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by: Newton Arvin
Amazon.com's Price: $15.00 Prices subject to change. Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.3
EAN: 9780802138712
ISBN: 0802138713
Label: Grove Press
Manufacturer: Grove Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 320
Publication Date: February 09, 2002
Publisher: Grove Press
Sales Rank: 980315
Studio: Grove Press
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Editorial Review:
Product Description:
This compelling biography of Herman Melville, one of America's most enigmatic literary figures, recounts a life full of adventure, hardship, and moral conflict. The grandson of two wealthy Revolutionary War heroes, Melville spent the first years of his affluent childhood in New York City, until his father went suddenly bankrupt in 1830, moved the family upstate, and died shortly thereafter. Melville escaped to sea in his early twenties, sailing first to England, then to Polynesia, where he found himself fleeing from cannibals, joining a mutiny, and frolicking with naked islanders. Much of his writing was based on his nautical adventures, but his novels were, for the most part, unsuccessful and misunderstood. His only close friend was Nathaniel Hawthorne, to whom he dedicated Moby-Dick. Later in life, Melville had to accept work as a low-level customs agent to support his wife and children. Newton Arvin's eminently readable biography beautifully captures the troubled, often reclusive man whose major works include Typee, Omoo, 'Bartleby the Scrivener,' Billy Budd, and his indisputable masterpiece, Moby-Dick. This winner of the 1950 National Book Award, Herman Melville is 'the wisest and most balanced single piece of writing on Melville' -- The New York Times '....a superb exercise of critical scholarship and an ornament to American letters.' -- Saturday Review of Literature
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating: - GOOD BOOK!
Newton Arvin provides an involving overview of Herman Melville's personal life and literary career in this biography, which won the National Book Award in 1950. In contrast to many current biographies, Arvin clearly wrote this book and did not simply edit his lectures. This counts with me, since many biographies nowadays have the pace and style of lectures, not the elegance and precision of great written prose. The result, in this case, is that HERMAN MELVILLE is its own literary experience, not ... Read More
Rating: - Deserving National Book Award Winner
This seminal critical biography of Melville is by far the best introduction to the life and work of Herman Melville. Arvin's book bristles with intelligence and insight and is, unlike many academic studies of Melville, highly readable. Search for it and when you get your own copy rejoice. Some smart publisher could do worse than bring this truly classic volume back into print.
Rating: - What It Used To Take To Win A Pulitzer Prize
Any fan of Melville's writing who has not read this seminal and still unequaled critical study and biography has sheer pleasure in store. Arvin's intelligence and immense knowledge are seamlessly matched by a writing style that is measured and seductive. Anybody reading this study without knowing jack about Melville would probably be so excited that s/he would have to rush out to buy the complete works. This book is worth whatever effort you have to invest to find a copy. The question is: why ... Read More
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