“Captain Ahab was neither my first husband nor my last.” The first sentence of Ahab’s Wife Or, The Star-Gazer sets the tone for the rest of the novel. In language reminiscent of the best of 19th-century literature, Una tells her story of growing up in a lighthouse, going to sea as a cabin boy, her marriage to Ahab, and her later experiences. As she weaves a story that brings together threads from many of the social and historical happenings of the time, she includes personalities of that era as well as characters from Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. Ahab’s Wife is as fitting a companion for Moby Dick as Una was for Ahab, but you may find her story much more enjoyable.
