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Moby-Dick: Or, the Whale Paperback - 2002
by Herman Melville; Introduction by Andrew Delbanco; Commentaries by Tom Quirk
Written with wonderfully redemptive humor, "Moby-Dick" is the story of an eerily compelling madman pursuing an unholy war against a creature as vast and dangerous and unknowable as the sea itself.
About this book
Melville's classic was first published in England as three volumes titled The Whale in October 1851. Slow sales of Melville's previously books convinced Publisher L. Richard Bentley to reduce the printing to only 500 copies, and of that, only 300 sold in the first 4 months. The remaining unbound sheets were bound in a cheaper casing in 1852, and in 1853 there were still enough remaining sheets to again bind into an even cheaper edition.
Melville changed the title to Moby Dick a month later, November 1851, when the American Version was published in one volume by Harper & Brothers in NY. Of the 2,951 copies printed, 125 were review copies. About 1,500 sold in 11 days, but then sales slowed to less than 300 the next year. After two years copies of the first edition were still available, and almost 300 were destroyed in the 1853 fire of Harper's warehouse. Most of the first editions have orange end-papers, although there are 2 known volumes with rare white-endpapers.
Because of Nineteenth-century printing practices, and the time-lapse between when the first-editions were published and Melville became collectible, oxidized paper, bumped and chipped spines, and brittle wrappers are all common for even the most expensive and collectible of these books, which can sell from $35,000 to $100,000. Also, expect heavy wear and maybe even minor repair. Another collectible edition is the 1930 first edition illustrated by Rockwell Kent, a three-volume set published by the Lakeside Press with acetate dust jackets in an aluminum slipcase. These range in value from $9,000 to $11,000.
A total of 3,215 copies of Moby-Dick were sold during Melville's life (he died in 1891). Today, Moby-Dick is considered one of the greatest American novels. -Summary
Over a century and a half after its publication, Moby-Dick still stands as an indisputable literary classic. It is the story of an eerily compelling madman pursuing an unholy war against a creature as vast and dangerous and unknowable as the sea itself. But more than just a novel of adventure, more than an encyclopedia of whaling lore and legend, Moby-Dick is a haunting, mesmerizing, and important social commentary populated with several of the most unforgettable and enduring characters in literature. Written with wonderfully redemptive humor, Moby-Dick is a profound and timeless inquiry into character, faith, and the nature of perception.
@greatwhitetale Call me Ishmael. You could call me something else if you want, but since that’s my name, it would make sense to call me Ishmael.
Captain obsessed with finding a whale called Moby Dick. Sounds like the meanest VD ever, if you ask me. Sorry. Old joke. Couldn’t resist.
From Twitterature: The World's Greatest Books in Twenty Tweets or Less
First Edition Identification
The US version, published a month later in November 1851 by Harper & Brothers, titled Moby Dick had 2,951 in the first printing. The U.S. version contained substantial textual differences even aside from the prominent change of title, including 35 passages that were wholly deleted from the English version.
Details
- Title Moby-Dick: Or, the Whale
- Author Herman Melville; Introduction by Andrew Delbanco; Commentaries by Tom Quirk
- Binding Paperback
- Edition [ Edition: Repri
- Pages 720
- Volumes 1
- Language ENG
- Publisher Penguin Group, New York
- Date 2002-12-31
- Features Bibliography, Glossary, Maps
- ISBN 9780142437247 / 0142437247
- Weight 1.1 lbs (0.50 kg)
- Dimensions 7.7 x 5 x 1.15 in (19.56 x 12.70 x 2.92 cm)
- Ages 18 to UP years
- Grade levels 13 - UP
- Reading level 730
-
Themes
- Theometrics: Secular
- Library of Congress subjects Sea stories, Psychological fiction
- Library of Congress Catalog Number 2003272426
- Dewey Decimal Code FIC
Excerpt
About the author
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Moby-Dick or, The Whale (Penguin Classics)
by Herman Melville
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