Moby-Dick reimagined from the perspective of a cross-dressed female sailor
'Brilliantly written... ambitious, brave, strange' Philip Hoare
'One of the most valuable writers in the world' Deborah Levy
1843. Ishmaelle is born in a small village on the stormy Kent coast where she grows up swimming with dolphins. After her parents and infant sister die, her brother, Joseph, leaves to find work as a sailor. Abandoned and desperate for a life at sea, Ishmaelle disguises herself as a cabin boy and travels to New York.
Call Me Ishmaelle reimagines the epic battle between man and nature in Herman Melville’s Moby Dick from a female perspective. As the American Civil War breaks out in 1861, Ishmaelle boards the Nimrod, a whaling ship led by the obsessive Captain Seneca, a Black free man of heroic stature who is haunted by a tragic past. Here, she finds protectors in Polynesian harpooner, Kauri, and Taoist monk, Muzi, whose readings of the I-Ching guide their quest.
Through the bloody male violence of whaling, and the unveiling of her feminine identity, Ishmaelle realises there is a mysterious bond between herself and the mythical white whale, Moby Dick. Xiaolu Guo has crafted a dramatically different, feminist narrative that stands alongside the original while offering a powerful exploration of nature, gender and human purpose.
Write a Review
Call Me Ishmaelle 9781784745608 Hardback
-
Call me Ishmaelle by Xiaolu Guo
I really looked forward to reading this book. A different perspective on the original Moby Dick story. Chapters are concise and detailed, and easy to digest the themes and story line which offers insight into a young woman's perspective and experience of adolescence in the early 1800s, her aspi…
I really looked forward to reading this book. A different perspective on the original Moby Dick story. Chapters are concise and detailed, and easy to digest the themes and story line which offers insight into a young woman's perspective and experience of adolescence in the early 1800s, her aspirations and the lengths she is willing to go to change her stars. The story looks at gender, chilling realism and exotic cultures and how they collide to provide a different narrative, and different associations than the original Moby Dick story. Im still reading it, taking my time. A perfect novel for those trying to carve out time to read again. Great for coffee breaks during the day to dip into an be captivated by a few chapters at a time, rather than falling asleep at the end of the day. Thank you.
- Authors:
- Guo, Xiaolu
- Year Published:
- 2025
- Country of Publication:
- United Kingdom
- Format:
- Hardback
- ISBN:
- 9781784745608
- Number of Pages:
- 448
- Publication Date:
- 20/03/2025
- Publisher:
- Vintage Publishing
- Language:
- English
- Place of Publication:
- London
- SKU:
- 9781784745608