Moby Dick

Moby Dick (1851) is an enduring classic of American literature. From the perspective of a boat hand named Ishmael, it tells the story of an ill-fated voyage aboard the Pequod, a whaling vessel. With humor and attention to the smallest detail, it explains how a crew came under the spell of the obsessed Captain Ahab, who had only one mission in life: to kill the giant white whale known as Moby Dick.

Herman Melville, born in 1891, was a writer of novels, short stories, and poems. He spent time aboard merchant ships and a whaler, which allowed him to travel the world and find inspiration for his many adventure stories. His other works include Bartleby, the Scrivener; Reburn: His First Voyage; and Billy Budd, Sailor.