That $45 annotated copy of Moby Dick I was sure would be a gimmick

I bought one of those fancy annotated editions of Moby Dick for $45 thinking it would just have some footnotes and be a waste of money. But the annotations actually explained whaling terms, 19th century slang, and Melville's weird inside jokes. I was flipping back and forth every page and suddenly the book made way more sense than any class I took on it. Has anyone else had a so-called "enhanced" edition of a classic turn out to be actually useful instead of just a cash grab?

2 comments

2 Comments

sethp2612d ago

Wait, the annotations actually made whaling terms and old slang make sense? I've literally never had a fancy edition do anything except sit on a shelf looking pretty.

the_river12d ago

Literally never had a fancy edition do anything except sit on a shelf looking pretty" - that's exactly what I always thought too. But this one actually has footnotes that explain the old whaling terms as you read, so you don't have to look everything up. It makes Moby-Dick way less intimidating.