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Ahab and the White Whale

Ahab and the White Whale

by Manuel Marsol, translated from the Spanish by Chloe Garcia Roberts

$19.95
$19.95
Ages 5–8 Children's Literature Spanish Literature
Format

On the island of Nantucket lives the greatest whaling captain of all time. Call him Ahab. He has long searched for the great white whale known as Moby Dick. Whenever Ahab heard any news of the whale, he rushed off to sea in his ship, the Pequod. He climbed mountains, scaled sunken wrecks, crossed oceans without any luck. He wasted whole days shut up in his cabin. He traveled to the ends of the earth, but still the whale was not to be found. Ahab spent so much time on the hunt that he even forgot what he was looking for! The sea is a mystery, that much he can say for sure.

In this exquisitely illustrated story inspired by Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, Manuel Marsol turns Captain Ahab into a sympathetic, driven goofball with valuable lessons to impart about life, leviathans, and not letting our goals obscure the world right in front of our eyes.

Additional Book Information

Series: NYRB Kids
ISBN: 9798896230052
Pages: 40
Publication Date:

Praise

The Spanish artist Manuel Marsol takes the story of Moby-Dick and turns it into something else, something exquisite, that captures the spirit of Melville's classic while steering us into new and unfamiliar waters. . . I read it several times, poring over the lush details and scratchy, oily, seaweedy textures on every page . . . A gorgeous gift for anyone who loves art and literature.
—Lucy Bannerman, The Times

"Call me Ahab." With that declarative opening (and callback), Marsol establishes a voice both grand and fragile. The first-person narration is spare, rhythmic, and incantatory...Marsol’s illustrations deepen the psychological landscape...A visually arresting, linguistically restrained meditation on obsession that rewards careful readers and invites discussion of voice, perspective, and the slippery nature of truth.
—School Library Journal

In this lush, meditative retelling of Moby-Dick, Marsol evokes a markedly different vibe than the original, rendering Captain Ahab as more dreamer than diabolical. Ahab himself narrates via spare, conversational text that takes a reckoning tone... This contemplative and elliptical take may not cast a wide net, but it’s still a whale of a tale—one in which obsession opens Ahab to wonder rather than sealing his fate.
—Publishers Weekly

A rare treasure of stunning artwork, perfectly tuned text, and a huge helping of quiet, subtle humor, Manuel Marsol has worked Herman Melville’s classic, Moby-Dick, into a thrilling picture book for children . . . In every glorious illustration there is so much to note, and if you look a little harder than Marsol’s Captain Ahab you may find that you capture a glimpse of the great white whale yourself. You just need to look closely—very closely.
—Tracey Corner, Armadillo Magazine

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