I've Been a'Whaling...

Well, just a brief word here because I've had a very tiring day at work. But I thought I'd drop by to say I finally finished reading Moby-Dick.
Wow, it was quite the book, definitely not for the casual-type reader out there, you've got to be fairly committed.
It's not until the last 40 pages or so [of nearly 600] that they even meet up with Moby!
But when they do -- all hell breaks loose, as it were.
Melville's description of the multiple battles are really unforgettable and worth the wait, in my opinion. It's really a terrific journey.
I think, looking back, what I loved the most was how Melville endowed Moby-Dick [the whale himself] with a sort of cognizance lacking in all the other encounters. Other whales seem to be taken by surprise, but not Moby -- Captain Ahab, in his insane vengeance has been on a one-track course regarding this one whale. He's been dreaming of payback time for the beast -- as Moby had previously left town with Ahab's leg. But, in the end it's been Moby all the while -- waiting for Ahab to reappear.
I'm not providing a review here, since most of you have probably read this book at one point in your life -- perhaps you were even forced to do so, in college. 
I came at it late in the game, and of my own free will.
Now I am sort of "cleansing my palette" with some lighter fare.
A little YA thing by Neil Gaiman, called Coraline.
And it's excellent excellent. Spooky. Scary. Delightfully weird.
So far, no whales -- but a lot of talking mice and rats and cats.
Cheers!
*****