Moby Dick...

Deliverance

The only book I have read of worth to my shame is Moby Dick. I found it hard for a few minutes then once I got into it I found that it touched a nerve and couldn't put it down. A great book which seems to portray an instinctive knowledge of everything to do with the human condition. It is an amazing book. I would like to hear others opinion on this book just to hear what they think of said book, and author.

luckat

Brilliant book. The John Huston film is good too - filmed down in west Cork; the strange little church is the one in Baltimore.

John

Absolutely loved this book on many, many different levels. From the general good and evil reading to the fantastic way Melville depicts life at sea (much better than the so-called master of the sea-faring novel, Conrad) and the way he intersperses the narrative with information that reads more like a testbook or a journal article. I haven't read it in years, I must dig out my copy.

Shutuplaura

The film was made in Youghal in East Cork. There is a pub there called the Moby Dick which used to continually show it in a loop. After filming was completed the ship remained in the harbour as a sort of tourist attraction for a while. My dad can remember seeing it on a school trip as a kid. Perhaps the church is in Baltimore though. I actually haven't seen the film so can't comment on exact locations.

Deliverance

I liked the way the author made the reader understand captain Ahabs madness and the consequences over his crew.

He even hinted that the religious fanatic on another ship that they met was totally taken over by superstition and fanatisism by a single crew member which made them almost ridiculous but at the same time the crew of the peeqod were being slowly taken over by the same insanity without realising it. Which made the infectious insanity more real. Ahab became a religious figure for the crew which inevitably destroyed them all bar the narrator. A great book.

The film doesn't do it justice but it is a damn good try.

Dades

Great book.

Source of my current sig - a favourite quote of mine.