Herman Melville's epic story of obsession and revenge, now in a beautiful gift edition for the Union Square & Co. Signature Clothbound Editions line. When Ishmael signs up for a whaling voyage, the dark prophecies of a stranger hint at the perils of boarding the Pequod . Ishmael joins anyway, and meets Captain Ahab, who is hell-bent on vengeance against Moby-Dick, the sperm whale that took Ahab's leg some years ago. Largely panned by critics on its initial publication, Moby-Dick has since been hailed as a "Great American Novel" and, according to D. H. Lawrence, "the greatest book of the sea ever written.".