The Ribbajack & other Curious Yarns

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Self-described "scalawag" Brian Jacques (venerable author of the beloved Redwall series ) sets out to spook young readers with six scary (but, of course, not too scary) tales, steeped in a mulligan stew of folk fables, ancient myths, and horror-flick fiends.

The star of the sextet is undoubtedly Jacques' eccentric style--his diction, humor, and unmistakable brogue--which (in context) shouldn't give young readers too much trouble, and often makes for very-fun reading besides: "No, sir, I h'arrived too late. But I knows me rats, sir. If the h'Oriental chap says that's wot 'appened, then I'll back 'im h'all the way." Kids, of course, figure prominently in each story, too--whether as protagonists or as more scurrilous lads and lasses getting their well-deserved comeuppance. One such schoolboy causes much mayhem in the book's first (and by far best) story, in which an aspiring scoundrel named Archibald Smifft summons an occult creature, the Ribbajack, to do his evil bidding. Other stories riff off various other creepy creatures, from werewolves to ghosts to even Medusa, usually with some winking moral woven in by Jacques.

ANNOTATION

A collection of six short stories which feature a variety of monstrous creatures by the author of the Redwall series.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

What if revenge were a monster of your own creation? Ifall you needed to summon this monster was enough hatred and enough imagination? Which of you would really be the monster? One boy is about to find out.

The New York Times bestselling author Brian Jacques (Loamhedge; The Angel's Command) spins six all-new tales of horror and suspense. Read on, but be careful of what brews in your heart. You may just find yourself the next victim of the Ribbajack. . . .:

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Jacques, working more in the vein of his Seven Strange and Ghostly Tales than his Redwall fantasies, offers up a half dozen short horror/morality tales. The title story concerns Archibald Smifft, a truly fiendish 11-year-old being raised at a British boarding school, whose evil plan to conjure a fearsome beast called the Ribbajack backfires in spectacular fashion. In "A Smile and a Wave," a solitary trip through a haunted school library teaches a girl gratitude for her home and mother. "The All Ireland Champion Versus the Nye Add," a neatly constructed fish tale, crackles with the feel of a story told aloud at a pub, thanks to a spirited narrator ("Well, I've told you the tale now, so I'll go on me way an' bid ye good day. But it's a true story...."). The volume closes with "Rosie's Pet," a werewolf yarn that revels in its British trappings and, especially, in its own playful attitude. The plots are familiar and at times feel fragmentary, but Jacques's deft wordplay and masterly tone add compensatory gusts of pleasurable thrills. Ages 10-up. (May) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-Jacques offers six original ghost stories to follow up on Seven Strange and Ghostly Tales (Putnam, 1991). The title story is more grotesque than scary, and the ghost in "A Smile and a Wave" is inexplicably evil, existing only to scare the main character into wearing her detested coat. The most satisfying selections are "Miggy Mags and the Malabar Sailor," in which a mongoose champions a young girl against her abusive uncle, and "Rosie's Pet," a preadolescent werewolf love story. The heavy northern English dialect used in the tellings would work well in an audio book, but may deter some readers. While this is an acceptable addition to general collections, true fans of the scary and strange will find more satisfaction in the short-story collections by Australian writer Paul Jennings, such as Unreal! (Formac, 1992).-Farida S. Dowler, formerly at Bellevue Regional Library, WA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews