Group Read: Watership Down (Non-spoiler)

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Group Read: Watership Down (Non-spoiler)

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1drneutron
Jul. 8, 2011, 2:55 pm

A few of of us were talking over in Ilana's thread the other day about Watership Down and we thought it'd be a great idea to do a group read. SO I volunteered to set things up. Here's where we'll get organized and talk about the book in a non-spoiler-y way.

My suggestion: We start on July 22 (two weeks from today) with a goal of finishing by August 5 (that's two weeks later). I'll pace myself through the book by rough page count. I'll also make a spoiler thread so we can discuss as we go. Of course, anyone finishing later is welcome to join in as they get done!

2drneutron
Jul. 8, 2011, 2:57 pm

As a start to the conversation, I checked out the WIkipedia page on the book. It's got some great info! Here's a quote on how Richard Adams came to write Watership Down:

Watership Down began as a story Richard Adams told to his two daughters, Juliet and Rosamond, on a long car journey; in an interview, Adams said he "began telling the story of the rabbits ... improvised off the top of my head, as we were driving along. He based the struggles of the animals in the story on the struggles he and his friends encountered during the Battle of Oosterbeek, Arnhem, the Netherlands in 1944. His daughters insisted he write it down—"they were very, very persistent"—and though he initially delayed, he eventually began writing in the evenings, completing it eighteen months later. The book is dedicated to his daughters.

However, Adams had difficulty finding a publisher; his novel was rejected 13 times in all, until it was finally accepted by Rex Collings, a small publishing house. The publisher had little capital and could not pay Adams an advance; but "he got a review copy onto every desk in London that mattered."

Adams's descriptions of wild rabbit behaviour were based upon The Private Life of the Rabbit (1964), by British naturalist Ronald Lockley. The two later became friends and went on an expedition to the Antarctic, resulting in a joint writing venture, Voyage Through the Antarctic, published in 1982.

3elfchild
Jul. 8, 2011, 3:58 pm

Watership Down is one of my very favorite books. It's one of the few books that upon finishing it, I turned right back to page 1 and started re-reading it. I'd be delighted to re-read it with others!

4Smiler69
Jul. 8, 2011, 7:01 pm

Thanks so much for setting this up Jim. The scheduling works great as it fits into Children's & YA July, which is when I was hoping to fit it in. I didn't know any of the back story on the book or how it came to be. 18 months seems awfully fast to write a book, an to think it's become such a classic too! I'll post a link to this thread over there in case there are others who are interested. The more the merrier, right?

5Deern
Jul. 9, 2011, 3:54 am

I'll join you, I'll get the Kindle version next week. I was surprised to see it has so many pages, I hope to be able to keep up with you.

6jeanned
Jul. 9, 2011, 5:24 am

This is great. I'm going to get it set up on the Reader, I think. I know I've got a paperback edition somewhere, but there are still 10 boxes of packed books and I don't want to open them yet. The end of July works for me. And thanks for starting the thread, Jim.

7drneutron
Jul. 9, 2011, 6:40 pm

Excellent! Glad folks are interested!

8gennyt
Bearbeitet: Jul. 10, 2011, 3:32 pm

I'll be following your discussion, though I will probably not have time to re-read the book. I read it a couple of times when I was aged about 10 and 12 (there's discussion on the YA July thread about whether it is a children's book or not - but certainly a lot of children/young people were reading it when it first came out) and then lent my copy to someone and never got it back, so I have not read it since, though I have seen the film a couple of times.

Interesting to read that about Adams drawing on his experience as a soldier in Arnhem.

9calm
Jul. 10, 2011, 3:33 pm

I've found my copy so (time allowing) I'm in. I'll definitely be following the discussion.

10elfchild
Jul. 10, 2011, 4:04 pm

I've no idea where my personal copy is so I have requested a library copy. I might also try to ILL the audio though I doubt that will arrive in a timely manner.

11benitastrnad
Jul. 11, 2011, 10:05 am

I have been wanting to read this book for years so will join in this read. Now to find a copy of the book. Hope the library has one that isn't checked out!

12Smiler69
Jul. 22, 2011, 10:44 pm

So I started listening to the audiobook narrated by Ralph Cosham today and have gotten through the first 7 chapters. I'm finding the story quite gripping, but then my love of animal stories makes me less than objective...

13Deern
Jul. 23, 2011, 3:47 am

For those who finish it in July and want to make TIOLI points: I've added it to the challenge #12 (direction in title).

I've actually finished it yesterday, I had started some days earlier because I didn't think I'd get through 480 pages in two weeks, but after a slow start I needed my daily dose of rabbit adventures and in the end it took me only 10 days. Without spoiling anything I want to say that it was different from what I had expected (in a good way).

Will we also have a spoiler thread?

14drneutron
Jul. 23, 2011, 9:45 am

Yep, I thought I'd get it going today.

I'm at chapter 6, and also loving it. The quotes at the beginning of each chapter are adding more to the story than I remember and I'm enjoying them.

15Smiler69
Jul. 23, 2011, 11:19 am

#13 Nathalie, you're going to think I'm a big baby, but I really wanted to add it to challenge #21 (Re-read a book you read before age 21), because it made such a big impression on me as a child... would you very much mind moving it over if I list it there?

I'm at chapter 10 now and you're right Jim, the quotes do add a lot and I'd forgotten about them too.

16Deern
Jul. 23, 2011, 11:59 am

#15: no problem, I thought someone might already have put it in there, but no Watership Down was to be found in any challenge, and for me it only fit into #12. But as a shared read I can add it anywhere, right?

17jeanned
Jul. 23, 2011, 2:57 pm

Starting today!

18Smiler69
Jul. 23, 2011, 3:02 pm

#16 Absolutely. I'd been meaning to list it, thought I had in fact, since I'm usually so prompt to list unrealistic quantities of books on the TIOLI wikis. But it's there now.

It's silly of me to make you move over, but this book influenced me so much as a child that I really wanted to honour it as such, if you know what I mean.

19drneutron
Jul. 24, 2011, 3:01 pm

I've added the Spoiler thread here: http://www.librarything.com/topic/121024