Watership Down was my second favourite book as a boy. I read it eight times. The Hobbit was my absolute favourite. That he drew on his wartime experiences when writing it came as no surprise. I read the last couple of pages of Watership Down several months ago, which dealt with Hazel's death. It still made my eyes well up. It was not just an adventure story. He invented a religion and a folklore for the bunnies, rather like Christianity it has to be said, but still. When everyone seems too friendly but something seems wrong, it still makes me think of Cowslip's Warren.