Taggerung (Redwall, Book 14)
by Brian Jacques
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Book Summary Information
Author: Brian JacquesEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-08-27
ISBN: 0441009689
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: Ace
Book Reviews of Taggerung (Redwall, Book 14)
Book Review: A Tip 'O the Hat to Mr. Brian Jacques
Summary: 5 Stars
At just three days old, Deyna's father was slain, and he was taken from his family by the Juskarath clan. The Juskarath believed Deyna to be the prophesied "Taggerung," the uber-elite warrior/ruler of all the Juska clans, even though he was an otter born of Redwall Abbey. After fifteen seasons of rigorous training reminiscent of the Spartans, Deyna realized that he wasn't cut out to be a savage killing machine like the rest of his clan. He broke free of them, and ran off to find his true family. But leaving a Juska clan wasn't that easy. Deyna soon found himself being hunted by his archrival, Gruven, and his vicious fellow clanbeasts. He ran for days across the countryside and through the forestlands, and finally met a creature that he grew to call friend. The creature was a harvest mouse by the name of Nimbalo, who himself had a mysterious and painful past. Deyna and Nimbalo traveled to the mountains in hopes of losing Gruven and his band of vermin and instead found an old shrew named Ruskem, who sheltered the two for a night. During the night, Deyna awoke to find Nimbalo yelling in his sleep, reliving the day he left his father's farm. It seemed that Nimbalo's father had beat him, and that's why he packed up and left. The pair left when morning came, and continued on through the mountains, only to find Gruven's gang yet again. Gruven caused a rockslide that killed several hundred pigmy shrews, even though they were meant to kill Deyna. Nimbalo and Deyna helped the shrews to bury their dead, and then continued on to find a hedgehog named Robald trapped in a mudball. The big otter freed Robald, and followed him back to his home. Robald was due to visit his Great-Aunt Lollery, who lived along the riverbank, so the pair accompanied him as sort of bodyguards. Unfortunately for Robald, he had chosen to visit at the same time as his rowdy country cousins, the Dillypins. Deyna ended up making an enemy out of the leader Dillypin, Jurkin, shortly after arrival. He and Jurkin settled their disagreement with a round of spiketussling, a hedgehog form of wrestling. Jurkin accepted Deyna as an equal, and offered to ferry them down the river towards Redwall Abbey. The Dillypin raft soon came upon the watermeadows, a favorite place of the Dillypin children. Nimbalo went off on his own, and Deyna took a long time finding him. But he was finally found, in his father's farmhouse, standing over his father's corpse. Nimbalo said that he was already slain when he arrived, with a mortal wound that could only have been caused by his father's own axe. A little sadder, the pair returned to the raft and set sail again, to stop at the edge of Mossflower Wood. Jurkin accompanied them a little ways in, but had to return to the raft. Deyna and Nimbalo kept on through Mossflower, and eventually came upon Redwall Abbey, where they were promptly mistaken for vermin and taken captive. It so happened that the Abbey was currently under siege by Gruven's lot, and they wanted the Abbey to hand over the Taggerung. Deyna desperately pleaded to be set free to kill the vermin, and the abbeybeasts complied. Deyna grabbed the sword of Martin the Warrior in his mad dash outside to get to the vermin. Swinging the big sword, he charged straight into the cluster of vermin, taking three arrows to the chest, and slew every last one of them. Deyna finally ended his killing spree several miles down the road, and was found by Redwall's Skipper of Otters. Skipper took him back to Redwall, where his mother Filorn and his sister Mhera saw their long lost son and brother for the first time in sixteen seasons. Filorn suggested that Deyna be taken to Rukky Garge, the otter healer, to heal him, of course, but to also remove all the tattoos covering his face. The process took a good week, but when Rukky had finished, he was even better than new. With renewed strength, Deyna and Skipper returned to Redwall. Filorn and Mhera raced out of the front gates to meet Deyna, who ran equally as fast to meet them, and all three collapsed in a joyful heap on the path.
Taggerung by Brian Jacques is a marvelous epic of one otter's journey home. This book is stunningly lifelike, even though the characters are talking animals.
All of Brian Jacques' eighteen Redwall novels have kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire story. The books are chock full of verisimilar creatures that truly cause you to feel sad if they die or become mortally wounded. Mr. Jacques has a certain knack for captivating readers of all times and ages with his entertaining narratives of delectable foods, such as turnip 'n' tater 'n' beetroot pie, and the most exotic beverages, like the delightful strawberry fizz.
The Redwall books have been my ultimate favorite book series since I first picked up the very first book, Redwall. Ever since, I have encouraged my friends and family to read them, but they just brush them aside because of "talking animals." Although the animals talk, these books are certainly not fit for very young children to read. The battle descriptions are quite graphic, and some references to alcohol brewed in the Abbey could be deemed inappropriate.
Out of all the Redwall books, Taggerung is my all-time favorite, because of the organization of the clans. The book follows the Redwall tradition of mindbending puzzles and nonsensical rhymes, and also has vagrant healers and bloodthirsty clan leaders. I suppose that's what keeps me hooked, but I'm honestly unable to completely explain why I love it so much. I know that's kind of a pitiful explanation, but it's the honest truth.
Anyhow, Taggerung is a novel well worth the read, even if you're a newcomer to the series. It is, in my opinion, Brian Jacques' absolute best work, hands down.
-C. Edwards
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