The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket

Nov 25, 2025 10:12 PM

Author:Edgar Allan Poe,Richard Kopley,Richard Kopley

Poe found the germ of the story he would develop into ARTHUR GORDON PYM in 1836 in a newspaper account of the shipwreck and subsequent rescue of the two men on board. Published in 1838, this rousing sea adventure follows New England boy, Pym, who stows away on a whaling ship with its captain's son, Augustus. The two boys repeatedly find themselves on the brink of death or discovery and witness many terrifying events, including mutiny, cannibalism, and frantic pursuits. Poe imbued this deliberately popular tale with such allegorical richness, biblical imagery, and psychological insights that the tale has come to influence writers as various as Melville, James, Verne and Nabokov.

Reviews

A first novel of integrity and power

—— Times Literary Supplement

The alert and feeling realism of MacLaverty's story...had a rare purity of intention and texture... a deeply humane first novel

—— Guardian

To deal convincingly with innocence and the impossibility of innocence without being falsely naive...is a special gift, and Bernard MacLaverty displays it with great skill

—— Observer

A performance of great assurance and tenderness

—— Spectator

Larsson's brilliantly-coloured tapestry is worth its weight in gunpowder

—— Figaro

Only Ben Elton could combine uncomfortable questions about gender politics with a gripping, page-turning narrative and jokes that make you laugh out loud

—— Tony Parsons

A very funny book about a sensitive subject ... Ben Elton the writer might even be funniter than Ben Elton the comic

—— Daily Mail

The selections from the greats are generous and well chosen

—— Guardian

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