Moby Dick by Herman Melville

Moby Dick by Herman Melville
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Ah, the white whale. Captain Picard boldly vouches to have read this tale of a nineteenth century maritime hunt in his effort to claim vengeance against the Borg. Sadly, the tale itself features no cyborgs or phasers; but is told through the eyes of Ishmel; an experienced sailor who is recruited by Captain Ahab to hunt Moby. The story is a long one and we learn much of zoological anatomy and life at sea along the way as Melville attempts to give his readers a realistic experience. The text can be quite contrasting in nature, and the narrative often switches from simple dialogue to a journal and sometimes even to a Shakespearian play to maintain the interest of the reader. It is certainly not to be attempted in one reading; and the reader is often reminded by the author of incidents in previous chapters to refresh the reader’s memory. If you enjoy fishing or historical accounts of maritime life then this is for you; but otherwise beware the white whale.

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