Preview

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Herman Melville

By: Elizabeth Hardwick
Narrated by: Karen White
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $11.25

Buy for $11.25

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A single novel, an eternal classic, established him as a founding father of American literature. Now, a century after his death, a popular surge of interest in Melville calls for Hardwick's rich analysis of "the whole of Melville's works, uneven as it is, and the challenging shape of his life...a story of the creative history of an extraordinary American genius."

Hardwick's superb interpretation reveals a former whale ship deckhand whose voyages were the stuff of travel romances that seduced the public. Later, a self-described "thought-diver" into "the truth of the human heart", Melville harbored a bitterness that knew no bounds when that same public failed to embrace his masterwork, Moby Dick.

©2000 Elizabeth Hardwick (P)2000 Books on Tape, Inc.
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"A lyrical and engaging portrait of the writer." (Library Journal)
"Hardwick's own talent for metaphor and no-nonsense interpretation makes this an especially engaging critical account....This work is a delight to read." (Publishers Weekly)
"Karen White performs her job impeccably....This audiobook does the masterful job of informing and entertaining at the same time." (AudioFile)

What listeners say about Herman Melville

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    5
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    4
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    5
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Felt like a Thesis

It has been a long time since I have read any Melville, so I can't tell if the author simply became so immersed in his prose that she lost track of ordinary language or if she intended this piece to be an homage of sorts to his style, but I found myself rolling my eyes over and over throughout this book. It felt very much like a cocktail conversation with a knowledgable but insecure and overcompensating grad student.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful