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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
The first time I read this book, I didn't like it. The second time I read it, I was completely in love with it. If you've only read it once, and didn't like it, please give it another try.
I remember this being required reading when I was in high school, but after listening to the book again as an adult I wonder what exactly I read as a kid. I don't remember 90% of this book. But I have learned that if you want to learn everything there is to know about the whaling industry in the 1800/1900's, Moby Dick is your story. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) the audio version I had was a bad copy with lots of skips and stutters which caused me sometimes skip through chapters. At 135 chapters (plus intro and epilogue) it made for a long slog.
Required reading Moby Dick may have been for me as a kid, I can't envision any of today's kids being able to tolerate an hour of the story. I'm an avid reader and it was hard to me!
Required reading Moby Dick may have been for me as a kid, I can't envision any of today's kids being able to tolerate an hour of the story. I'm an avid reader and it was hard to me!
DNF page 200-something. This isn't a review; it's only a brief rant.
Melville drones. A lot. I get that this book has become canon, but honestly, how did it get there? Yes, there's metaphors and stuff that English profs and majors supposedly like. But as someone who has studied literature and writing and is herself a graduate of an English program . . . Melville desperately needed an editor.
Speaking of editors, whoever did the notes for the BN edition was sloppy. There are two Lazaruses (Lazari?) in the Bible: the dude Jesus resurrected, and the other one everyone—including our dear BN editor—forgets, i.e. the one who is associated with gates and Heaven (Luke 16:19-31).
Melville drones. A lot. I get that this book has become canon, but honestly, how did it get there? Yes, there's metaphors and stuff that English profs and majors supposedly like. But as someone who has studied literature and writing and is herself a graduate of an English program . . . Melville desperately needed an editor.
Speaking of editors, whoever did the notes for the BN edition was sloppy. There are two Lazaruses (Lazari?) in the Bible: the dude Jesus resurrected, and the other one everyone—including our dear BN editor—forgets, i.e. the one who is associated with gates and Heaven (Luke 16:19-31).
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
adventurous
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I honestly couldn't decide if I enjoyed this book or not, and struggled to figure out how to rate it.
I listened to it while training for a half marathon... and found myself repeatedly slipping into a meditative trance during the bulk of Ishmael's meandering soliloquies. I purchased the Hootkins narration of the book, which was lively enough to make me feel like I was overhearing a seafarer's fireside yarn.
Ahab was a compelling character who was present for only the most interesting chapters in the book. (Which is to say not nearly often enough).
I can't say I'd recommend this book to anyone. I listened to it out of sheer stubbornness. Maybe that's why its legacy lives on.
At least now I don't have to feel guilty about having a quote from Moby Dick on my Facebook profile for over a decade.
I listened to it while training for a half marathon... and found myself repeatedly slipping into a meditative trance during the bulk of Ishmael's meandering soliloquies. I purchased the Hootkins narration of the book, which was lively enough to make me feel like I was overhearing a seafarer's fireside yarn.
Ahab was a compelling character who was present for only the most interesting chapters in the book. (Which is to say not nearly often enough).
I can't say I'd recommend this book to anyone. I listened to it out of sheer stubbornness. Maybe that's why its legacy lives on.
At least now I don't have to feel guilty about having a quote from Moby Dick on my Facebook profile for over a decade.
A good read, with strong, vivid characters. Also an interesting insight into the whaling industry of the time.
Not much to add to what has already been said. I can see how people love this book! The final chapters with the chase of Moby Dick are probably some of the best action sequences ever written. There is great humor in many of the characters and early portions of the novel and certainly some of the most complex/compelling characters in fiction. I read an unabridged version which included the digressions into whaling history and whale anatomy which actually was great as I was reading during the holidays and could pick up and put down as needed. If you haven't read this... Your literature teachers were right. You definitely should.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The tone was my favorite part - really poetic and flowing.
Didn't actually finish this book. I really enjoyed some of the detail and variety of form, but it becomes quite tedious. This book is intended for a reader whose knowledge of whales is limited to biblical stories and naturalist recounts, and 'the leviathan' has an undoubtedly mythical quality. Unfortunately, to modern sensibilities towards whaling, this book is a difficult read.