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Watership Down (Watership Down, #1)

Richard Adams

Start date: February 1, 2022

Finish date: February 28, 2022

Discussion: Science Fiction and Fantasy

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Science Fiction and Fantasy

* 2026 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reading Schedule
By Book Nerd , Purple Book Horse · 3 posts · 39 views

last updated Nov 20, 2025 07:25AM

* 2025 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reading Schedule
By Book Nerd , Purple Book Horse · 14 posts · 158 views

last updated Jan 05, 2025 07:59PM

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What Members Thought

Jan 23, 2015 Sara rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: animals, fantasy

I rated this book a 4.0 from memory, and it remains that to my mind.

I first read this book in 1975 with my dear friend, Jean. She was so enthusiastic, and I was a little reluctant, but we both managed to find time amid our studies to fit it in, and I was glad we did. A little bit The Odyssey, a little bit Lord of the Rings, a smidgen of The Wind in the Willows, and a tiny touch of Animal Farm, Watership Down is a quick-paced adventure in which you forget the animals are animals, they become so h ...more

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May 22, 2017 Josh Caporale rated it liked it

3.5 stars

Reading Watership Down has been something that was long overdue. This is my mother's all-time favorite (though she also really likes Plague Dogs by the same author) and I can remember when she and my sister watched the animated film and how my sister would constantly talk about it. I never got around to reading the book or watching the film, though. I got around to reading this as I proposed it as a sixth season discussion based on what I felt people would be interested in and I would h 3.5 stars

Reading Watership Down has been something that was long overdue. This is my mother's all-time favorite (though she also really likes Plague Dogs by the same author) and I can remember when she and my sister watched the animated film and how my sister would constantly talk about it. I never got around to reading the book or watching the film, though. I got around to reading this as I proposed it as a sixth season discussion based on what I felt people would be interested in and I would have to say that after reading this, it was a dense and demanding read, but one that demonstrated a testament of being well fleshed out and developed a anthropomorphic foundation for rabbits that reflect the rabbits, but yet we are able to understand as well.

The rabbits are living a content lifestyle in their warren when Fiver, a bit of a misfit rabbit named for being the fifth in a litter when four is primarily the average, has a nightmare that leaves him with a warning for the other rabbits to leave this warren and head to an area where there is a much more peaceful, easy way of living. Led by Hazel, who is Fiver's brother, he brings together the other rabbits, including neighbors and those that were part of the ruling Owsla and head away from their land that was being taken over by construction. Along their journey, the rabbits come across various obstacles that involve basic survival (food, shelter, mating, etc.) and antagonizing forces ranging from humans, dogs, cats, carnivorous birds, and even other rabbits. There are even moments of change that take place on this adventure and it is all driven by a need to survive and do so valiantly.

What I liked about this novel was how it developed a human-like way of life for rabbits. I am not saying that these rabbits acted like humans in their mannerisms, because by all means their mannerisms were those of rabbits. What I am referring to is how there is a great concentration of the rabbits language, their practices, and even how they worship. They speak Lapine, which includes words that denote how they feed (silflay), their excrement (hraka), and so much more. They worship a god named Frith and tell tales about El-ahrairah the way one would talk about biblical tales. The characters have depth to them and in many cases possess a sense of livelihood to them (like Kehaar the bird).

This was, however, a great challenge to read with its dense pacing and demanding details. There was a lot going on throughout the text and so many side characters that seemed to immensely take over the flow of events. I also felt that Fiver, who I felt was the most important character to the events taking place among the protagonists, did not get nearly enough time in the story and unjustifiably so. There is one moment in the story that definitely should have been told through Fiver's steps of what Fiver was doing, but instead was told through the more minor rabbits from the neighborhood. Whether or not Fiver's thoughts were meant to be enigmatic is something I am unsure about, but he should have been so much more crucial in the events in the story. We could clearly tell that Hazel was the hero and voice of reason that was not necessarily perfect, Bigwig was the big, macho, but perfectly flawed rabbit, Kehaar was a comic relief bird that was being tended to by the rabbits following an injury, while General Woundwort is the main antagonist, but one with great fortitude and a solid, yet poignant backstory.

I wish that I liked this novel more than I did. I still think that it was okay and that there are people that will really enjoy reading this and get a lot more out of this, but I feel that there were moments that were very spotty. On the other hand, I can definitely see where this is a modern classic and how it is definitive in what it does in telling the story through a species that is not ours, but uses our attributes in order to provide us with a greater understanding of their lifestyle and that was where it was genius!

You can find my Literary Gladiators discussion of this book here (keeping in mind that the discussion is subject to spoilers): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bHxh... ...more

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Aug 27, 2019 midnightfaerie rated it it was ok

Shelves: classic-tomes

Ahhh, what do I say about this anomaly? Given much hardship over the years because of realism in violence, I really wonder who the intended audience for this book was? I'm sure it's written somewhere but I don't have the inclination to look it up just now. A story that I found rather boring, even with the dark edge of betrayal and impending doom, my favorite part of of the story was that they named one of the main characters, Hazel, which I particularly like. That's it. A name. It was dark and s ...more

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May 25, 2012 Nancy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: animals, richard-adams

This is a book I have heard a lot about, and have often thought about reading. It is well worth the time to read this book. It was a story a father made up for his children. He tells of rabbits, who have left their warren's, to find a better life. It tells of their struggles and challenges, and how their efforts develope their skills and build up their selfworth and leadership. The rabbits build up loyalty and friendship with each other. They create a society of free rabbits.

I like the way he t ...more

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