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3.4 AVERAGE
3.4 AVERAGE
4.5 five stars.
Where to begin? This book is a homage to American Whaling. If you ever wanted to know about Nantucket, whales, whaling and all the subtopics therein, this is the book to start with. I was impressed with the scope of this book. Melville has managed to make whaling a metaphor for life, love, spirit, and happiness. I was at times in an adventure novel and at others a reference book. But wait, now its a tragedy and a turn of the page makes it a poem of epic proportions! What a whirlwind of a read. I cried, I laughed, I nodded in agreement and then I shook my head in disbelief.
It started slow for me. I've tried numerous times to pick up this book and read without success. I finally turned it on in Audio and was soon lost in the words of Melville. I think it helped to listen to it being read versus trying to slog through the jargon and prose myself.
What I found most interesting is that the actual story of Moby Dick, the white whale is probably only about 1/3 of the book. The rest is instruction and information as well as a lot of philosophizing. As you listen to Ishmael's yarn you get chapters worth of Nantucket life, the different types of whales, the parts and uses of the ship, the parts and habits of the whale, etc. And then you jump back to the story for a short while with all this wonderful new information to make the journey that much richer.
I can see why it has been debated as possibly the greatest American novel.
Where to begin? This book is a homage to American Whaling. If you ever wanted to know about Nantucket, whales, whaling and all the subtopics therein, this is the book to start with. I was impressed with the scope of this book. Melville has managed to make whaling a metaphor for life, love, spirit, and happiness. I was at times in an adventure novel and at others a reference book. But wait, now its a tragedy and a turn of the page makes it a poem of epic proportions! What a whirlwind of a read. I cried, I laughed, I nodded in agreement and then I shook my head in disbelief.
It started slow for me. I've tried numerous times to pick up this book and read without success. I finally turned it on in Audio and was soon lost in the words of Melville. I think it helped to listen to it being read versus trying to slog through the jargon and prose myself.
What I found most interesting is that the actual story of Moby Dick, the white whale is probably only about 1/3 of the book. The rest is instruction and information as well as a lot of philosophizing. As you listen to Ishmael's yarn you get chapters worth of Nantucket life, the different types of whales, the parts and uses of the ship, the parts and habits of the whale, etc. And then you jump back to the story for a short while with all this wonderful new information to make the journey that much richer.
I can see why it has been debated as possibly the greatest American novel.
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
This was one of those books I had in childhood and never did get round to reading. So part of my plan in my senior years is to catch up on all this which is ongoing. This book did not disappoint me as I loved the characters and atmosphere on the high seas which was often exciting. There were times though where I found bits of the book boring.....like when the author spent ages detailing all the types of whales. However now that I have finished the book and am reflecting on it I realise that times at sea could be boring too so it set the scene well....and I feel I have learned so much about whales!! Then of course they caught up with Moby Dick...action packed....and the end of Captain Ahab....but the narrator survives as did Moby..... so a good ending for me.
I doubted that I’d make it to the end, but I’m glad I did! It’s incredibly clear why readers would hate the distractions from our plot to maritime explanations, but I oddly enough found some charm and humor in these sections along with the rest of the novel.
By no means did I enjoy every page of this book, but I can truly respect Melville’s style and writing ability. This was… epic
By no means did I enjoy every page of this book, but I can truly respect Melville’s style and writing ability. This was… epic
Oh, Ishmael.....how long and unnecessary your prose. This book could have been shorter by half if there wasn't so in-depth a history of the whale. How whales are portrayed in art. Comparing different types of whales to each other. Comparing whales to other sea creatures. Describing exact anatomical measurements of each body part of the sperm whale, and then comparing that to other whales. Good gracious, anyone can be an expert on the sperm whale by studying from this book. The same also goes for the structure of the boat. I understand some of the explanations, to help the reader get acquainted with the workings of the boat, but seriously, he went a bit overboard.
I was not too thrilled with learning the whole process for acquiring the oil. It seemed very inhumane, which for the 1800's whaling business didn't matter, but it wasn't something I liked reading about.
Between all the boring bits, the story wasn't too awful. Ahab was definitely tunnel-visioned through the book, and I assumed that he would meet his fate with the great leviathan in the end. 2.5 stars.
I was not too thrilled with learning the whole process for acquiring the oil. It seemed very inhumane, which for the 1800's whaling business didn't matter, but it wasn't something I liked reading about.
Between all the boring bits, the story wasn't too awful. Ahab was definitely tunnel-visioned through the book, and I assumed that he would meet his fate with the great leviathan in the end. 2.5 stars.
surprisingly, I enjoyed this book quite thoroughly; however, my head is spinning uncontrollably.
How to read Moby Dick:
1) Purchase a copy of Moby Dick and convince yourself you will read this classic after college.
2) Avoid the book because it has small type and thin pages.
3) Be invited to a wedding on Cape Cod and be assured you should go to the island of Nantucket.
4) Go to the Nantucket Whaling Museum, learning about whaling, hold a harpoon, and decide to read Moby Dick because whales.
5) Abandon the book and check out the audiobook from the library with a Walmart-brand Sean Connery narrating.
6) Thoroughly enjoy the yarn that is Moby Dick.
1) Purchase a copy of Moby Dick and convince yourself you will read this classic after college.
2) Avoid the book because it has small type and thin pages.
3) Be invited to a wedding on Cape Cod and be assured you should go to the island of Nantucket.
4) Go to the Nantucket Whaling Museum, learning about whaling, hold a harpoon, and decide to read Moby Dick because whales.
5) Abandon the book and check out the audiobook from the library with a Walmart-brand Sean Connery narrating.
6) Thoroughly enjoy the yarn that is Moby Dick.
funny
reflective