High Rhulain [Paperback]

Brian Jacques (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: NY (1980)
• ASIN: B000N6P0WE
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)

More About the Author

A well-known radio personality in his native Liverpool--as well as an actor, stand-up comic, and playwright--Brian Jacques (1939-2011) was the host of "Jakestown" on BBC Radio Merseyside. Ever the performer, Jacques was 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. "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. Jacques passed away in February of 2011 at the age of 71.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brian Jacques returns back to Redwall basics!, October 21, 2005

By 

Centennial Critic #15 - See all my reviews

This review is from: High Rhulain (Redwall) (Hardcover)

With High Rhulain (the eighteenth installment of the famed Redwall series) now released, Brian Jacques reasserts his powerful writing ability in a truly fantastic manner. In this adventure, the readers are introduced to Tiria, a young otter-maid who excels at her skill with a rock and sling. Tiria lives at the famed Redwall Abbey in Mossflower Wood with her father and lots of other peaceful forest creatures. After rescuing a large osprey from the clutches of an evil rat gang outside the Abbey, she begins to learn of the existence of Green Isle, a far away island where otters related to her are enslaved by barbarous wildcats. Slowly through riddles, puzzles, and strange dreams, Tiria learns that she is the lost queen (or Rhulain) of the oppressed otters at Green Isle. Together with the help of Pandion the osprey, Captain Frunk W. Bloodpaw the pirate, and thirty fighting-hares from Salamandastron; she sets out on a quest to free her fellow otters, defeat the vicious wildcat warlord Riggu Felis, and reclaim her rightful position as Rhulain of Green Isle.

After finishing the last few pages of this novel and closing the book, only one conclusion could have been drawn about High Rhulain; this manuscript is another masterpiece in Mr. Jacques' vast collection. The book is geared towards the 6+ grade category and it captures the attention of its age group very early in the story. As with all of Jacques' books before, High Rhulain is filled to the brim with courage, singing, laughter, bloody battles, and many puzzles. The mood was delightfully edgy at some points in the story, and totally uplifting in others. Theme throughout the story consisted of bravery and how one person (or creature) can change the outcome of an entire civilization. Once again, the time and setting take place at the historic Redwall Abbey, but readers are also introduced to the exotic island of Green Isle.

Having just focused on some of the few grammatical delights of this book, the review will now center on the novel itself. The story far surpassed any of the author's previous attempts at folklore. Perhaps what was most enjoyable would have to be the way Mr. Jacques balanced the act of illustrating three separate adventures simultaneously while not losing a single beat in any instance. The story would constantly oscillate between Tiria's journey to Green Isle, her friends' attempts to solve mysterious riddles back at Redwall Abbey, and the events happening at faraway Green Isle. These separate plots would be distinctly different from each-other for a majority of the story, until they were finally tied together at the climax of the novel.

Contained within this book is something for everyone to identify with. If the reader is a compassionate, good-always-triumphs-over-evil type of person, then they'll probably identify with Tiria and all her Redwall friends. But if the person reading this story is a little wild, a bit humorous, and infinitely hungry; then that person will definitely feel a connection with any hare featured throughout this story. It is rare nowadays that an author can make a hero truly likeable and the villain so totally despicable, but Mr. Jacques' accomplishes this task with relative ease. All in all however, High Rhulain is certainly not the best of the Redwall series; but it proves to readers that many adventures still exist within Mossflower Wood.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, November 14, 2005

By 

Brian Bruzzo (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: High Rhulain (Redwall) (Hardcover)

The High Ruhlain is about an otter maids adventure and all the friends she makes along the journey. Also, a large Abbey named Redwall, an evil cat lord, and a place called Green isle Take a large part of the story.

This amazing book is about a otter maid named Tiria Wildough, who has a dream-vision. In this dream, Martin The Warrior, spirit of Redwall, her home, and a tall otter queen who sort of looks like an older Tiria give the otter a riddle to solve. Later, When she and her friends crack the riddle, they discover that Tiria is descended from the queen in her dream, and Tiria was the rightful ruler of Green isle, where the tyrannical cat lord Riggu Felis has enslaved most of the old otter population, except for a small band of rebels hiding from him.The riddle also said that Tiria was the one to save the otters.

On her journey, she meets the Guosim (Gorilla Union Of Shrews In Mossflower), a mad rabbit, named Cuthbert Frunk W. Bloodpaw, a badger lord, by the name of Mandoral high-peak, the lord's rabbit army, the Long Patrol, and a lot of other guys who it would take too long to name. Well, Tiria, Cuthpert, a couple of long potrol squads, and two birds named Pandion and Brantilis set sail on the last leg of the journey to Green isle.once there, a large battle takes place between trained Rabbits from the long patrol and newly enthusiastic rebel otters against the guard of Riggu Felis who, by the way, is killed in this battle a little bit before the rest of the cat army wemt down. But in the process of destroying the cat lord's evil rule, two good friends are left to be greived.

I love this book. Some of my favorite parts are the riddles. for example;

"Linger sure for the lee, I set my trick carefully,

My home lies o'er the sea you'll find the title names me... is"

very confusing. I also like howJacquesgoes from talking about Tiria, to Redwall, to the enemy H.Q. He really makes you want the good guys to win.

If you like puzzles, dramatic, discriptive books, than this is a must-read. This is Jacques's Master piece.you know the whole time that the good guys will win, but he keeps it realistic at the same time. a true work of art.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended for fantasy readers in middle school, high school and beyond, June 12, 2006

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: High Rhulain (Redwall) (Hardcover)

Young Tiria Wildlough is an ottermaid touched with destiny: she journeys from Redwall Abbey to an isle where she must fulfill an ancient prophecy to gain her inheritance, and face a wildcat chieftain and his catguard slave masters. Her involvement in an otterclan battle will change her world in this latest Redwall saga for fantasy readers in middle school, high school and beyond.