Meet the Wolf of the Sea

On Saturday I finished reading The Sea-Wolf by Jack London. I really liked it.

To follow a tangent, Saturday was also a great food day. It started with a cheeseburger combo at In-N-Out in the early morning after watching Greenberg with Aden and Frank. For lunch I made a trip to the Hometown Buffet. I have not been to one since elementary school, and the drought has been my loss. I had to stop myself after a few plates of food because a few short hours later I was going to a Seder meal. Why I attended a Seder meal will be explained in an upcoming post.

Back to the story of the story. By an accident, the literary critic Humphrey van Weyden ends up on the sealing ship Ghost. The title refers to the ship's captain, Wolf Larsen. Much of the book is how van Weyden, or "Hump," responds to Wolf Larsen and his immoral ways.

My first thought is to compare this to the other great sea stories I have read, namely Moby-Dick. Wolf Larsen is a more interesting character than Captain Ahab. Both of them deserve places in the pantheon of mythical sea captains. If I said anything else in comparison, it would say more about Moby-Dick than The Sea-Wolf.

The worst part of the story is a plot line that emerges later in the book. It is not as good, memorable, or plausible as what centers on Wolf Larsen. However, if an expert in sailing ships or other things I am ignorant of wants to correct me please do.

The Sea-Wolf is similar to London's other works. It explores the conflict when civilized notions and value systems clash with harsh realities and tyrannical rule. I liked this book better than London's Call of the Wild.

The story reads well and I recommend it.