Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme that was started by @Lauren’s Page Turners. This meme is quite easy to follow – just randomly pick a book from your to-be-read list and give the reasons why you want to read it. It is that simple.

This week’s book:

Watership Down by Richard Adams

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Blurb from Goodreads

Set in England’s Downs, a once idyllic rural landscape, this stirring tale of adventure, courage and survival follows a band of very special creatures on their flight from the intrusion of man and the certain destruction of their home. Led by a stouthearted pair of friends, they journey forth from their native Sandleford Warren through the harrowing trials posed by predators and adversaries, to a mysterious promised land and a more perfect society.

Why I Want To Read It

Let me start this post off by saying how embarrassed I am (I am really blushing with embarrassment right now). When I first came across Richard Adams’ Watership Down, I immediately thought that the novel is related to the Second World War because of the the words “ship” and “down” in the title. The first image my mind conjured upon encountering the book is a warship that has been captured or has been blown off during the war. I am really serious about this. This is also one of the reasons why I’ve put off reading the book.

So how did my perception changed? I was perusing my Goodreads To-Read list to find a book to feature for my Goodreads Monday post. One of the books that have been sitting the longest in my to-read list is Watership Down. Interestingly, I just bought a copy of the book yesterday. Imagine my surprise when I read the blurb in Goodreads! I can’t stop laughing at my mistake. You see, I rarely research on books I put on my to-read list. I marked these books for any of the following reasons:

  1. They are part of the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die or at least mentioned in several must-read lists; this is the case for most of the books in my to-read list;
  2. They have interesting and fascinating titles; an example is Natsume Soseki’s I Am A Cat; or
  3. They were recommended by a fellow reader who I trust; an example is Javier Marias’ A Heart So White.

Watership Down falls on the first category. But as I have mentioned, I haven’t done any research on this book. Although I have some inkling on what some books are about, I generally immerse in them bereft of any iota on what they are about. I am reminded of my naivete when I started reading James Joyce’s Ulysses. I tried to pursue the story but since it didn’t make any sense to me, I had to put it down even though I was already midway through the story.

I am getting waylaid. Back to this week’s Goodreads Monday featured book, Watership Down. Imagine how much my eyes bulged when I read that Watership Down is about a group of rabbits! It doesn’t diminish the value of the book to me but I am really laughing hard because of of my mistake. This makes me more interested in the book. On the other hand, I am embarrassed beyond belief that I want to apologize to Richard Adams.

And thus ends my Goodreads Monday post (on an embarrassing note)! How about you fellow reader, what book do you want to read? I hope you can share it in the comment box. For now, happy reading! Have a great week ahead!