Friday, December 2, 2011

December's Book of the Month: Moby-Dick in Pictures


There are as many interpretations of Moby-Dick as there are splintered harpoons in the white whale's scarred skin, all of which tell a different story, none of which tell quite the whole story. Matt Kish's interpretation takes the form of an illustration for every page (all 552 of 'em) and is both a singular reading of Melville's epic and a piece of monumental art in itself. Like all imaginative readers, Kish creates from his voyages in search of the whale his own vision, referring back to the original, but full of its own mythology and the cultural influences of the 150 years since the publication of the original. As such, Moby-Dick in Pictures provides us with a fresh way of viewing a classic (and is likely to become a classic in its own right), reminding us that great literature both acts upon the present and is reimagined by it.




As ever, our Book of the Month is guaranteed.


2 comments:

Ann Summerville said...

Are the drawings done on an actual page of the book? Very original idea.
Ann

Anonymous said...

'bout time GAB featured Kish. Much deserved, Kish is a phenomenal artist and his subject matter (Moby-Dick) as well.