Happy Deathday, Mr. Melville!

On September 28th in 1891, American author, Herman Melville passed away at the age of 72.

Melville is, of course, best remembered for his novel Moby Dick, or The Whale. But what you may not be as familiar with is his first work, Typee: A Peep at Polynesian Life, or Four Months’ Residence in a Valley of the Marquesas (1846), in which he described his escape from the cannibals! Melville worked in merchant shipping until 1844, documenting his unique seafaring travels all the while.

Though none of his other works ever reached the popularity as Moby Dick, they are still worth a read through. Particularly if you are a fan of realism, adventure tales  and rich description. We can recommend Redburn, His Voyage (1849) and White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War (1850).

As for “The Whale”, it would be perfectly silly for us to express the significance of this book here. It is one of the ultimate classics of American Literature that has inspired popular fiction, music, fine art, poetry, theatre, advertising and film.

Today, we encourage you all to tell the biggest “whale tale” you can possibly imagine! And please remember this wonderfully expressive writer today and everyday!

Write on in peace, Mr. Melville!