In the Heart of the Sea: The Epic True Story that Inspired 'Moby Dick' - Softcover

By sticking to the tried and tested Longitude formula, Philbrick has missed a slight trick or two. The epicentre of the whaling industry was Nantucket, a small island off Cape Cod; most of the whales were in the Pacific, a huge journey around the southernmost tip of America. We never learn the reason for this distance and why no one ever tried to create an alternative whaling capital somewhere nearer. Similarly, Philbrick tells us that the story of the Essex was well known to Americans for decades but he never explores how such legends fade from our consciousness. Philbrick would no doubt reply that such questions were beyond his remit and you can't exactly accuse him of skimping on his research; 50 pages of footnotes is impressive by any standards and to give him his credit he wears his learning light. Unlike many academics, he doesn't get bogged down in turgid detail and the narrative rattles along at a nice pace. And when the story line is as good as this, you can't really ask for more.--John Crace

‘Utterly gripping.’ Daily Telegraph

‘Brilliant.’ The Times

‘Superbly readable...elegantly written...a compelling study of the infinite human meanings of the sea itself.’ Guardian

‘As gripping as it is grissly...a cracking narrative, a complex cast of characters and a terrible moral dilemma at its heart.’ Daily Mail