to find the great badger, Boar, the true ruler of Mossflower. This book sets up Redwall nicely. It might be a bit more convoluted that that book but it is enjoyable. One possible downside is that the characters are almost identical to those in Redwell just with a few tweaks. The plot goes in multiple directions and it is this varied plot which allows the characters to go in some different directions despite the problems being again similar to Redwall. The language is warm and inviting and the positives do outweigh the negatives but not the strongest book in the series.

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Mossflower by Brian Jacques is the second book in the Redwall series. I'm reading this series in publication order.

This is such a fun book. I'm reading this whole series, and I just love the characters and the world Jacques created. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves talking animals in their

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fantasy.

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