Part biography of Melville, part crib notes. Kind of set up like Moby Dick, except that Philbrick covers a subject, say, the port of Nantucket, in a few paragraphs, rather than Melville's lugubrious wanderings (therefore, I was able to skim through this book in an early morning skimming, as opposed to getting marooned in Moby Dick at about page 600).
One man's love letter to his favorite Great American Novel. Nathaniel Philbrick claims Melville as his inspiration and influence for "In the Heart of the Sea" and his other award-winning novels. A short book or a very long book review, in either case, highly illuminating and thought-provoking. 4 or maybe even 5 stars.
