Ahab's wife, or, The star-gazer / a novel by Sena Jeter Naslund ; illustrations by Christopher Wormell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Naslund, Sena Jeter.

Contributor:

Melville, Herman, 1819-1891.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Ahab, Captain (Fictitious character)--Fiction.

Ahab.

Ahab, Captain (Fictitious character).

Genre:

Fiction.

Historical fiction.

Physical Description:

xix, 668 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Ahab's wife

Star-gazer

Place of Publication:

New York : William Morrow and Co., [1999]

Summary:

Inspired by a brief passage in Moby-Dick, Sena Jeter Naslund has created an entirely new universe--a vast, enthralling, and compellingly readable saga, spanning a full, rich, eventful, and dramatic life. In the "soprano voice" whose absence critics lamented in Moby-Dick--the strong, intelligent voice of a woman whose life is dominated by the sea--Naslund tells many stories. She narrates a family drama, as the child Una is sent away to live in a lighthouse by her mother in order to protect her from the physical and emotional blows of her religion-mad father. She spins a romantic adventure, as Una finds early passion with a sailor and, disguised as a cabin boy, runs away to sea to encounter disasters, murder, romance of virtually every variety, and, of course, the behemoths of the deep. She paints a portrait of a real, loving marriage, as through Una's eyes we see Ahab before the white whale takes his leg and sends him into madness. Finally, she gives us a new perspective on the American experience, as the widowed Una makes a new life for herself in the company of Margaret Fuller, Frederick Douglass, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and others.

The vision that informs this magnificent novel is so complete, the nineteenth-century voice so eloquent and sure, one feels the author hasn't so much written this book as lived it. She has fallen in love with this world, this woman's life, and her book evokes that same connection in the reader. From the opening line and the spellbinding first scene, you will know immediately that you are in the hands of a masterful storyteller, and in the company of an endlessly fascinating woman hero. You will want to immerse yourself in this world--a realm easily entered, enchanting, and fulfilling--and spend time indulging in one of the consummate human pleasures: reading a brilliantly written, vibrant, uplifting, and deliciously enveloping novel ... a bright book of life.

Contents:

1 A Mild Blue Day 1

2 The Dirge 10

3 The Crossing 13

4 Reverie 17

5 The Window 20

6 The Steamboat 23

7 The Paddlewheel 28

8 The Island 29

9 A Diffieult Farewell 36

10 The Giant 40

11 Winters. Summers 45

12 New Bedford 52

13 Boston 59

14 The Petrel 65

15 A Storm at Night 77

16 The Brightness of Brightness 89

17 A Rose 97

18 Our Lady of the Roeks 99

19 The Return of the Petrel, with Three Letters 108

20 A Comb 115

21 The Fourth Letter 117

22 The Camel 123

23 The Sea-Faney Inn 128

24 The Sussex 136

25 The Cabin Boy 142

26 The Companion 151

27 Captain Coffin's Story

Secondhand 158

28 A Whaleboat by Moonlight 165

29 Captain Morrell's Story

Thirdhand 168

30 Captain Ahab's Story

My First Acquaintance with Him 173

31 Aloft 178

32 "Pardon Me" 181

33 Reunion 185

34 Revelation 190

35 Sea Storms 192

36 The Frost Wind 198

37 Collision 201

38 The Course 209

39 The Distance of the Stars 212

40 The Sentence 217

41 What Do You Fetch for Your Mouth? 218

42 The Beginning of the Debate 222

43 Father and Son 224

44 The Human Animal 225

45 The Alba Albatross 225

46 Ganglion 231

47 Postscript on the Above 233

48 Soaring 233

49 Portrait of a Virgin Listening 235

50 Icarus 236

51 The Test 242

52 The Funeral 244

53 The Contest 246

54 I Am Married 249

55 Aboard the Pequod 253

56 The Hurricane House 259

57 Ahab's Jottings 261

58 Kit's Ruminations 262

59 Starbuck Introduces Himself 263

60 Ahab Overheard 264

61 A Letter to the Lighthouse 265

62 Poor Kit's a-Cold 267

63 Arctic 268

64 Ahab in His Cabin 277

65 Aloft, the Pequod 279

66 Starbuck: Ship's Log 283

67 Starbuck Communes with Mary, His Wife 284

68 In the Steward's Pantry 288

69 Ahab's Comfort 289

70 Nantucket

the Faraway Isle 292

71 Ahab Prepares for the Next Voyage 300

72 Breakfast 311

73 Shame 314

74 B'twixt 318

75 Enter: The Gaoler and the Judge 325

76 On the Moor 330

77 A Slow Spring 334

78 Churches 337

79 Baptismal 344

80 Fire 352

81 Ahab Addresses the Flames 356

82 Ahab's Wife 358

83 A Sky Full of Angels 362

84 Resurrection 366

85 The Purpose of Art 370

86 The Office of a Friend 380

87 Childhood as an Island 386

88 The World of Rebekkah Swain 389

89 Kentucky Seasons 392

90 A Winter Tale 402

91 The Burden 405

92 The Lontern 410

93 Shakespeare and Company 415

94 The Guide 420

96 Forest Murmurs 427

97 In the Cupola 440

98 To Summer 450

99 Wife 457

100 The Mitchells 458

101 Vestal Street 462

102 Ahab 469

103 From Cupola to Wharf 470

104 Idyll 473

105 The Comet 480

106 Frannie's Letter from an Inland Lighthouse 483

107 An Angry Letter from Aunt Agatha 485

108 Letter to an Inland Lighthouse 487

109 The Minister in the Woods 488

110 The History of Snow and Restlessness 497

111 Altar Rock 499

112 Mothering 501

113 Chowder Swirls 505

114 The Birthing Room 508

115 The Leg 510

116 Christmas Eve 513

117 A Last Glimpse of the Pequod: Christmas Day 516

118 The Jeroboam Returns 519

119 The First Part of Ahab's Third Voyage After His Marriage 524

120 Moon Watch 529

121 Letter from Susan 533

122 The Samuel Enderby of London Puts in for Repairs at Nantucket 538

123 The Distress of Justice 542

124 To Siasconset 546

125 The Hedge 550

126 Journey Toward the Starry Sky, in Present Tense 553

127 Sconset Morning 559

128 More of Morning: Tashtego's Feather Makes the Letter S 560

129 The Neighbor Beyond the Hedge 562

130 The Roar of Guilt 569

131 The Return of the Delight 572

132 The Perseid 580

133 The Woolsack 582

134 Letter from Margaret Fuller, from England 589

135 Letter from David Poland, Virginia 592

136 Letter to Beloved Kin 593

137 Letter from Margaret Fuller, from Italy 594

138 The Judge's Invitation 596

139 Mrs. Maynard's Note 597

140 Preparations 598

141 Frannie 599

142 Liberty and the Dolphins 611

143 A Suitable Marriage 615

144 What Has Proved to Be a Last Visit 616

145 A Song 618

146 A Squeeze of the Hand 620

147 Una Preaches to the Waves 622

148 The Great Fire: June 1846 623

149 Reflections on a Wreek 625

150 During the Pleasure Party 629

151 Celestial 636

152 A New Friend 637

153 A Sermon Overheard 641

154 Plans 647

155 Recitation by Beach Fire 649

156 Letter from Susan, Forwarded 655

157 The Roof Walk 661.

Notes:

A novel inspired by Herman Melville's Moby Dick.

Related Work:

Melville, Herman, 1819-1891. Moby Dick.

ISBN:

0688171877

OCLC:

41176629