Richard Adams grew up in Berkshire, the son of a country doctor. After an education at Oxford, he spent six years in the army and then went into the Civil Service. He originally began telling the story of Watership Down to his two daughters and they insisted he publish it as a book. It quickly became a huge success with both children and adults, and won the Guardian Children's Fiction Award and the Carnegie Medal in 1972. Richard Adams has written many novels and short stories, including Shardik and The Plague Dogs.
A great book. A whole world is created, perfectly real in itself, yet constituting a deep incidental comment on human affairs * Guardian * Stunning and compulsive reading * Sunday Times * A gripping story of rebellion in a rabbit warren and the subsequent adventures of the rebels. Adams has a poetic eye and a gift for storytelling which will speak to readers of all ages for many years to come * Sunday Telegraph * A masterpiece. The best story about wild animals since The Wind in the Willows. Very funny, exciting, often moving * Evening Standard * Extraordinary . . . magically well-made and memorable * New York Times *