The Whale: In Search of the Giants of the Sea Audiobook

" kind of boring for such a fascinating subject because it's a lot of Hoare's ruminations about how magnificent and awesome whales are. But all that crap writing aside, this book is totally worth it for Hoare's steamy rehashing of Melville's totally pervy homoerotic whaling adventures and how he used them to seduce Hawthorne. "

" Can't believe it could be as interesting as it was. Great writer. Bonus: Author weaves Herman Melville and Moby Dick into the book. "

" Hoare's obsession with whales results in a fascinating exploration of the whale's role in literature, history, travel, science, and society. In his attempt to understand the whale's ""mysterious narrative power,"" Hoare uses Moby-Dick as his touchstone, but he explores other writers' perceptions and descriptions of whales as well. He is a fascinating, quirky, compelling writer, but The Whale, though filled with scientific fact, will likely interest more literary types. A few critics commented that Hoare's fervor sometimes gets the better of him, and his anthropomorphism irked others. Above all, however, The Whale is a worthy mediation on the power of the endangered whale and the mysteries of nature. This is an excerpt from a review published in Bookmarks magazine. "

" A fine, if at times dispiriting meditation on the (essentially) modern history of our relationship with whales, a history that has until recently been more marked by indiscriminate slaughter than compassion or understanding. At times the book feels like a companion piece to Moby-Dick (how could it not?) and Hoare's biographical chapter on Melville is moving. Despite some reservations - Hoare seems too eager to attempt the clever turn of phrase at the expense of sustaining a cogent argument - it is a fine book, and one that fills the reader with necessary wonder. "

" This was too high falutin' for my taste. Too much literature and not enough whales. "

" I could not really deal with this book. I thought I was buying an informative scientific book on whales. I thought it would clear up any misconceptions I had about these animals, teach about diet, physiology, social behavior, etc....instead I got a book that focused on the horrors of whaling and how the different species were brought to the brink of extinction. While I think this would have been an important chapter even if it was a history of all the whale species, the book was marketed as though it would be more than just this. Oh yea, and you might want to read Moby Dick before you pick this one up. The author constantly quotes the book or refers to incidents in the story....not that I didn't have the gist of that classic but I've never read it so the book made me feel a bit alienated. It took me about close to 6 weeks to get through this ...yet I normally read a book a week so it wasn't a great time for me. "

" this was an interesting, but by no means comprehensive, look at whales as seen and used by humans. Interesting, but ot as biologically or environmentally in depth as I might have liked. "

" Fascinating book about whales, but focused a lot more on the book Moby Dick and sperm whales rather than all whales. "

" Considering the subject matter (a modern-day round-the-world quest for adventure with whales), the book is surprisingly safe and only occasionally engaging. "

" Philip Hoare has an amazing passion for all things whale. A discussion of whale history, biology, culture, and even relgion written with clear parallels to Moby Dick, with Hoare as a modern day Ishmael. If you like Melville, you'll love this. "

" An exquisitely done, natural and literary history of the whale. This book brings to light the human fascination with the whale while also discussing the sad side-effects of this fascination. A great read. "

" !!!excitement!!! "

" A random library find. Long, but stuck with it and learned a lot! Loved the combination of science, history, literature, and memoir. It even got me interested in tackling Moby Dick. "

" Really enjoyed this book - especially as I have read Moby Dick! "

" I hoped for a trove of interesting facts and ran across a couple before getting completely bogged down in what was effectively a history of Melville and Moby Dick. Whew. Gave up. "

" I read this for book club and rather enjoyed it - however I left the last chapter for two weeks before I finished it and I'd fallen off the Leviathan band wagon somewhat which meant that I was all like "WHAT?" when I read it this morning. "

" This one started slow but I gradually got more and more into the book as the author moved away from Melville and more into the natural history of actual different species of whales. "

" Considering the subject matter (a modern-day round-the-world quest for adventure with whales), the book is surprisingly safe and only occasionally engaging. "