February Book of the Month

By FPL_SamU

Staff Name: Libby

Job Title: Library Assistant

Book Pick: Moby Dick

Author: Herman Melville

I chose Moby Dick because it was so different from my expectations. I expected it to be dry and boring, which it was, not to mention meandering and full of tangents. However, it was also moving, lyrical, creative, surprisingly queer, and somewhat radical for its time.

Synopsis: Ishmael gets a little bit stir crazy, so he decides to go to sea and join a whaling crew, an incredibly dangerous and low paying job. He meets Queequeg, a skilled harpooner and they quickly become BFFs. They head to sea together on the Pequod, a ship that had seen better days. The ship Is captained by the mysterious Ahab. Spoiler alert, Ahab hates Moby Dick, a white sperm whale that bit off his leg in a previous encounter. Ahab will do anything to get revenge on Moby Dick, perhaps even lead his crew into mortal danger. You'll have to read it to find out!  

Character Spotlight: Ishmael

Likes: Queequeg, Melancholic contemplation while looking out to sea, whale facts

Dislikes: Ahab, hypocrisy

3 Facts About Me:

1. 1. I think whales are fish.
   2. Ishmael, like Herman Melville, worked as a teacher and on a merchant ship before becoming a whaler.
   3. *SPOILER ALERT* I am the only survivor of the Pequod.

Favorite Quote:

 “And heaved and heaved, still unrestingly heaved the black sea, as if its vast tides were a conscience; and the great mundane soul were in anguish and remorse for the long sin and suffering it had bred.”

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