I can’t say it any better than Richard Adams’ family says it
on their website, announcing his death on 24 December 2016.
To me, there are four authors – all of them British – who did
more than write novels. They built worlds. Adams is among them, and is likely
the most obscure. But his worlds are no less complex, vibrant, and real than
those created by JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis and Terry Pratchett.
More importantly, Adams combines his skill at world-building
with the Dickensian gift of creating characters that the reader only adds to as
he or she gets to know them, page by page.
And while “Watership Down” tends to get most of the love
reserved for Adams, I find most of his other books even better. Particularly,
the world of Shardik – and its heart-rending look at the power of religion
perverted by the evil of men. Many a time as I’ve wandered Idaho’s Lost River
Desert, I’ve created in my mind a vision of the hapless slaves led through the
valley of the shadow by their cruel masters, bending a religion of peace.
(Clearly, it’s been a while since I’ve read it. I should put it in my “to-read”
pile.)
Two books of his I couldn’t read: Traveller, a horse-themed
novel in which the horse character had an atrocious southern American accent,
and Girl on A Swing, which just didn’t fit my preconceived Adams notions.
Traveller especially taught me as a writer you can take a character’s accent
much too far.
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