Books

I'm reading the series right now! I'm sure I read Redwall and maybe Mossflower as a kid, but I think my introduction to them was probably the cartoon. They certainly hit different as an adult.

I'm reading in publication order, and I'm on the third book now - Mattimeo. There's this bit I enjoy where we're told several times that Martin's sword is just a sword. While it might be a symbol, it isn't magic - and although it can be used for good it could just as easily be used for evil. Matthias is taught this when he recovers the sword during Cluny's siege, and Martin is told this when the blade is originally forged.

Anyway, early in Mattimeo one of Slagar's gang floats the idea of stealing the sword. Slagar says they better not - it's almost certainly a magic sword, and if someone who wasn't a mouse tried to use it they'd surely be cursed.

I find it interesting, because apart from the fact that these are woodland creatures, Redwall is fairly low-fantasy. There is sometimes a supernatural element with visions of ancestors and prophecies and such, but it's not the fantasy fare I'm used to of wizards slinging fireballs at skeletons. But it does make me wonder: could the sword be magic after all? Martin certainly has a touch of the divine to him, and his spirit does come to the aid of Redwall several times.

Maybe the magic comes from having a good heart and living your life to protect your friends. These days I feel we could all use a little more magic in our lives.