WATERSHIP DOWN

WATERSHIP DOWN by Richard Adams

I recently read WATERSHIP DOWN with my high school literature group, and I really enjoyed it. Honestly, what's not to love about an epic adventure with rabbits at the heart of it all, right?! The really cool part is that when you peel back the story layer and dig in, these rabbits are pursuing the very same thing in life we are. They just want to live in a safe warren, raise their young, and belong to a group where they are cherished and valued.

WATERSHIP DOWN opens with the posting of a sign outside of Sandleford Warren where the rabbits live. The rabbits are unable to read, but one of them has premonitions, and he knows it's time to leave. Danger is in the air. (The sign is indicating that the area is about to be developed.) Inviting all who will join them, a small band of unorganized, somewhat misfit rabbits leaves their home and sets out. What follows is a journey that will try these rabbits and bind them together in such a way that they are willing to sacrifice their lives for each other. They encounter humans, prey, other warrens, imprisonment, and hardship, but along the way they form friendships with some unlikely animals that will give the story a Lion and the Mouse type feel at different points.

WATERSHIP DOWN was a story told by Adams to his two daughters. They begged him to write it down which he did thankfully. It can be read as an enjoyable story for children. However, if you want to dig into the fantastic quotes that start each chapter or compare the leadership of the Efrafa Warren to a true, historical governmental example, you'll want to read this with a little older group (hence my recommended age range). Adams and his family claimed the book has no allegorical tie, but it's interesting to note that he served in the British Armed Forces during WWII. I always tell my literature kids that books can be windows into author's hearts and minds without them even realizing they are there. Often times we write from what our hearts are full of, whether we start out with that purpose or not.

The last thing I'll share that makes this book super interesting is while it is written with an anthromoporphic foundation, the rabbits still retain a lot of their rabbity-ness. Meaning, that Adams wanted the rabbits to still be rabbits despite having the ability to think, reason, speak, etc. He strove to draw a dividing line between humans and animals, because in this story there is a very clear difference between some of the motivations humans have and motivations animals have.

All that being said, I highly recommend you give this one a try, and before you know it, you'll be driving down the road spotting rabbits and your kids will be saying, "There goes Fiver. There goes Hazel or Bigwig!"

HEADS UP - There were 2-3 d***s in the story.