Rabbits (says Mr. Lockley) are like human beings in many ways. One of these is certainly their staunch ability to withstand disaster and to let the stream of their life carry them along, past reaches of terror and loss. They have a certain quality which it would not be accurate to describe as callousness or indifference. It is, rather, a blessedly circumscribed imagination and an intuitive feeling that Life is Now. A foraging wild creature, intent above all upon survival, is as strong as the grass.

The book gained international acclaim almost immediately. In 1974 following publication of his second novel Shardik he left the Civil Service to become a full-time author. color Illustrations by Yvonne Gilbert b&w illustrations by Jennifer Campbell.

He studied modern history at university before serving in the British Army during World War II. In 1974 two years after Watership Down was publiRichard Adamsd Adams became a full-time author. Richard George Adams (born 9 May 1920) is an English novelist who is best known as the author of Watership Down.