Big Book Club's "What the Whale!"
A monthly podcast!
info_outlineBig Book Club's "What the Whale!"
As a special post-Moby-Dick bonus, Jennie and Megan previewed the new book, "Ahab's Rolling Sea: A Natural History of Moby-Dick," and interviewed author Richard King by phone from his home in Mystic, Connecticut.
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And so we come to the conclusion of our voyage... was the destination worth the ride? Opinions vary...
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In this week's discussion of chapters 102-121, we contemplate biblical history and prophecy, and Megan solves the meaning of Moby-Dick once again.
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This week, half of Arlington is on vacation, so Jennie and Pete set sail on their own. The two cover chapters 87-101, discussing the unpleasant topics (racism, whale slaughter) and the absurd (Stubb's nose, the ineptness of whale ship captains.) And with no co-hosts, there's no one to stop them from making references to The Simpsons but also no one to correct Pete when he calls whale bone "ivory" repeatedly.
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In chapters 71-86, no amount of action could keep us from feeling sedated by the seemingly endless chapters on phrenology... Although maybe all of Moby-Dick would improve if read like a jazz poem?
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In chapters 60-70 we encountered bloody whale killing, racial stereotyping and ugly power structures.
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Squid are scary, Fedallah's whaleboat crew are eerie, and and Melville is not subtle.
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Who got the gold star for reading all about whale-fish, including the footnotes? Who is actually caught up on the reading? Who thinks Ahab is headed for a reconning of, well, mythic proportions?
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180 pages in, and we've barely left port...
info_outlineThis week we were joined by return-guest host Gale, who we happened to find out loves horror books and films.
Palate cleansers -
- Gale - "In a Dark, Dark Wood" by Ruth Ware
- Pete - "Chamber Music: Wu-Tang and America (in 36 pieces)" by Will Ashon
- Gale - "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster
- Alex - "Miss Kopp Just Won't Quit" by Amy Stewart