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theteaisaddictive's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Absolutely masterful start to finish. The rabbit-lore of El-Ahrairah and his many adventures was so wonderfully atmospheric, combined with the thought and care that went into the language and inferiority of the rabbits — to say nothing of the plot itself. An absolute classic that I can’t believe I never read before now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gore, Animal death, War, and Injury/Injury detail
deathmetalheron's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
This is classic I've wanted to read for a while, as I love rabbits and I found the concept of them very fun. The worldbuilding, between the warren dynamics, the Lapine language, and descriptions of the human world from rabbit point of view are all phenomenal. There are a lot of characters here but and many of the aspects would contrast against common assumptions about "good" writing, but I do appreciate the asides where Adams takes the time to explain the distinction as to why rabbits approach things the way they do. The rabbits may be talking and they may have a lot of human tendencies but there is a careful tendency to not completely anthropomorphize them.
I was definitely led to believe this was much grittier than it is, I wouldn't say it's lighthearted but it's not a downer ending by any means. I do find it interesting that is often characterized as "children's" literature because the writing is shockingly dense. There's quite a bit to process and it feels like the kind of book a parent should read with children. It definitely feels like a hallmark of an older era of children's books.
My own personal complaint with the books is the El-ahrairah stories--there are four of them, one in each arc, they are all quite long, and I don't feel like they add much to the narrative bar the one with the Black Rabbit. I do feel a cutaway would've been fair at this point.
I was definitely led to believe this was much grittier than it is, I wouldn't say it's lighthearted but it's not a downer ending by any means. I do find it interesting that is often characterized as "children's" literature because the writing is shockingly dense. There's quite a bit to process and it feels like the kind of book a parent should read with children. It definitely feels like a hallmark of an older era of children's books.
My own personal complaint with the books is the El-ahrairah stories--there are four of them, one in each arc, they are all quite long, and I don't feel like they add much to the narrative bar the one with the Black Rabbit. I do feel a cutaway would've been fair at this point.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death and Animal cruelty
Minor: Confinement and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
abbie_normal's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
It has been decades since I watched the terrifying movie, but still I kept this haunting bit of horror floating in the back of my mind all through the much less frightening novel. And, surprise, it wasn't scary at all. It was wonderful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Confinement, and Excrement
jaimc's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Blood
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
gabriella_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This made me feel like a little kid again which I know isn’t an easy feat. I was squirming reading this feeling so tense and anxious for battle rabbits in a society some parts even felt apocalyptic. An absolute page-turner this was awesome
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Genocide, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, Murder, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Violence, Gore, Confinement, Stalking, Grief, Pregnancy, War, Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Blood, Torture, Panic attacks/disorders, and Xenophobia
jaynekernodle's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I first read this book in fifth grade (really not sure how) and decided to read it again as it's one of the few I've thought about throughout my life since.
I really enjoyed the story as a whole - the world building is grand, the characters are worth rooting for, and the action really builds. I only have two complaints, one more so than the other. The first, and least annoying to me personally, was that the action really picked up in the second half; so much so that it almost felt like two different story paces. The second, and more frustrating for me, was that there were often long passages that droned on with excessive detail about the setting. As someone who has a hard time picturing things in my head as they are exactly described, I prefer vivid imagery that still leaves much to the imagination. Richard Adams tends to over describe with so much detail that it becomes convoluted and I lose the image trying to follow the words. I tended to glaze over those passages, which could often be at least a page long.
I really enjoyed the story as a whole - the world building is grand, the characters are worth rooting for, and the action really builds. I only have two complaints, one more so than the other. The first, and least annoying to me personally, was that the action really picked up in the second half; so much so that it almost felt like two different story paces. The second, and more frustrating for me, was that there were often long passages that droned on with excessive detail about the setting. As someone who has a hard time picturing things in my head as they are exactly described, I prefer vivid imagery that still leaves much to the imagination. Richard Adams tends to over describe with so much detail that it becomes convoluted and I lose the image trying to follow the words. I tended to glaze over those passages, which could often be at least a page long.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood and Gore
janneke2302's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I was hesitant to read this book at first, because it's very different from what I usually read, but I ended up really enjoying it. There were some slow parts that were a bit tough to get through, especially the chapters where they told each other stories, but other than those parts it was a really fun heartwarming and adventurous story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Animal death
Moderate: Confinement and Classism
Minor: Pregnancy, Miscarriage, and Abortion
ghast's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood
savvyrosereads's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Beloved as a classic children’s story, Watership Down is the tale of Hazel, Fiver, Bigwig, and their friends, a group of rabbits who face relocation, danger, and adventure together on the quest to find and build a new home for themselves.
I was a huge fan of the Warriors series growing up, and this book gave me very similar vibes, only with rabbits rather than cats, so the nostalgia feeling that this book generated was a lot of fun. I loved the adventure and action (which picked up significantly towards the second half) and all the different rabbit characters were a delight. I did feel like the book could have been about a hundred pages shorter, but I also appreciated the world-building Adams engaged in, as well as the inclusion of rabbit folklore and mythology. While I wasn’t totally enthralled (a lot of sections dragged on and the beginning was pretty slow), I definitely understand why this one is so loved by so many readers over the years.
As an added bonus, with bunnies and outdoorsy vibes, this was the perfect springtime/Easter read!
Recommended if you like: classics; stories about animals; children’s literature.
CW: Animal injury/death/blood; violence.
Beloved as a classic children’s story, Watership Down is the tale of Hazel, Fiver, Bigwig, and their friends, a group of rabbits who face relocation, danger, and adventure together on the quest to find and build a new home for themselves.
I was a huge fan of the Warriors series growing up, and this book gave me very similar vibes, only with rabbits rather than cats, so the nostalgia feeling that this book generated was a lot of fun. I loved the adventure and action (which picked up significantly towards the second half) and all the different rabbit characters were a delight. I did feel like the book could have been about a hundred pages shorter, but I also appreciated the world-building Adams engaged in, as well as the inclusion of rabbit folklore and mythology. While I wasn’t totally enthralled (a lot of sections dragged on and the beginning was pretty slow), I definitely understand why this one is so loved by so many readers over the years.
As an added bonus, with bunnies and outdoorsy vibes, this was the perfect springtime/Easter read!
Recommended if you like: classics; stories about animals; children’s literature.
CW: Animal injury/death/blood; violence.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
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