I liked the story line about Veil, but it felt like it came along too late in the book. Other than that complaint, this was one of the better books in the series.

I don't like the idea that one can be born "bad." Did like Bella seeing her son.

Outcast of Redwall

Outcast of Redwall is another book in the Redwall series written for children by the late Brian Jacques, but also read by many adults too including me. Years ago, every time Brian brought out another book I would be there to buy it. I am proud to have them on my bookshelves and have read them all, most of them more than once. The ultimate triumph of good over evil is always the main theme running through all of the Redwall series.

Brian never shied away with difficult concepts in his books even though he was writing for young people. This particular book tells the tale of ‘Sunflash the Mace’ a badger and his wicked adversary Swartt Sixclaw There is a long standing feud between these two.

Ideally to get the full picture of why this feud is so bitter and ongoing, readers should read right through from the very first book in the series . However it isn’t absolutely necessary as each one can be read on its own too.

Running alongside the continuing battles between these two there are two more plot lines both of them relating to Veil who is Swartt Sixclaw's son. He was left behind as a baby in one of his father’s battles and rescued by young Byrony a mouse maid who was one of the Redwallers. He was brought up in Redwall Abbey. A third plot line brings everything in the story together in conclusion.

In this story as in all of Brian’s books there are morals and maxims behind all that goes on to make children and probably adults too, stop and ponder. I am a big fan of these books and also Erin Hunter’s books about wild cats also for young people but read by adult fans like me. They are easy reads because of the age groups they are written for, but have enough bite in the plots to be enjoyed by all ages if you like animal stories. They are not as sophisticated as the Duncton Wood series about moles which are more suitable for young adults upwards, again if the readers are animal lovers. I recommend them highly.

This series as a whole has some excellent traits, and I overall enjoyed Redwall books growing up.

However, even as a child, the theme that I now see to be essentially racism was unacceptable. I think this book was the one that finally made me stop reading the series entirely. Bryony (a mouse and therefore moral and good) adopts Veil (a ferret and therefore inherently bad). Viel inexplicably grows up to do evil like his ferret father he's never met, apparently because he is of the wrong species. In the end, when Veil still sacrifices himself to save Bryony, she writes it off as an unintentional sacrifice on Viel's part, and comes to the conclusion that he was just inherently evil.

The series already had the issue of implying that some beings are born irredeemably and one-dimensionally evil, and the ending to Outcast is so infuriating and terrible in message that it stains the entire series.

The most troubling Redwall book to-date.

On the surface, Outcast of Redwall seems to be the archetype for Jacques's well-documented immutable morality forced on his races/species. An infant ferret taken into the abbey leads a life of wickedness despite growing up at Redwall in the care of its inhabitants.

However, it is impossible to view the ferret as anything but a victim. From the moment he was found, inhabitants of the abbey made off-hand comments about how they felt the ferret would grow up to be nothing but trouble. He is then blamed, shamed, and treated like an outsider his entire life. His dying words are "Go... back to your abbey[...]" despite that same abbey being the only "home" he's ever known (and I use that term lightly.) It begs the question whether the hostility he received his entire life was the exact reason why he "turned bad", living up to the expectations of evil that had been thrust upon him since birth. And if he could have been good but was treated so poorly he turned away from it, then is that why all other "vermin" are bad, a constant cycle with no one to break the wheel?

I'm torn because Veil is not the poster-child for "All vermin are evil" like many reviewers have written, but I do think that was Jacques intent. It's impossible not to see Veil as a lost opportunity both for Jacques and Redwall to show a different way, where instead of constantly battling, if the inhabitants of Redwall had simply nurtured a baby instead of immediately declaring him bad, they might have had a chance to avoid an all-out battle later.

I started out thinking this was a 2-star book, the single added star being for Veil and Sunflash as exceptional characters - thank God for a personality for a badger beyond "mother" and "apocalyptic berserker" - but this book did more to challenge the "good Redwallers" and "bad vermin" tropes than any other book has done (which is still very little) and I think it adds much needed complexities. It still loses stars because I really don't believe this was Jacques intent.

A new badger lord ascends Salamandastron. His sworn enemy gathers a horde. A young mouse maid comes of age in Redwall. Tying them all together; an abandoned ferret babe. The age old question remains....Is evil inherited?

Lots of feasting occured (not that I would expect anything less)

This one is interesting experience for me - I don't necessarily agree with Byrony at any given point - when she is arguing for Veil's complete and utter innocence but also not when she claims that he truly a villain. But that, I think, is Jacques' point. About assumptions and nature vs nurture and the toll of growing up in a hostile nature, whether that be in a warlord's horde where no needs are being met....to Redwall Abbey where he might have been fed and clothed and had some affection but was also constantly under suspicion. And his story being a foil for Sunflash's experience. It's truly thought provoking and interesting narrative.

This book ultimately disappointed me somewhat because it had so much potential and yet did not live up to it. The concept was great: a baby "vermin", one of the typically antagonist species, son of a warlord, is raised by the kind, loving creatures of Redwall. I found the conclusion unsatisfying, however. Brian Jacques tried to break out of his rigid black-vs-white mold for this book and create complex characters. He tried and came so close to succeeding and then swerved away and missed the mark so sharply it almost hurts.

Gaaaaah. This is my least favorite of the Redwall books and always has been. Within the walls of the Abbey, there's no one to root for. Bryony the mouse is deeply annoying, Veil the ferret is characterized as evil by nature. Really the heart of this book is what I don't like, which asserts that bias and prejudice is a correct instinct that people should listen to, because evil is just part of some people's nature, and no matter what, they can't change, even with the help of good people. I'm writing a paper about anthropomorphism in children's literature as a vehicle for bias and prejudice, so you already KNOW I'm gonna tear this apart. The one redeeming factor is Sunflash the Mace, easily my favorite of the Badger Lords.

The Outcast of Redwall:
In which the badger Sunflash the Mace and the ferret warlord Swartt Sixclaw are sworn enemies.
In which a baby ferret is raised at Redwall Abbey and we explore the ideas of Nature vs Nurture.
In which Brian Jacques outdoes himself in descriptions of snacks, meals and feasts of all kinds.

This is not my favorite Redwall tale, but the final scene involving the ferret Veil and his caretaker Bryony is one of the most memorable and complex in the entire series, and makes Outcast a must-read of the series.

This story was more unique than the others and that was a nice change. However, this isn't the first book that started with one group and then that group proceeds to tell a story about something that happened long ago... So basically I never know where any of these stories fit into the timeline and that is really annoying to me.

Also, with the exception of the dimwitted rat the author seems dead set in saying that people (beasts) are either born good or born bad. There was a ferret in this book that of course had to be evil in spite of everything else. Why?!?! Why can't we have one of the "bad" beasts be good? I think these books could teach a much more powerful message if they included things like that.

And again, too many characters that are all the same. I can't ever really keep track of who is who and what is what because they are all the same from book to book there is no change. Basically all I have to do is say in my head "Good guy talking" or "Bad guy talking" And since the characters really are that black and white then it generally works...