Mr. Jacques was a door-to-door milk delivery truck driver in the late 80's and one of his stops was the Royal Wavertree School for the Blind in Liverpool. He loved children and befriended the blind kids and offered to read stories to them.
What frustrated him most was what he called "dreadful literature" available for these kids who were reliant on their own imaginations – not having ever seen the things they were hearing about.
"I thought, 'What's wrong with a little bit of magic in their lives?' "Mr. Jacques said. For the following seven months he came home every night to write a mystical, adventurous story for those children. He made it as descriptive as possible so that they could 'see' everything in their mind's eye.
He wrote the 800 page story longhand on recycled paper and kept it in a grocery bag. It contained vividly detailed anthropomorphic animals and was set in medieval times. His stories are mostly about the adventures of friendly mice, hares and squirrels fighting to protect Redwall Abbey.
"Mice are my heroes," Mr. Jacques said, "because, like children, mice are little and have to learn to be courageous and use their wits."
