Moby-Dick; or, The Whale is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. Ishmael’s obsessively narrates the quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship Pequod, for revenge on Moby Dick, the giant white sperm whale that on the ship’s previous voyage bit off Ahab’s leg at the knee….
I could go on and on about the summary but I might end up just describing the book so I’ll stop here. I am simply going to talk about whether I liked the book or not. Also, I should warn I might end up just disclosing the book to you. Reads ahead and you might come across some spoilers. (In case you are reading or plan to read this book.)
So, before I tell you about if I liked the book or not, I will disclose you some random facts which you might already know, but since I am getting bored in the middle of the day, and I have no one to talk to, I might just go on. So, bear with me.
August 1, 2019 marks the 200thbirthday of the author that remains unread in English language. There could be many reasons behind it, the assumed complex plot of his book Moby Dick that may have instances of gay marriage, slavery and imperialism and existential crisis, would be few of them. It also has a reputation of being dull.
But is it?
Well, I am rolling my eyes right now. I want to say ‘no’ but I can’t. I mean yeah, it’s long; it’s dreary but not so much as dull. I am contradicting myself, am I not? But I have a little mixed review of this one. Yes, the author drags and drags about whaling and finding the whale and you start wondering if at all you are going to see that wale in the book. There was a point when I started thinking that if the whale makes no appearance at all, it would be like waiting for an ice cream cone in a hookah bar. But nearing the end, I mean too close to the last few pages; we do get a glimpse of the so-talked-of white whale. So, what I am trying to say is, patience with the book pays off. I did think to give up on this book midway, but considering the fact that the copy was sitting on my table for soooooo long, I had to at least find out what happens. Honestly, I was literally hooked for the first 150 pages or so and lost myself midway because of the too much delay, in thinking if anything is about to happen or not. But then it all picked up nearing the last 100 pages.
I did find out what happens, partly though. I do know what happens to Ahab but I still wanted to find out what happens to our dear Moby Dick. I mean, I know just as the other books that leave you hanging you are supposed to make assumptions here, but despite reading more than 600 pages, I still wanted more.
So, there you have it, I have mixed reviews of the book. I liked it and I didn’t like it. There is a lot to think about here, you’ll need a lot of patience, I mean a-lot to finish the book even once so the thought of reading it again does not cross my mind as of now. May be later.
So, pick this up! I mean if you have that kind of endurance you really should. thoughtco.com claims this to be one of the top 5 classics that you should read in your lifetime. And I think you won’t regret it. It is funny at the same time it makes your brain go on a full time parole.
I am sure I would have enjoyed this even more if I had read it at some other time. Last month was pretty disturbing and picking this up then, wasn’t exactly helpful. The book to me was more of the right person that comes across in your life at the wrong time. But then that’s my personal experience. I still recommend this one to really serious and avid-avid-avid readers. You are not going to get along this boy toy if you are looking for something casual.
PS: I am weird and I liked Queqeeg more than others.
PPS: I just got to know, with this I make a mark of 500 posts on my page!
Moushmi Radhanpara 
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