A Redwall Winter's Tale - Brian Jacques

Summary: A troupe of traveling players have promised the Redwallers an evening of entertainment in exchange for a grand feast. Late at night after the festivities have ended, Mighty Bulbrock Badger sends the little ones off to sleep with the tale of the giant Snow Badger who comes on the first night of winter, bringing snow across the land. The grown-up Redwallers chuckle at the fanciful tale, but is it only a tale? Bungo the mole-babe isn't so sure, and is determined to stay awake and find out! (Summary and picture from goodreads.com)

My Review: This is a delightful little story from the world of Redwall, complete with adorable illustrations.  Set after the time frame of the original Redwall book, we get a fun winter story filled with the usual Jacques wit and charm, along with fun poems and a classic Jacques riddle that you can try and solve.

Anyone who loves Jacques' work will enjoy this little holiday tale.  There's no threat from vermin in this book, it's just a simple story of wintertime and believing.  I love the character of Bungo, a little Dibbun (toddler) who not only gets into plenty of mischief, but is also lucky enough to get a special visit from the Snow Badger himself.

The illustrations as mentioned before are wonderful.  They're full of life, and the characters from the smallest mouse to the enormous badgers look so cuddly, warm and friendly.  There's a magical aura that the art lends to this charming little story.

My Rating: Four Stars

For the sensitive reader: nothing objectionable (unless you count silly little Dibbuns chucking snowballs at everybeast).