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topbob's review
5.0
Unfortunately, Melville’s short fiction peaks with Bartleby and Benito Cereno. However, Billy Budd and Paradise of Bachelors & Tartarus of Maids are also fabulous, the Piazza is fine too.
The Bell-Tower and Encantadas are snores though.
The Bell-Tower and Encantadas are snores though.
imogens_corner's review
2.5
I find Melville’s writing tedious (with varying levels of payoff), and I just don’t enjoy stories set on / around ships. It’s a completely subjective dislike.
aurorepersy's review against another edition
5.0
4.25
I was underwhelmed by the collection when I started it because of the more obvious allegorical aspect of the four stories following “Bartleby the Scrivener” (“Poor Man’s Pudding”; “Rich Man’s Crumbs”; “The Paradise of Bachelors”; “The Tartarus of Maids”). They were still enjoyable stories but they did not compare to the following stories.
I was blown away starting from the first sentence of “The Lightning-Rod Man.” I couldn’t put down “Benito Cereno.” I was fascinated by the more domestic and (maybe) more deeply Romantic set of stories “I and my chimney,” “The Apple-Tree Table,” and “The Piazza.” And what to say of “Billy Budd” besides the many words that are rambling in my head to mean that I’ve read a magnificent narrative.
There are many gem-like sentences in these stories, ones only Melville could cut.
I was underwhelmed by the collection when I started it because of the more obvious allegorical aspect of the four stories following “Bartleby the Scrivener” (“Poor Man’s Pudding”; “Rich Man’s Crumbs”; “The Paradise of Bachelors”; “The Tartarus of Maids”). They were still enjoyable stories but they did not compare to the following stories.
I was blown away starting from the first sentence of “The Lightning-Rod Man.” I couldn’t put down “Benito Cereno.” I was fascinated by the more domestic and (maybe) more deeply Romantic set of stories “I and my chimney,” “The Apple-Tree Table,” and “The Piazza.” And what to say of “Billy Budd” besides the many words that are rambling in my head to mean that I’ve read a magnificent narrative.
There are many gem-like sentences in these stories, ones only Melville could cut.
jpwright87's review
3.0
The questions that Melville has aren't mine. Maybe that's the best way to say how I feel about the man. I sometimes think he puts too much time into setting the scene, but it bothers me more that the substance underneath was predictable and not terribly insightful. Things will go wrong one way or the other and someone will realize we are just helpless animals who have no idea what we're doing. I enjoyed the humor of Bartleby and the slow exploration of the Encantadas, but the rest of it, I hate to say, simply failed to engross me. I felt similarly about Moby Dick, which I think could've really been trimmed down. Heretical, I know, but I think Melville would be the last one to care about heresy.
annenikoline's review
2.0
I simply love it when university lecturers make the students buy (expensive) books only to read fifty pages or less of the entire book. Anyway, Billy Budd by Herman Melville was the only book in Billy Budd and Other Stories I was to read for my university course in american renaissance because our lecturer thought Moby Dick would be too big a deal for the course to handle. Perhaps he was right about that...
Billy Budd by Herman Melville is a story about justice through authorities, in this case the captain among this crew. It is very clear that the author never finished this novella before his sudden death in 1891, however, Billy Budd can easily be read for what Melville left it like. I found the story to be all right, the writing the same and the length no exception.
Billy Budd by Herman Melville is a story about justice through authorities, in this case the captain among this crew. It is very clear that the author never finished this novella before his sudden death in 1891, however, Billy Budd can easily be read for what Melville left it like. I found the story to be all right, the writing the same and the length no exception.
pennepasta's review
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
indieandajean's review
5.0
As someone who has never been particularly fond of the seafaring sub-genre, I found Billy Budd very enjoyable. There's a lot to pick apart here if you have the time and the mind to do it. Probably my favorite of Melville's works.
cleocreads_'s review
4.0
Didn't really enjoy Billy Budd that much. But several parts of the story were interesting, along with the other collection of tales. But I would give him credit for his poetic writing. His depiction of nature gives off an illustrative and emotional ambiance to the storyline.