diff --git a/airtable/airtable.py b/airtable/airtable.py
index 665e710..20382f4 100644
--- a/airtable/airtable.py
+++ b/airtable/airtable.py
@@ -58,7 +58,7 @@ def __request(self, method, url, params=None, payload=None):
                 message = None
                 r.raise_for_status()
             except requests.exceptions.HTTPError as e:
-                message = e.message
+                message = str(e)
             return {
                 'error': dict(code=r.status_code, message=message)
             }