Redwall musing
Regarding the issue of whether or not the Redwall books are declining in quality, I wrote this lil' thing for a forum at Terrogue.
As for the whole "quality declining or not" issue... I think that, like any series, there are some books that are better than others. But they all have their own strengths and weakenesses, even within the books themselves. For instance, for some reason I've never cared all that much about Mariel of Redwall. I guess I'd have to classify it as my "least favorite" Redwall book, although I still like it better than plenty of non-Redwall books I've read. I enjoy re-reading it once in a while, but it doesn't thrill me like some of the others. I used to think that I was similarly unimpressed Salamandastron, but then I re-read it again just this spring, and found it was much better than I remembered it. So who knows?
The thing is, it's more a matter of us as readers changing and being influenced by our other readings and experiences than it is a matter of the books changing. There are obvious changes in style and such as the series progresses, but we also look at them with different eyes after awhile. I know I read a lot differently now, as a college graduate, than I did when I first read Redwall in 6th grade (circa age 11.)
There's also the fact that the novelty wears off. If you picked up one of the most recent Redwall books and read it, never having read a book by Brian Jacques before, you'd most likely really like it! We veterans who've been around for so long and read 16 novels aren't going to feel the same wonder and suspense that we did when we first read the books.
And there's something to be said for consistency. When I pick up a Redwall novel, even a brand-new one, I know I'm going to read a book with fun adventures, excitement, cute Dibbuns, etc, etc, and with NO gore, sex or swearing. Sometimes that's a very, very welcome change from the other fiction society bombards us with these days. As Redwall.org calls them, they're just "good yarns." Just plain good stories. Nothing at all wrong with that! ^_^
As for the whole "quality declining or not" issue... I think that, like any series, there are some books that are better than others. But they all have their own strengths and weakenesses, even within the books themselves. For instance, for some reason I've never cared all that much about Mariel of Redwall. I guess I'd have to classify it as my "least favorite" Redwall book, although I still like it better than plenty of non-Redwall books I've read. I enjoy re-reading it once in a while, but it doesn't thrill me like some of the others. I used to think that I was similarly unimpressed Salamandastron, but then I re-read it again just this spring, and found it was much better than I remembered it. So who knows?
The thing is, it's more a matter of us as readers changing and being influenced by our other readings and experiences than it is a matter of the books changing. There are obvious changes in style and such as the series progresses, but we also look at them with different eyes after awhile. I know I read a lot differently now, as a college graduate, than I did when I first read Redwall in 6th grade (circa age 11.)
There's also the fact that the novelty wears off. If you picked up one of the most recent Redwall books and read it, never having read a book by Brian Jacques before, you'd most likely really like it! We veterans who've been around for so long and read 16 novels aren't going to feel the same wonder and suspense that we did when we first read the books.
And there's something to be said for consistency. When I pick up a Redwall novel, even a brand-new one, I know I'm going to read a book with fun adventures, excitement, cute Dibbuns, etc, etc, and with NO gore, sex or swearing. Sometimes that's a very, very welcome change from the other fiction society bombards us with these days. As Redwall.org calls them, they're just "good yarns." Just plain good stories. Nothing at all wrong with that! ^_^