Carl F. Hovde taught at Columbia University for thirty-five years. An editor for the Princeton University Press edition of Henry David Thoreau, he has also written about Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry James, and William Faulkner.
Gr 6 Up-Herman Melville's classic about one man's obsession with the white whale is filled with philosophy, marine biology, history, adventure, and even humor. William Hootkins' voice is superb for the telling of this great sea story, maintaining the attention of listeners even through some of the less adventurous parts. His intonations convey Ishmael's and Captain Ahab's thoughts in a way that helps listeners understand them and their times. Ishmael becomes an actual person and the Captain's madness is real. The individual personalities of each crew member is apparent. Through Hootkins' telling, the history of whaling becomes intriguing. Students who would normally shy away from this classic will find this format enjoyable. Listeners will gain a new appreciation for and understanding of the novel and Melville's times.-Anita Lawson, Otsego High School, MI Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Top scholars John Bryant and Haskell Springer give Melville's anointed epic of obsession and revenge a thorough revision, reinserting the materials expurgated by early British publishers as well as incorporating revisions by the author and alterations performed by fellow Melville scholars over the years. The result is the closest version to Melville's first printed American text as is now available. Changes and additions are set off in grey type to show readers what was removed, revised, etc. Along with the corrected text, this includes many sweet extras, like textual notes, an essay on the various revisions, a bibliography of the sources Melville consulted, a list for further reading, illustrations ranging from ship diagrams and movie stills to comic art, a map of the Pequod's journey, and a glossary. All that for $19.95 makes this a must-have for public and academic libraries. A grand achievement that will benefit readers for ages. Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.
The great white resurfaces in this gripping, comic book-style retelling. Comic-strip veterans Schwartz and Giordano condense Melville's leviathan tale into an action-packed, 48-page adventure. Despite forgoing Melville's "Call me Ishmael" first-person narrative and sensory details, this retelling closely adheres to the original plot, including some pivotal scenes absent from Allan Drummond's spare but entertaining 1997 Moby Dick. The dense story clips along, thanks to concise but appealingly hammy storytelling and melodramatic drawings, plus multiple panels that quicken the pace. When Ishmael meets Queequeg, for instance, the author squeezes out every drop of suspense: "There in the dimly lit room looms the forbidding image of Queequeg... harpoon at the ready, poised to sink its sharp head into his shaking body!!" Giordano ratchets up the tension with a series of close-ups of Ishmael's terrified face as he awakens to the "savage" in his rented room. The brooding, dark-toned panels exude imminent danger-an ideal milieu for Captain Ahab's doomed voyage. The book also provides a brief biography of Melville, as well as facts about whaling and New Bedford, Mass., the city that commissioned this retelling in celebration of the 150th anniversary (in 2001) of Moby Dick's original publication. Ages 8-up. (Oct.)
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