Tarka the Otter vs Watership Down: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Nature, Children's fiction, Fiction
Tarka the Otter
Tarka the Otter: His Joyful Water-Life and Death in the Country of the Two Rivers is a highly influential novel by Henry Williamson, first published in 1927 by G.P. Putnam's Sons with an introduction by the Hon. Sir…
vs
Watership Down
Watership Down is the compelling tale of a group of wild rabbits struggling to hold onto their place in the world—soon to be a BBC and Netflix animated miniseries starring James McAvoy, Nicholas Hoult, and Oscar and…
The verdict
- Readers rate Watership Down highest: Watership Down 4.1 · Tarka the Otter 3.7.
- Tarka the Otter is the quickest read — about 4 hours vs 8 for Watership Down.
- Watership Down has the widest readership — 21228 ratings behind its score.
- Tarka the Otter runs the darker storyline; Watership Down stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Want a one-evening read?
Tarka the Otter
≈ 4h vs 8h for Watership Down
Want the crowd-tested pick?
Watership Down
21228 ratings vs 2455 for Tarka the Otter
Just want the better-reviewed one?
Watership Down
4.1 vs 3.7 from readers
In the mood for something dark?
Tarka the Otter
a darker storyline than Watership Down
Want something lighter?
Watership Down
an easier tone than Tarka the Otter
Scores by source
| Tarka the Otter | Watership Down | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.7 (2455) | 4.1 (21228) |
| Hardcover | 3.4 (5) | 4.1 (762) |
| Google Books | — | 5.0 (1) |
| Apple Books | — | 4.5 (633) |
Reception
| Tarka the Otter | Watership Down | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 2455 | 21228 |
| Editions | 36 | 108 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 349730 |
| Reading it now | — | 580 |
| Written reviews | — | 21228 |
| Wikipedia attention | 2482 | 36869 |
| Pages | 255 | 443 |