Gone A-Whaling : The Lure of the Sea and the Hunt for the Great Whale

by Jim Murphy

In the early days of whaling, whales were plentiful and it seemed that they would always fill the sea. When people realized how much money could be made from whales in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, entire species were wiped out in the rush to hunt these gentle and magnificent creatures. This account is an even-handed portrayal of the exciting, grisly, and sometimes profitable business of pelagic whaling, told from the perspective of young whalers through their detailed journal entries and letters. Glossary, bibliography,index.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

208 pages, Hardcover

First published March 23, 1998

About the author

An American author of more than 35 nonfiction and fiction books for children, young adults, and general audiences, including more than 30 about American history. He won the Margaret Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 2010 for his contribution in writing for teens. Jim lives in Maplewood, New Jersey, in a hundred-year-old house with his wife Alison Blank, a children’s TV producer and children’s book author and editor, his two talented musician sons, a regal mutt, an African water frog that will live forever, and a house vast collection of books..

Reviews

[Erin Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Supplemental whaling history while I read Moby Dick. Concise and short. Written for teens.

[Abe · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best general summary of whaling I've read so far.

[Colette]

This book came in handy as a reference while reading Moby Dick.