Watership Down

By: Richard Adams

Narrated by: Peter Capaldi

One of the most beloved novels of our time, Watership Down is an epic journey, a stirring tale of adventure, courage, and survival.

Fiver could sense danger. Something terrible was going to happen to the warren; he felt sure of it. They had to leave immediately. So begins a long and perilous journey of survival for a small band of rabbits.

As the rabbits skirt danger at every turn, we become acquainted with the band, its humorous characters, and its compelling culture, complete with its own folk history and mythos. Fiver’s vision finally leads them to Watership Down, an upland meadow. But here they face their most difficult challenges of all.

A stirring epic of courage and survival against the odds, Watership Down has become a beloved classic for all ages. Both an exciting adventure story and an involving allegory about freedom, ethics, and human nature, it has delighted generations with its unique and charming world, winning many awards and being adapted to film, television, and theater.

©1972 Richard Adams (P)2019 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Capaldi is FANTASTIC; tech editing, not as much

Watership Down has been one of my favorite books since my childhood. I have often sought it out on Audible, but it was only there in foreign languages. Imagine, then, my utter delight when I searched one day and discovered it, unabridged, in English! It was released that very same day in fact, and even better, Peter Capaldi was the narrator! (If you are a Whovian as I am, and one who thoroughly enjoyed Capaldi's Twelfth Doctor as I did, you may have some inkling of my sheer excitement over this discovery. 😁)

Capaldi does an amazing job with the voices of the different characters. I had no idea his voice acting skills were so diverse and well-developed - what a delightful surprise as I listened! I admit, the choice of tone for some (Pipkin and the mouse, for example, though Kehaar was spot-on) were not quite how I always heard them inwardly as I read the book, but they worked, and more importantly, all the character voices were consistent throughout the book. There was great emotion in the telling and made it a riveting story to listen to, which I did with great pleasure.

However, there is one particular technical issue which I could not overlook. I have worked as an audiobook technical editor before, working on long novels of a similar length. I know how time-consuming and detailed this work often can be, so I generally don't get TOO picky, particularly when the narrator does a terrific job, as Capaldi did. The issue I have here is that in at least three separate places (chapter 12, chapter 13 or 14, and again much later somewhere around chapter 23 or so - couldn't see it at that time), the tech editor missed a splice, resulting in a repetition of lines. The listener thus heard Capaldi read the line, then read it again exactly the same a second time. Now, I used to do this in my own editing as a bookmark to ensure I had enough audio to seamlessly blend tracks from separate recording sessions, matching tone, volume, inflection, etc. The trick was to remember to go back to the bookmarks and listen to the entire sequence, removing one of the duplicate crossover lines. It almost sounded to me like someone removed the bookmarks and forgot to check the final edit of tracks. Once, that's an "oopsie" and life goes on. This happened clearly and distinctly on three occasions, however - though I give credit to the tech editor in that even with this, the actual track playback contained no obvious cuts or changes in ambient noise. (Well done!)

Other than that one issue, my only other note would be regarding the use of Lapine terminology without references. In the book, the first use of a Lapine work was often footnoted for the reader with the English translation. This was not done here. Narrating footnotes can be difficult, though I think this could be worked around by including a downloadable supplemental material upon purchase, consisting of a Lapine-English glossary. Many audiobooks I have purchased do similar things with worksheets or diagrams, or even full workbooks, so this would be no challenge that I can see, and it might make it easier for the listener to know right away what/who "Inlé" and then "fu-Inlé" might be, or "silflay" or "hraka" and the like. Contextually, the meaning becomes somewhat understood, but it is not so clear that a word like "embleer" has a more crude meaning than it is generally used in the book (until the end - I do love Bigwig's comment to the General). Not to mention the names of the rabbits, particularly the does. Capaldi speaks them casually and confidently and well, but I know how they are spelled and it rang true. For a first time listener, though, it might almost sound like he spoke with marbles in his mouth. If I recall correctly, one of the copies of this book that I own also has what amounts to a "Cast of Characters" page, listing the rabbits and their originating warrens/locations. That too could be a useful supplemental download, as would the map of where the Down and the Nuthanger and Efrafa were located in relation to each other.

These are merely suggestions intended to aid the new listener who is unfamiliar with this wonderful book. I highly recommend reading the print copy as well. Capaldi did a superb job bringing this story and these characters to life, and I can say with certainty that tech "oopsie" edits and all aside, I will be listening to this more than once in the future. Bravo! Highly recommended to all! ❤️

Better than what I expected

I always thought this book would be a depressing narrative of evil rabbits. I also thought they would be on some sort of a ship lol. I was wrong on both accounts, and the adventures given had just the right balance of problem and solution.

Excellently read!

Who would have thought

Who would have thought a story about rabbits would be so exciting!!! The narration by Peter Capaldi brought the story to life. His voice for each and every character was just perfect and made the experience even more wonderful. I’m so glad I listened to this audio version. Sometimes I read along with my hard copy while listening. When it ended I had tears in my eyes and wanted to start all over again!

Peter Capaldi's masterful performance!

Capaldi gives a riveting performance. Definitely an enjoyable listen. The story is great. Although it is about anthropomorphic animals, don't be fooled into thinking this is for young children. I'd recommend this for kids 12 and up.

Outstanding narrator!

Beautiful narration of a classic novel. I bought the audiobook for the story but will look for other books read by this narrator. Highly recommend this audiobook!

Great Epic Tale

Full of adventure and adversity. I can see why scholars have compared this to the Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid.

great classic re-read

this is a great stoey a clasic . i enjoyed reading it in middle school and i have enjoyed it again as an adult.

fantastic, just fantastic

watch the movie for the first time as an adult this year and so I had to go and finish the book, absolutely amazing and wonderful performance

Absolutely beautiful!

The most amazing, riveting & enjoyable audible book! The characters and story came alive. The narrator was beyond exceptional and I enjoyed it more than if I was in a theater watching a movie. Such a beautiful story read many years ago and now enjoyed immensely again listening to it come alive. So glad to have found this book on Audible. Thank you!!

As good now as it was then

This is a delightful story, that, according to the author, he made up to keep his daughters entertained on a long car journey. Many believe the story to be allegorical, and, while it's easy to see why, the author refutes that
interpretation. Either way, it's a well-told story of friendship, innovation, morality and survival as the rabbits come together to support the common good.

Peter Capaldi's performance was absolutely brilliant as he infused each character with it's own vibrant personality and voice. I cannot say enough about how masterfully he brought the story to life.