Tarka the Otter

De: Henry Williamson

Narrado por: Michael Maloney

This is the tale of Tarka the Otter's growth to adulthood in the country of the Two Rivers. It is also the story of his life in the wild and how he is hunted by his enemy, the great hound Deadlock.

©1995 Henry Williamson (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Daily joys, dangers, and struggles of the river creatures, birds and vegetation.

Descriptions were objective and easily understood. I felt as if I were there observing. The violence in the natural world is described very matter of factly without much sentiment. Yet, I was drawn to sympathize with the struggles and achievements of Tarka and his fellow otters. I really cared about them.
It was gruesome at times, but only as necessary to describe the fates of animals, birds, and fish.
Man seemed like the cruelest of enemies. Huntsmen took joy in the pursuit and killing of the otter. That part, as easily understood from a human perspective, seems particularly cruel from the otter’s point of view. I cried at the end if the final chapter.

Amazing book

This book is sheer poetry from beginning to end while incorporating nonstop adventure. I’d never heard of the author until we found a quaint old vacation cottage to rent in Devon. It was the home of the author - apparently while writing the book. I decided to read it before our trip. Quite extraordinary! We’ll spend the trip exploring Tarka’s stomping ground.

Excellent

Well worth the time to Listen. Both moving and engaging, you won’t want to bothered and swiftly reach the end.

Very British nature story

There's a certain kind of nature writing that I really associate with Britain (England specifically), and this is exactly it. Sort of for children but sort of not, very realistic and trying hard not to anthropomorphize. And maybe that's not my favorite kind of British writing because I just didn't love this.

I can't totally get why. I'm not particularly prudish about language but as a woman I don't love to hear the word bitch all the time (yes I KNOW it is a technical term. But words' meanings evolve and it's not an easy word to hear over and over). It's also a pretty violent book with all the hunting and while that's totally realistic, I just don't personally love it. If you're thinking about reading/listening with a child, just make sure they're cool with the violence. If you're reading/listening for yourself, if you are into nature writing, this is probably a good pick.