Ahab’s Wife by: Naslund, Sena Jeter
Hardcover | 666 pages | ISBN:0-688-17187-7
Year Published:1999 – William Morrow | Tidewater Price: $39.00
“Ahab’s Wife” is the richly detailed story of the life of Una Spenser, wife of the famous Captain Ahab from Melville’s Moby Dick. This is far more than the tale of a marriage though, for Una Spenser was an extraordinary character in her own right.
Inspired by a brief passage in Moby Dick, Naslund has created a compelling saga rich with historical detail. As a child, Una is sent by her mother to live in a lighthouse to escape abuse by her religiously fanatical father. As a young woman, she runs away to sea disguised as a cabin boy, where she encounters murders, disasters and romance. Her marriage to Ahab is portrayed as loving until his eventual madness after losing his leg to the white whale. The final portion of her life as a widow is intertwined with great names in American history as she befriends such people as Ralph Waldo Emmerson and Frederick Douglass.
“Ahab’s Wife” is an epic tale told with a loving attention to detail. With compelling characters and an engrossing plot, Naslund’s literary history is a worthy companion to Moby Dick.