The Warriors: A Parents Guide to Warrior Cats

About two years ago I was wandering the local bookstore. I book in the new release section caught my eye. It was called Warriors: Power of Three Book One The Sight. The title alone was nothing special but the cover was filled with images of cats looking quite fierce. Now I knew of a certain seven year old girl who was in love with cats so I decided to do a little research. I found out that this book was in fact one of many in a series called the Warriors. So I figured I would get the first book of the first series and read it to this young cat enthusiast. So far I had read her many books, some she loved and others she could leave behind. The Warriors: Into the Wild was a book that she loved and she wanted more, so I got her the next few books.

Now she is reading them on her own and has informed me that she wants every book in the series. She has started to talk to me about characters I don't know, and using strange lingo. She knows the warrior code from the books and asked me meaningful questions about it but I don't have the answers. I am not a warrior cat; I am just a guy who thought she might like a book I saw.

So I did some more research and came up with a simple guide for parents who might find themselves in a similar situation. I will cover the basics from the different clans to the different books. I will even cover the Warrior Code. Consider it your survival guide to the wild lands of warrior cats.

The Basics

So far the Warriors books (written by Erin Hunter) have had four series of novels. Each series has six books telling one long story that centers on the same basic characters. Each book is about 340 pages long, but the first few books are a little shorter to get your young reader started. There are also a series of books called Super Editions that tell stories that go on between series or before the main series started. Also there are various manga's telling new stories and field guides talking about all the various characters.

There are two main settings for the book. One is the forest and the other is the lake. While I am sure your child can point out major differences they are pretty much the same. In both settings there are territories that belong to each of the four main tribes in the book. The tribes are as followed...

• Thuderclan: This is the main clan of the series as the protagonist of all the stories end up being members of Thunderclan. They tend to be forest hunters and aside from a few exceptions tend to be pretty noble warriors. These are the cats that we most often should root for. If your child asks what clan you belong to, this is a pretty safe group to claim membership with.
• Shadowclan: These are the cats that play the main antagonist of the stories most often. They are not named for their tendency towards villainy though. They gained the name Shadowclan because they often hunt at night. Also they tend to have the least amount of prey so maybe that is why they are so grouchy.
• Riverclan: These cats break from conventional wisdom and are in fact friends with water. In the forest their main territory was the river and in the lake well you guessed it they like to hang out near the lake. They are known to be good swimmers and eat mostly fish. They have fought with Thunderclan on and off over territory and on occasion align themselves with the more sinister Shadowclan.
• Windclan: The territory for this clan in both settings tends to be large open areas where they use their speed to hunt down rabbits. In the early series they are most often friends to Thunderclan but in later books they become enemies.

The four clans shift alliances almost every other book but there is a general idea that the clans have to work together on occasion. They even all meet on the full moon at a gathering place to talk business.

Now those are the basic clans of the books but if your child asks you if there are only four clans do not be tricked. The warrior cats have their own view of the after life and so when you die you join Star Clan. Also there is brief mention of the sinister Blood Clan in the first series of books. Also there is Sky Clan that was introduced in the book Firestar's Quest.

Characters

Okay there are entirely to many characters to go over. There are some big characters that I will review when I talk about the series but I did want to take a moment to go over the names in the books because this can be confusing. You see cats in this world tend to gain new names, as they get older. They start off with a kitty name like Graykit and when they become a warrior apprentice they have the -kit replaced with -paw like Firepaw the main character of the first book. Then when they become a warrior they gain a warrior name that tends to be similar to their apprentice name but fiercer. Graypaw became Greystripe and Firepaw became Fireheart. Than if Star Clan thinks your worthy you become leader of the clan than your warrior name is changed to a name ending in -star. Once a cat becomes a leader he gains nine lives to use as best he can to lead his clan.

This can all get kind of confusing because your child might talk about Firepaw one moment and Firestart as if they are different cats when in fact they are just the same cat at different times in the story.

The Book Series

There are a lot of things that go on in these books. The politics of warrior clans can be quite complicated and each book has over two dozen characters. This is just the very brief cliff notes of the books so you can least have some understanding on what is going on.

• The Original Series: These six books are mainly about a housecat named Rusty who goes into the forest to become a wild can. He ends up joining Thunderclan and becoming the warrior Firheart. Later in the books Tigerclaw who was once deputy of Thunderclan betrays his own clan and tries to take over all the clans leading to an epic struggle that involves wild dogs and the deadly Bloodcan. In the end Fireheart becomes Firestar leader of Thunderclan.
• The New Prophecy: A bunch of new younger cats from all the clans are told that there forest is in danger of being taken over by two legs (that's what the cats call us humans). The cats then must band together to lead their clans to their new home at the lake. The main character Brambleclaw is the son of the now dead Tigerclaw and is tempted by his brother to destroy Firestar and take over Thunderclan but in the end saves Firestar.
• Power of Three: This is the most recently completed series. It follows three young cats named Hollyleaf, Lionblaze and Jayfeather as they try to find their place in the clans. There is a prophecy that says these cats may or may not play a huge role in the future of the clans.
• Omen of the Stars: This is the new series and unlike the others it is in fact a continuation of the story from Power of Three. It will focus on a new cat that is in fact one of the three in the prophecy. The first two books have been released with more to come.

And as promised here is the Warrior Code that plays a huge role in all the books. This list is from the books but was put together on the fansite http://tawnystar-warriors.wetpaint.com/

• Defend your Clan, even with your life. You may have friendships with cats from other Clans, but your loyalty must remain to your Clan, as one day you will meet them in battle.
• Do not trespass or hunt on another Clan's territory.
• Elders and kits must be fed before apprentices and warriors. Unless they have permission, apprentices may not eat until they have hunted to feed the elders.
• Prey is killed only to be eaten, you must give StarClan thanks for its life.
• Kits must be six moons old in order to become an apprentice.
• New warriors must sit a silent vigil, and watch over the camp while the others sleep. They cannot say a word, and must sit outside no matter what the weather is like, reflecting on warrior responsibilities.
• A Clan cat cannot be the deputy of their Clan without having mentored at least one apprentice.
• Should the leader of a Clan die or retire, the deputy shall replace the leader. If a deputy dies or retires, the leader must then choose a successor before moonhigh (midnight).
• Once every full moon, the Clans must have a Gathering with each other. Also, there shall be no fighting among them during this time. And if they do fight, StarClan sends a cloud to cover the moon, showing they are angry, usually ending the Gathering.
• The Clan boundaries must be checked and marked by patrols daily. Also, if a patrol finds a trespassing cat, they must chase him off of their territory. This is one of the most commonly broken rules, with many Clans crossing boundaries to catch prey or apprentices not acknowledging the boundaries.
• Warrior can ever ignore a kit in pain or danger. This rule applies even if the kit is from a different Clan
• The word of a Clan leader is law.
• An honorable warrior does not need to kill other cats to win his battles, unless they are outside the warrior code or it is necessary for self-defense.
• A warrior rejects the soft life of a kittypet.
• Medicine cats cannot have mates or kits.

And that's it. That will at least get you started and if you find you get even more confused, read the books themselves. They are decent reads even if your all grown up and it will help you understand the vast world your child is getting drawn into. Also check out their website, www.warriorcats.com.

Sources
www.warriorcats.com
http://tawnystar-warriors.wetpaint.com/
Into the Wild by Erin Hunter