A hump like a snow--hill

I recently finished reading Moby Dick. Maybe you've heard of it. I think it's unique among all the books I've read. It jumps around often from subject to subject. Here's what the ship looks like. Here's what we ate. Here's a story about Nantucket. Here's a description about three crew members you'll never see again. Here's some facts about whaling. More about whaling. More about whaling. More about whaling. Here's stuff about Captain Ahab. Here's what the weather was like. It's like reading a blog. It seems like he didn't have an editor to tell him to cut back on anything.

Other things I noticed:

It's over a hundred pages into the book before they even get on the ship, and my edition showed page 595 before the title character makes an appearance.

Even though it's a hard read, I enjoyed it. It's an educational read if you can pay attention to the factual material. Melville makes many stirring observations about humanity and human nature. Exchanges between characters are often funny and/or fun. Some of the language is great, including in the climactic scene:

"Towards thee I roll, thou all-destroying but onconquering whale; to the last I grapple with thee; from hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee."

If you've got the patience for it, it'll be a good experience.