Watership Down (Puffin Books)
by Richard Adams
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Book Summary Information
Author: Richard AdamsEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-02
ISBN: 0140306013
Number of pages: 480
Publisher: Penguin Books, Limited (UK)
Book Reviews of Watership Down (Puffin Books)
Book Review: A Timeless Classic in its Own Genre
Summary: 5 Stars
Some stories forever change the landscape of literature. They permeate through the varied genres of fiction, beyond age or demographics, and somehow manage to speak to everyone, to see the world in a little better light. Richard Adams wrote just such a work in "Watership Down."
The story, now published in several editions and the subject of a fairly well done animated movie, follows a band of rabbits who strike out from the apparent safety of their warren into the unknown English countryside. Pricked by the intuition of his wan brother, Fiver, Hazel convinces a small group from the warren that the time has come to seek a new home, one where they can live free from danger and away from the restrictive regime of their chief rabbit and his officers. The way is fraught with danger from both the expected predators (mankind being the most potent, albeit oblivious), as well as some more surprising antagonists. They discover that life among rabbits in the outer world is far different from anything they have ever known. When, at last, they reach Fiver's promised destination, they are thrust into war with a tyrannical and expansive neighboring warren, led by a powerful warlord known as General Woundwort, the conclusion of which contains perhaps the finest epitaph for a battle scene ever penned in the English language.
Interwoven throughout the entire novel is warm prose, dynamic characters, beautiful depictions of the country (that obviously flow from a life spent in appreciation of nature), and, perhaps most interestingly, a richly imagined mysticism for rabbits which comes to guide some of the higher aspirations of the heroes. The impressive breadth of the novel makes this among one of the longer fantasies of its time. But it is worth reading every word.
Indeed, the world of reading is a far better place because of "Watership Down."
-Matthew Lucas (author of "A Roar in the Pinelands")
[...]
Summary of Watership Down (Puffin Books)
Fiver could sense danger. Something terrible was going to happen to the warren - he felt sure of it. So did his brother Hazel, for Fiver's sixth sense was never wrong. They had to leave immediately, and they had to persuade the other rabbits to join them. And so begins a long and perilous journey of a small band of rabbits in search of a safe home. Fiver's vision finally leads them to Watership Down, but here they face their most difficult challenge of all...Published in 1972, "Watership Down" is an epic journey, a stirring tale of adventure, courage and survival against the odds.Watership Down has been a staple of high-school English classes for years. Despite the fact that it's often a hard sell at first (what teenager wouldn't cringe at the thought of 400-plus pages of talking rabbits?), Richard Adams's bunny-centric epic rarely fails to win the love and respect of anyone who reads it, regardless of age. Like most great novels, Watership Down is a rich story that can be read (and reread) on many different levels. The book is often praised as an allegory, with its analogs between human and rabbit culture (a fact sometimes used to goad skeptical teens, who resent the challenge that they won't "get" it, into reading it), but it's equally praiseworthy as just a corking good adventure.
The story follows a warren of Berkshire rabbits fleeing the destruction of their home by a land developer. As they search for a safe haven, skirting danger at every turn, we become acquainted with the band and its compelling culture and mythos. Adams has crafted a touching, involving world in the dirt and scrub of the English countryside, complete with its own folk history and language (the book comes with a "lapine" glossary, a guide to rabbitese). As much about freedom, ethics, and human nature as it is about a bunch of bunnies looking for a warm hidey-hole and some mates, Watership Down will continue to make the transition from classroom desk to bedside table for many generations to come. --Paul Hughes
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