Moby Dick [Hardcover]

Herman Melville (Adapter), Will Eisner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2003 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

The story of a dangerously obsessed man. Obsessed with seeking vengeance against a great white whale that pushes him and his reluctant crew in a quest across the seven seas. Obsessed with pitching his boat against a formidable beast against all odds and oblivious to the great risk to life and limb. Fully painted by Will Eisner.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Comic book aficionados will appreciate master Will Eisner's latest adaptation, Moby Dick. It may not begin, "Call me Ishmael," but the story otherwise remains true to Herman Melville's classic, with Queequeg, Ahab and the great white whale all making their entrances on cue. The cartoon panels that chronicle the final showdown between the captain and the giant fish are particularly spectacular.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Gr 4-7-Eisner's Moby Dick is simplistic, the whalebone without the whale. Melville's subtleties sink under the comic-book format, and while the cartoonist does a creditable job of conveying the basic story of Ishmael, Queequeg, and Ahab, drama is inevitably sacrificed. Because of the way the panels are divided, it is difficult to know which one to read next, resulting in some confusion about plot sequence. That said, Eisner's cartoons are charged with atmosphere, their sea tones and moody contrasts well suited to their subject. While younger readers may stumble over some of the sentence structure ("Who first sights him shall have this gold!"), the book may appeal to comic-book fans and reluctant readers.

Susan Weitz, Tompkins County Public Library, Ithaca, NY

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Nantier Beall Minoustchine Publishing (January 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561632937
• ISBN-13: 978-1561632930
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,544,498 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

WILL EISNER was born William Erwin Eisner on March 6, 1917 in Brooklyn, New York. By the time of his death on January 3, 2005, Will Eisner was recognized internationally as one of the giants in the field of sequential art, a term he coined.

In a career that spanned nearly eight decades -- from the dawn of the comic book to the advent of digital comics - Will Eisner was truly the 'Orson Welles of comics' and the 'father of the Graphic Novel'. He broke new ground in the development of visual narrative and the language of comics and was the creator of The Spirit, John Law, Lady Luck, Mr. Mystic, Uncle Sam, Blackhawk, Sheena and countless others.

During World War II, Will Eisner used the comic format to develop training and equipment maintenance manuals for the US Army. After the war this continued as the Army's "PS Magazine" which is still being produced today. Will Eisner taught Sequential Arts at the New York School of Visual Arts. The textbooks that he wrote based on his course are still bestsellers. In 1978, Will Eisner wrote "A Contract with God," the first modern Graphic Novel. This was followed by almost 20 additional graphic novels over the following 25 years.

The "Oscars" of the Comic Industry are called The Eisner Awards, and named after Will Eisner. The Eisners are presented annually before a packed ballroom at Comi-Con International in San Diego, America's largest comics convention.

Wizard magazine named Eisner "the most influential comic artist of all time." Michael Chabon's Pulitzer-prize winning novel "Kavalier and Clay" is based in good part on Eisner. In 2002, Eisner received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Federation for Jewish Culture, only the second such honor in the organization's history, presented by Pulitzer-prize winning cartoonist Art Spiegelman.

You can always find more information about Will Eisner at www.willeisner.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars What the...?, September 30, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Moby Dick (Hardcover)

There have been several comic book versions of Moby-Dick down through the years and this is by far the worst. The illustrations are a travesty. Will Esner obviously did no research into whales or whaling and it would appear that his reading of Moby-Dick was cursory at best. If you want a good comic version of Moby-Dick then seek out the Classics Illustrated version from the 1950s.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Grand Master of Comics takes on a classic., January 21, 2002

By 

Daniel V. Reilly (Upstate New York, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Moby Dick (Paperback)

With his adaptation of Moby Dick, Will Eisner seems to be reaching out to younger readers, but anyone who appreciates a great story and wonderful art should enjoy it.

The adaptation is brief, so Eisner boils the story down to the bare bones- Man vs. Nature. Eisner's art is (as usual) amazing. Since his work is usually published in black-and-white, the painted color is a real treat. The climactic battle between Ahab and the White Whale is stunning.

If this beautiful book makes someone want to try Melville's classic novel, then so much the better.

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Color panels bring the classic alive, October 10, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Moby Dick (Hardcover)

It's hard to easily categorize Will Eisner's Moby Dick: this classic of American literature by Herman Melville is here translated to the graphic novel form, translating the story of one man's obsession with a huge whale into a series of color panels which bring the classic alive. Reluctant readers as well as fans of graphic novels will find this illuminating.