Watership Down by Richard Adams is a book that brings back a flood of emotions.  So many feels. We did it in sixth grade as a read-aloud and I remember there were times when the whole class, my teacher included, sniffled our way through Fiver’s journey.  The story is about a group of rabbits who flee their home to find safety, but the substories about their relationships, their desire for community, and the evolving definition of home are what make the book so moving.  And it doesn’t matter if you read it in sixth grade or as an adult, this story will get to you.

Some of the best quotes:

• “If there’s going to be a story, don’t you think I’ve got as good a right as anyone to choose it?”
• “You know how you let yourself think that everything will be all right if you can only get to a certain place or do a certain thing. But when you get there you find it’s not that simple.”
• “I’d rather succeed in doing what we can than fail to do what we can’t.” 
• “To come to the end of a time of anxiety and fear! To feel the cloud that hung over us lift and disperse—the cloud that dulled the heart and made happiness no more than a memory! This at least is one joy that must have been known by almost every living creature.”
• “My heart has joined the Thousand, for my friend stopped running today.”

So many feels for me and you.

So many feels writing about this book.  My sixth-grade teacher, Rhea Lindstrom, was an amazing teacher and I can’t think of this book without thinking of her.  If you somehow missed this book in your elementary/middle school years, it’s time to put it on your TBR.  Even better, if you’ve got kids, consider making this a family read aloud for the summer.